Travel and sustainability

Aim: to look at the problems of tourism, why it’s such a big industry and what we can do to lessen its negative impact on the planet.

Age group: 11-15, 16+.

Number of participants: 14-24.

Time required: 45 minutes.

Resources needed: copies of ‘10 tips for travellers’, flip chart paper, marker pens, quiz (below), paper and pens to take notes (from discussions).

What to do:

This activity is a trail where you will look at different aspects of going on ‘journeys’ through going along a trail of five activities. Choose places (they can be quite near each other) for the stages of the trail. Some could be inside and some outside a marquee if you want to use one.

Allocate two people to run the activity. They will make sure that the five activities all have a physical place and have the materials at them. One will run activity one and the other will run activity four. They can both lead the final activity, number five. One should signal for groups to move onto the next activity.

The rest of the people taking part need to form four groups. Each group will start on one of the first four activities and then rotate after a few minutes.

When everyone has finished the four activities, the whole group comes back together to do the fifth one.

Do the trail. The leaders should make it really clear what signal they are using to move on, and this interval for doing each stage, should be no more than five minutes.

Extension:

Hold a mini-debate:

Activity 1: quiz.

(Led by the first activity leader)

One of the pair of activity leaders reads out the quiz and everyone goes over to one side of a line for ‘true’ or the other side for ‘false’.

[Answers are in square brackets.]

1.Tourism is the second biggest industry in the world after oil.

[False, it’s the biggest.]

2. Tourism employs 1% of all workers globally.

[False, it’s 7%.]

3. For every Euro spent on a holiday in Kenya, around, 25 cents of it stays in the country, and even less in the local area.

[False, it’s 15%.]

4. In Zanzibar local people are invited onto the beach to add a ‘local feel’. [False. they are not welcome as tourist companies say they ‘spoil the view’.]

5. In Bali, cremation ceremonies are advertised as a tourist attraction.

[True.]

6. In Burma 200 people living amongst ancient pagoda trees were given two weeks to leave their homes to make way for tourists to visit.

[False, it was 5200 people.]

7. In some cities where large sport and cultural events take place, e.g. Durban in South Africa or Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, street children are invited to join in and meet and welcome those arriving.

[False, in most such cities they are ‘cleaned up’ and dumped somewhere so no one can see them. Sometimes they are even killed.]

Activity leader asks:

Did you get most of them right?

Which were most surprising?

Activity 2: Why do we move around?

In your group go round and each person answer: Where have you travelled to most recently that was away from your home town/village/city? Why did you go?

As people give their responses get them to stand in groups according to similar reasons (e.g. ‘to see friends’, ‘for a holiday’, ‘to pick something up’, ‘on a trip with a group’).

How many different groups are there? What other reasons are there go away from home? Do some people travel because of difficulties or problems?

Activity 3: Tips for travel

Create “Five tips for travelers” that help people not harm the environment or badly affect the local people while they are there.

Read the ‘Ten tips for travellers’. Which list is best?

Activity 4: Dream destination!

(Led by the second activity leader.)

Leader to tell everyone: “You have now all arrived at your ‘paradise destination’. Walk around a little bit and mime a few things that you would like to do there. Can anyone guess where the other people are?”

Leader should tell everyone to find the nearest person to them.

Compare: Where was your dream destination? Why have you always wanted to go there or why do you like going there? If you have never been, do you think it would meet your expectations?

Activity 5: Tourism – good or bad?

What do you think about this situation? What would you do if you lived there?

Compare what experiences of tourism have you had, either in your country or visiting other places for pleasure?

Are there things in your country that are tourist attractions?

Would your own country benefit from more or less tourism?

As a group try to come up with a very quick list of good and bad things about tourism.

Would you say, overall, tourism is more of a good thing or a bad thing?

Tips for travellers

1) Be aware

Start enjoying your travels before you leave. Think about what sort of clothing is appropriate for both men and women. If the locals are covered up, what sort of messages may you be sending out by exposing acres of flesh?

2) Be open

Something may seem bizarre or odd to 'you', but it may be normal and just the way things are done to 'them'. Try not to assume that the western way is right or best.

3) Our holidays - their homes

Ask before taking pictures of people, even children, and respect their wishes. Talk to local people. What do they think about our lifestyle, clothes and customs? Find out about theirs.

4) "One school pen"

Giving to children encourages begging. A donation to a project, health centre or school is more constructive.

5) Be fair

Try to put money into local hands. If you haggle for the lowest price, your bargain may be at the seller's expense. Even if you pay a little over the odds, does it really matter?

6) Be adventurous

Use your guidebook or hotel as a starting point, not the only source of information. Find out what's going on by talking to locals, then have your own adventures…

7) Ask questions

Write a letter to your tour operator about their responsible tourism policy.

8) Think before you fly

The more and further you fly, the more you contribute to global warming and environmental destruction.

9) Be controversial!

…and enhance your image with a thought provoking t-shirt. Make your own, like Tourism Concern’s 'Avoid Guilt Trips' t-shirts.