As a sustainable traveller, I am conscious about the impact of travel on local communities and try to focus on giving back to locals through my consumption choices – be it dining at community run restaurants, buying handmade souvenirs by marginalised communities or engaging in workshops to understand local living better. I also live in home-stays where possible. Research shows over 79% travellers are conscious about the impact of travel on local communities and want to consciously support them. Young people learn from community travel as they recognise global citizenship and global responsibility. They also build social skills and deepen connection with locals. There’s also a boost in cultural awareness and empathy. On my recent trip to Central America with G Adventures, I was intrigued to see community centric activities within the itinerary through the G for Good moments. I didn’t have to figure ways to give back to the community, G Adventures had already incorporated community centric activities in the plan which helped me to learn more about locals and connect with them better.The G Adventures trip guides – Juan and Enrique explained the workshops and impact on local communities to us when we were engaging in the activities. It was also great to see how G Adventures had supported the local communities over an extended amount of time to create a tangible impact on them and shaped tourism in the region. The first community experience I had in Central America was the San Antonio Women’s Pottery Cooperative. In San Antonio, women’s education is not prioritised. Women have started a pottery collective where they also serve lunch. At this G for Good initiative, we learned to make local clay pots the traditional Mayan way and had Latin American food. The experience was unforgettable as we learned about local Mayan culture and understood the struggles of women in the region firsthand. The experience made me feel responsible to learn about traditional crafts across the world or support them to take their legacy forward. According to research, if a craft isn’t practiced over two consecutive generations, the skills are not carried forward to future generations. Another memorable community experience was the women led El Manglar restaurant in Guatemala founded by the Cayo Quemado Women’s Community. I learned about how the workshop has a direct impact in empowering local women in the community and encouraging women to start their own community centric enterprises. G Adventures has consciously supported the El Manglar project since its founding. At the El Manglar project I learned to make vegan ceviche using sweet potato and pineapples. It was a fun experience to learn from the locals. Food is a great source to understand local life and ingredients which are key to life in the region. Through the El Manglar experience we learned about sustainability initiatives for marine life in the region. In the Panajachel region of Guatemala, I also stayed with a local family at the Posadas Mayas homestay run by a Planeterra community tourism project. I interacted with a local family and observed a simple way to live. They had very little but they were willing to give us so much. It was eye opening. Since the family only spoke Spanish, I was able to brush up my language skills by speaking Spanish and learning the daily words on Google translate. I learned about the local life and struggles through the family and built deeper empathy and wished I could give back more. I also observed how local communities benefit from tourism and it creates more opportunities for them. It was a good way to travel. The best part was I didn’t have to actively plan these experiences as they were a part of the G Adventures itinerary through their G for Good Moments. In Puesta Del Sol in Ometepe Island in Nicaragua, I stayed in the rural village of La Paloma. Planeterra foundation helped launch the project and trained the community to host G Adventures travellers. The experience of knowing locals closely in Nicaragua was interesting. G Adventures introduced me to a unique way to travel by giving back to local communities through planned activities and workshops. I had previously not known about local community centric experiences which G Adventures had planned. It was also an interesting way to interact with locals while travelling – specially in a less explored country like Nicaragua (which has many misconceptions connected to it). Travelling also helped me break free from misconceptions and see the country for what it truly is. I truly wish more young people travel across Central America to learn about local living and culture which is significantly different compared to the United States and Canada. Travelling is a great way for people to learn about privilege and give back to the local communities. Travelling to Central America made me feel responsible about the impact of my tourism choices on local communities. I also learned many young students who travel to Central America with G Adventures build their university projects on Central America. They also stay in touch with local communities and choose to return to the home-stays every once in a while to give back to them. It’s a big connected world and travelling opens your eyes and makes you realise that!
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Ashoka chapter and does not reflect the views of Her Campus.