Sustainable ways to give back
On this page you can find all of my travel tips relating to sustainable ways to give back and use your voice to change the travel industry for the better. These tips show you ways both to contribute to social causes and to support the preservation of natural places. Each tip links to an Instagram post or blog post with more information.
Most of these tips will be small, easy-to-implement actions. I recommend starting with the ones that seem most feasible to you. It’s always better to take just one small action than it is to do nothing at all, because every small change makes a difference!
Environmentally friendly initiatives to support
- Join a beach cleanup
- Volunteer at a (national) park
- Plant trees at your destination
- Visit an animal rescue centre
Social impact initiatives to support
You can find lots of sustainable ways to give back that involve a positive social impact on the Give Back Guide.
Souvenirs
To help you find the best souvenirs made by locals, I keep adding to this long list of independent gift shops across Europe. If you need more inspiration around sustainable souvenirs and how to recognise them, have a look here. I also posted an example of my favourite souvenirs.
Giving a platform to your experiences
- Share your own sustainable travel tips
- Let your travel stories be a gift/souvenir
- Spread the word about human rights violations you witnessed
- Talk about your sustainable travel successes
- Leave reviews on sustainability
Travel activism
- Stop normalising flights
- Ask travel businesses about sustainability
- Boycott unethical travel businesses
- Join a protest or sit-in at your destination
- Sign petitions
- Contribute to guerilla gardening efforts
Curious about ways to find out whether a travel business is ethical? This post helps with how to do the necessary research.