Ecotours

ASK THE RIGHT QUESTIONS OF AN ECOTOUR OPERATOR

Carbon offset: unlimited tonnes

Goal — As writer Katharine Fletcher found out in the spring/summer 2008 issue of Checkerspot, asking questions can be a traveller's best tool to determine whether ecotourism operators are authentically green or just using sustainability as a marketing ploy. Here's a list of questions to help you decipher whether your prospective tour company lives up to their "eco" title.

	Photo: Buddy Mays/Corbis

Action — Don't be shy; spending money and time on a getaway means you deserve to know what you're getting into. So go ahead, read or download our list and ask away! Questions to ask an ecotour operator:

• How do you handle your waste?
• How do you conserve water?
• How do you cut down on energy use?
• Do you support the local community by using locally produced goods and hiring local employees? If so, please give me some examples.
• Tell me what you are most proud of with regards to your commitment to the local environment?
• What do you think you could improve upon?
• Finally, do you have a written policy that affirms all of the things you have just told me?

Results and Impacts — Putting your dollar where your morals lie is one of the best ways to live a climate-friendly life. Supporting true ecotourism operators ensures not only that other companies follow suit but that you have a better experience, too!