Winter 2022 Newsletter — Travel With Ann

Recent Innovations in Travel

The Adventure Travel Trade Association (ATTA), the largest global network of adventure travel leaders, made a very carefully planned return to in-person gatherings by hosting AdventureELEVATE in Sedona, AZ in November 2021. I was fortunate to be among the attendees.

It's been almost two years since the pandemic brought the travel and tourism sector to a grinding halt. Many individuals no longer work in the industry, and businesses have closed their doors. Reopenings in many locations have frequently been "fits and starts". In other parts of the world, reopening remains an aspiration, not a current reality.

However, for many in travel and tourism, the past 22 plus months have also been a time of reflection, reexamination of priorities, and innovation. All three were central ingredients of AdventureELEVATE. In event attendee and Travel Past 50 author Kristin Henning's article Reviving Travel, Kristin gives us an exciting glimpse into the creativity and focus of an array of companies and destinations committed to centering local people and host communities; engaging and elevating more diverse voices; and actively protecting our natural environments.

Getting to know many of the individuals mentioned in Kristin’s article was a personal event highlight. Their stories and actions, as well as those of many other attendees, continue to inspire and motivate me. I hope they will do the same for you.

*Photo from Ann Becker, San Juan Comalapa, Guatemala*

Interview with Dr. Vincie Ho,

RISE Travel Institute Founder and Executive Director

Last year I participated in the RISE Travel Institute's Pilot Program on Sustainable Tourism and Anti-Oppression. Founder and Executive Director, Dr. Vincie Ho, and her colleagues delivered top quality educational resources coupled with facilitated discussions for students, travel professionals and travelers who want to travel in sustainable, equitable and ethical ways.

In this interview, Vincie gives us insight into why, in the midst of a pandemic, she started RISE; where it’s heading; and tips for each of us to become more responsible travelers.

Tell us about what inspired you to start the RISE Travel Institute.

I’m an educator and I’m passionate about travel and social justice. While there has been an increasing number of articles and webinars on sustainable travel available online, I felt there was the need for a curriculum that addresses all aspects of sustainability in the context of travel, like a one-stop shop for educational resources for travelers. I also felt that the anti-oppression piece was often left out of conversations about sustainability, and it was my goal to tie our discussions of sustainability to social, animal and environmental justices, as well as power, privilege, accessibility, equity and inclusion. It sounded rather counterintuitive to start a ‘travel institute’ in the middle of the pandemic when no one could travel, but to me, it was actually the best time to start educating people so they know how to travel more mindfully when travel is possible again.

What is on the horizon for RISE?

2022 will be an exciting year for RISE. We’re expanding our curriculum with two offerings of our Flagship Certificate Program in Sustainability and Anti-Oppression in Travel, a new teacher training program as well as five additional thematic courses and eight new destination courses. Some of our thematic courses include Ethical Storytelling for Travelers, Ocean Travel: Sustainability and Conservation; and Travel and Migration. Our destination courses, officially named the ‘Conscious Travel series’, will take our students on a profound journey in some popular travel destinations, such as Guatemala, Costa Rica, Bhutan, Thailand, South Africa, and Peru. Our inaugural Experiential Journey to Guatemala will take place in summer 2022, where our alumni will get a chance to experience firsthand what it means to be a true sustainability and anti-oppression advocate while traveling.

For a few of Vincie's practical tips for travelers and thoughts on ethical travel in the midst of a pandemic, check out our complete interview on the Travel with Ann Experiential website.

The first 2022 Flagship Certificate Program begins on February 21. If you are interested, I encourage you to enroll today!

Book Recommendation: 'How the Word is Passed' by Clint Smith

In his inaugural work of non-fiction, How the Word is Passed: A Reckoning with the History of Slavery Across America, Clint Smith is our tour guide as we visit seven sites and grapple with the history and stories we learn or tell ourselves to this day.

Smith did extensive historical research that provides us with invaluable context for locations such as the Monticello Plantation in Virginia, Alabama’s Angola Prison and New York City.

In addition, through artfully weaving conversations and stories of the people he met at each site with his own personal reflections, Smith shares many deceptions about slavery, shows us what's been "hiding in plain sight" and elevates the truth-telling.

"....I’m left wondering if we are all just patchworks of the stories we’ve been told. What would it take–what does it take- for you to confront a false history even if it means shattering the stories you have been told throughout your life? Even if it means having to fundamentally reexamine who you are and who your family has been? Just because something is difficult to accept doesn’t mean you should refuse to accept it. Just because someone tells you a story doesn’t make that story true.”

How does each one of us pass the word on?

Surfing for a Cause

*Photo from the* *Bodhi Surf + Yoga* *website*

Check out my most recent Impact story about Bodhi Surf + Yoga, a certified B Corporation in Bahia Ballena-Uvita, Costa Rica, and their The First Annual Bodhi Surf + Yoga Surf-A-Thon . The initiative raised more than US$5,600 for the Stanford + SOMOS English Language and Environmental Leadership program (SELAL), an experiential learning program dedicated to equipping youth living in the area with education and training to better access local employment in sync with the area’s sustainable development priorities.
MAKING WAVES FOR THE BAHIA BALLENA- UVITA COMMUNITY

Do your little bit of good where you are;
it’s those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world.

Archbishop Desmond Tutu