Plastic Pollution
Companies that manufacture plastic from single-use items to long-term products can take anywhere from 20-500 years to decompose, and because of its chemical structure, it technically never decomposes but rather breaks down into smaller and smaller pieces referred to as "microplastics". Regardless of its size, plastic can negatively impact coastal and marine ecosystems, harming aquatic life, and can find its way into the food chain, even into us.
Poaching
Poaching and the exotic animal trade are huge problems in travel hotspots, especially in Africa and Southeast Asia, where rare animals, such as the pangolin (shown here), are often hunted for their parts or sold as souvenirs. This illegal trade not only threatens wildlife populations but also disrupts ecosystems and local communities. Tourists may purchase these items without knowing the impact poaching has, so it's very important to be aware and conscious of what your money is supporting, both while traveling and throughout.
Overtourism
Over-tourism puts a huge strain on natural environments. Sensitive areas, like coral reefs and terrestrial habitats, can become overwhelmed by pollution and large crowds. Countries across the globe have been made aware of these issues as a result of post-pandemic travel, so much so that many of them (such as the Galapagos Islands) have implemented a Tourist Tax in response to the negative impacts over-tourism has on these areas and on local communities.
Animal Abuse
Some animals need human care due to physical or psychological limitations, making ethical interactions with wildlife beneficial. However, many activities, like riding elephants or using them as photo props, cause stress and harm to these animals by forcing unnatural behaviors and keeping them in poor conditions, prioritizing profit over their well-being. This topic, in particular, I'm very well versed in and I would love to provide more information to you if you are interested in reaching out.
It's important to give back in any way we can. This effort includes the tourism industry.
The Wildlife Travel Hub is proud to be an annual member of Sustainable Travel International, a mission-driven organization dedicated to protecting and conserving our planet's most vulnerable destinations. They seek to transform tourism's impact on nature and people by working alongside local communities, engaging travelers and businesses in responsible practices, and strengthening destination management. Through
this work, they aim to safeguard nature, combat climate change, and empower communities to preserve the integrity of destinations around the globe.
It is not just the common people, but companies that must do their part and practice what they preach, and through this membership, I give back to impactful projects that support the people and places that make our travel experiences so memorable, as well as utilize their resources to provide you and myself with as much knowledge and action needed to help our planet throughout our daily lives.
Other Partners and Memberships
Planet Wild is a global community that funds ambitious and innovated ways to help safeguard our biodiversity all over the globe. What started out as an idea between three people wanting to give back to the planet, that same idea gained significant momentum worldwide in the span of 2 years, which as of late 2024, has grown to over 10,000 members providing budgets for missions exceeding $50,000 per month.
Every month, Planet Wild collaborates with various projects and documents their stories for members and viewers alike on their YouTube Channel. These missions are not only significant and worthy causes, but they also showcase pioneers in the field. Here are a few examples of the amazing projects they’ve helped with thus far:
- Rewildling Power Lines in Switzerland, building highways for insects to travel through and other organisms to thrive in.
- Creating Marble Statues and placing them off the coasts of Italy, to function both as an art museum for divers and a sanctuary to protect marine life from illegal fishing.
- Building Fences using beehives around local communities in Tanzania to deter elephants, using their fear of bees to help reduce human-wildlife conflict and save these gentle giants.
