Am 30. Januar 2020 verleiht touristik aktuell zum elften Mal die Globus Awards für die aktivsten Reisebüros in Deutschland. Zum zweiten Mal ist der Rund- und Erlebnisreisespezialist G Adventures als Sponsor und Initiator des Sonderpreises „Nachhaltigkeit/Soziales Engagement“ mit dabei.
Der Hintergrund ist einfach: Seit der Gründung von G Adventures gehören diese Themen zur DNA des Veranstalters. Ganz einfach ist dies nicht. Denn beide Themen haben sehr unterschiedliche Gesichtspunkte. Und Nachhaltigkeit hat nicht nur etwas mit CO2-Einsparung zu tun, sondern auch mit sozialer und wirtschaftlicher Verantwortung.
Wie diese bei G Adventures gelebt wird, zeigt der Veranstalter auch bei Inforeisen für Journalisten und Reisebüro-Mitarbeiter. Sie führten in diesem Jahr nach Südamerika sowie nach Asien. Dort ging es unter anderem zu sozialen Projekten in Delhi (Indien) und bei Kathmandu (Nepal).
ta-Korrespondent Leonard Gürtler traf bei dieser Reise auf Julie Fitz Gerald. Die Irin begann ihre touristische Karriere 2005 als Reiseleiterin in China, Russland, der Mongolei, Vietnam sowie Kirgistan und Usbekistan. Seit 2012 ist sie Asien-Chefin von G Adventures und hat viele soziale Projekt von Beginn auf mit entwickelt und kontinuierlich betreut.
Im folgenden, englischsprachigen Interview, berichtet Fitz Gerald über ihre Erfahrungen in Asien, Veränderungen im Produktportfolio, die von G Adventures gegründete Planeterra Foundation und die Effekte ihrer Arbeit auf die Menschen und Partner vor Ort.
Miss Fitz Gerald, your first base was Delhi. How did you experience India?
I love India, it touches all your senses and emotions, the vibrancy of India warms the heart, of course living in Delhi is not without its challenges but these were easily balanced by the warmth I encountered on a daily basis. In India they say the guest is God and I can attest to this, hospitality is everywhere across the country. As Regional Operations Manager for South Asia my tasks were varied, working on the day to day logistics of trips on the ground and supporting our Chief Experience Officers.
How have the products offered by G Adventures changed since then?
At that time in India we were new to the region, we had less trips and these were predominantly focused in the north of the country, Rajasthan, Agra, Varanasi, these were very successful programs and we still run the majority of these programs with some moderations today. During my two years in Delhi I was able to get out on the road to audit and research across South Asia to allow us to develop new and improved product with a greater reach. Today we offer 39 itineraries offering all of our eleven travel styles including u National Geographic Journeys, Wellness, and classic India trips and for those who want the epic we have incredible rail trips.
In 2003 G Adventures launched the first projects with the Planeterra Foundation. What’s the idea?
Planeterra projects help empower local communities by focusing on supporting: women, children, Indigenous cultures, and environmental conservation. To create these projects Planeterra works with social enterprises around the world where these groups are disadvantaged due to barriers such as lack of education, income opportunities, or gender equality. With G Adventures, Planeterra selects projects that can benefit from our tours, creating experiences that are equally beneficial for the locals involved in the project, and travellers who visit.
In how many tours your guests can experience these projects?
Planeterra was established in 2003 and has been developing community social enterprise projects to be incorporated into G Adventures’ tours since 2005. More recently, since 2015, this has been a major focus of the organization and 85 such enterprises have been launched to date.
How did the work of Planeterra change since the beginning?
In the early days Planeterra focused on traditional philanthropic causes such as funding schools or healthcare centres, but now focus on creating livelihood opportunities instead, and the ideas that work best are those that are a win-win opportunity for both the travel company partner and the local community or non-profit organization.
How does the cooperation work in detail?
Planeterra works with G Adventures to determine what kinds of services would be needed for tours and that G could support with ongoing tours and a good number of customers, and helps the local community partner to develop the service – such as a meal, a cultural experience, a transport service, an accommodation. Planeterra also provides a grant for training and infrastructure improvements so that the local organization can become a service provider and start earning a regular income to invest in their social programs or community development initiatives.
What obstacles did you encounter?
There are many obstacles to working directly with rural communities and non-profit organizations who have not been involved in tourism before. These can include lack of experience operating a business, lack of resources, education levels of community members, etcetera, all of which make it difficult for a business or tour operator to work directly with communities without an intermediary such as Planeterra.
Sounds like a lot of responsibility.
Absolutely. But it works. With community development experts on staff, as well as being the non-profit partner of G Adventures, Planeterra is able to play the role of understanding both the travel company needs and the community needs and work with both to ensure the relationships are set up for success as well as provide ongoing monitoring and assistance where needed.
Is one of the projects particularly close to your heart?
I am very proud of our projects and have been fortunate to experience many of them. If I have to pick one I would go with Sthree Craft Shop and Cafe in Sri Lanka.
Tell us about this project.
We have partnered with an organisation called Women’s Development Centre in Kandy, their focus is to combat violence against women and empower the as equal members of society through the programs they offer, Sthree being one of these. Sthree is a handicraft shop for women entrepreneurs that creates opportunities for women to produce and reach a market for their products. Planeterra provided a catalyst grant to the Women’s Development Centre to revamp the craft shop and outfit a working kitchen in the space. A dining area was established to host G Adventures travellers, creating a steady stream of income and customers at the Sthree Craft Shop and Café. Women and youth serve up breakfast, lunch and high tea to our travellers, as they learn more about the amazing work that the Women’s Development Centre does across Sri Lanka.
In Delhi you developed “Woman on Wheels”. Is it possible to transfer this to other cities or countries?
Absolutely! Woman on Wheels as a model of social Enterprise provides a livelihood and dignity for the women, creating positive impact on their families and communities. So we are very happy to support through providing transfers from airport to hotel on our trips. And that works: From small beginnings in Delhi Women on Wheels project has expanded to other Indian cities including Jaipur, Kolkata and Ahmadabad with the intention of further expansion and international opportunities have been also considered.
You offer a lot of homestay. What do guests expect from that?
Authentic experiences with a local family, guests expect to have unforgettable experiences learning about local life and living, tasting the food in a family home which is very different from any restaurant, they expect a sharing of cultures between them and the host family and to come away feeling that both parties are richer for the exchange.
What is your personal favorite destination in Asia?
Now that is the million dollar question, it is such a richly diverse region and pinpointing one country or area would be quite impossible. I live in Bangkok, Thailand, and absolutely love the city and country, when I want a short break, I will head to one of the islands or to the hills in the north or take a short journey across the border to Siem Reap. When I want to chase adventure on the roads less traveled then I love to head towards central Asia – Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan. When I am after really good food, you cannot go wrong in Japan or China and for colour and flair then India always draws me back. Sorry I am just not able to narrow it down further.