Awake Travel inspires tourists to enrich their travel experiences by making ethical choices and empowering the communities they visit. The project exposes the negative economic, environmental and social impacts of mass tourism and promotes alternatives that enable tourists to embrace, understand and connect with local communities.
By choosing to travel in this new way, tourists will not only support the people they visit but make life-changing discoveries along the way, creating “better places for people to live, and better places for people to visit.”
Problem space
Travel has an incredible potential to enrich lives and empower communities, but modern tourism usually does more harm than good. Mass travel often deepens inequality, destroys the environment, intensifies pollution, reinforces harmful economic policies and degrades local culture.
Because the tourism industry market is lead by multinational organizations, tourist dollars rarely trickle down to the local people. Rather, international hotel chains and tour operators often operate at the expense of locals, who cannot compete with the quality or scale of big players. It is estimated that up to 50-80 percent of all-inclusive resorts end up out of the country through foreign-owned businesses, imported goods, and promotional spending.
By choosing to travel in this new way, tourists will not only support the people they visit but make life-changing discoveries along the way, creating “better places for people to live, and better places for people to visit.”
Problem space
Travel has an incredible potential to enrich lives and empower communities, but modern tourism usually does more harm than good. Mass travel often deepens inequality, destroys the environment, intensifies pollution, reinforces harmful economic policies and degrades local culture.
Because the tourism industry market is lead by multinational organizations, tourist dollars rarely trickle down to the local people. Rather, international hotel chains and tour operators often operate at the expense of locals, who cannot compete with the quality or scale of big players. It is estimated that up to 50-80 percent of all-inclusive resorts end up out of the country through foreign-owned businesses, imported goods, and promotional spending.
Goals and objectives
1. Awareness
Awake Travel will bring awareness to the negative consequences of the travel industry by creating materials that will inform the public about the problems of traditional travel. Answering questions like: What is awake travel? Who is an awake traveler? How can travelers be more “awake”?
1. Awareness
Awake Travel will bring awareness to the negative consequences of the travel industry by creating materials that will inform the public about the problems of traditional travel. Answering questions like: What is awake travel? Who is an awake traveler? How can travelers be more “awake”?
2. Connection & Inspiration
As travelers become aware of ethical practices on the road and document their lives & thoughts, they will be inspired to be creative, explore and experiment with everyday life. Travelers will be encouraged to research before traveling, enjoy the moment, explore, keep meaningful memories and take on challenges.
Awake Travel Journals
Awake Travel includes a series of guide books inspiring travelers to explore the world ethically. These guides outline, culture, history, cuisine, interesting facts, travel tips and language of each country while suggesting socially responsible lodging in each region. They encourage travelers through ethical challenges, inspiring quotes, personal research and creative journaling. The first edition in the series is “Colombia”, my beautiful country.
As travelers become aware of ethical practices on the road and document their lives & thoughts, they will be inspired to be creative, explore and experiment with everyday life. Travelers will be encouraged to research before traveling, enjoy the moment, explore, keep meaningful memories and take on challenges.
Awake Travel Journals
Awake Travel includes a series of guide books inspiring travelers to explore the world ethically. These guides outline, culture, history, cuisine, interesting facts, travel tips and language of each country while suggesting socially responsible lodging in each region. They encourage travelers through ethical challenges, inspiring quotes, personal research and creative journaling. The first edition in the series is “Colombia”, my beautiful country.
