Eco Lodges

While on your travels abroad to save the environment, a lot of the programs offer accommodations in the form of ecolodges. What is an ecolodge, and where can you find them?

An ecolodge is defined by three main components, according to a study done by the IFC Environment, the three components are: the conservation of lands in and around the ecolodge, benefits to the local communities, and interpretation to locals as well as visitors.

Ecolodges are becoming more popular as the world of Ecotourism grows. Ecotourism has brought about travelers who are interested in being more responsible when it comes to the environment. They worry about the well-being of the country and the community they visit. As ecotourism grows, the need for more ecolodges grows as well.

Ecolodges are usually located in remote areas, but are still somewhat "luxurious and comfortable,"according to the Info Hub Specialty Travel Web site. The site also offers locations of ecolodges all around the world and the different aspects offered.

For example, I checked out a location in the Greek islands because I stayed in a little hotel there before I had ever discovered the idea of an ecolodge.

The Avdou Villas is a ecolodge in Crete. The villas rest on an organic farm in the Lagada Valley. The grounds are covered with olive trees,tangerines, apricot trees, kiwis, and a vegetable garden.

Guests are offered an apartment- like lodge with an electric kitchen. Some of the activities offered include horseback riding, cave tours, hiking, biking, and sea swims. There is also golf courses and an archaeological site.

The Web site offers information about all different sorts of ecolodges for the responsible traveler in places like India, Russia,Iceland,Tanzania, Mexico, or in the US.

All photos taken on my trip to Greece, island of Mykonos.

"Sustainable Energy in Motion"

I recently reported on Native American traditions and the way that those traditions shape a green lifestyle. When I saw that there was an opportunity to learn more about Native American traditions through Green Earth Travel, I figured I should tell you guys about it.

Green Earth Travel is an organization that is dedicated to providing people with travel opportunities that are environmentally friendly and conform to vegetarian/vegan travelers.

Green Earth Travel offers eco-trips,spas,accommodations,fitness,or cruises that wont force you to alter your lifestyle if you are a vegetarian or vegan.

One of the trips they offer,"Sustainable Energy in Motion," is a cycling tour through Oregon. The part that caught my attention is that the riders will spend time with Native Americans in their own communities. You will learn about traditional building techniques and work with salmon restoration.


The riders will stop off in different eco-villages and learn about different aspects of green living. Some of these aspects include, "permaculture, alternative building, appropriate technology and sustainable energy," according to the Web site.

The permaculutre sustainability tour that the cyclists will participate in and learn about includes, "a rainwater catching system, organic gardening, permaculture landscaping, a photovoltaic electric system, a passive solar hot water system, constructed wetlands, composting, fluorescent lighting, and natural building practices (straw bale walls, earthen plaster, passive solar design, and use of recycled and sustainably harvested lumber)," according to the Web site.


You can register for the bike trip online at the Green Earth Travel Web site, the tour can be one to three weeks long, and you bike somewhere between 10 to 70 miles a day.

If you are not the strongest of cyclists, but are interested in the trip, the Web site advises that the coastal ride is less intense of the two bike tours offered.

Organic Farming in Brazil

My friend Jessica De La Ossa and I are going to South America after we graduate in December and we have been looking into some possible volunteer opportunities we could possibly participate in for the time we are there.

I found Casa Do Caminho while I was looking up cheap programs we could give a hand to. This program will pay for your food and lodging in return for your help. This would be perfect for backpackers who are just passing through. You can stay as long as you like if you are helping out each day.

Casa Do Caminho offers a handful of different volunteer opportunities, but the one that caught my eye was the organic farming program.

You would be working on the farm for about six hours a day. The international volunteers will be teaching you the basics of organic farming. The farm in located on the edge of the Tingau Reserve in Brazil. The surroundings are mostly green mountains.

The goals of this organic farm that you would be contributing to include: healthy, natural, food to the local children, and an education to the surrounding farmers and residents about organic farming and sustainability. The primary focus of the organic farm is to ensure that the farmers and children can continue the farm once volunteers have moved on. The area is impoverished, and a healthy flourished farm will provide fresh food year round.

The program needs volunteers that know about farming and agriculture, but they will take any volunteers with or without farming experience.

The farm could also use farming tools like hoes and plows and help with the water irrigation system.

The organic farm began in February 2007 and the volunteers have already had successful vegetable growth like cucumbers. The members of the program teach volunteers about cultivating the land and planting seeds while not abusing the soil.

The farm uses only organic material to enrich the soil of the land and produce quality, natural food for the locals.

Jessica spent last summer in the less fortunate area of Fortaleza, Brazil and she wants to volunteer this summer to take care of some of the problems she saw during her last stay. Jessica explains that an organic farm would be extremely beneficial to the areas she saw in Brazil.

Jessica explained that there was a definite concern with the sanitation of the foods and she believes an organic farm would be very beneficial to the poor communities.

"People cannot afford to buy organic foods there, they are not always eating the most sanitary things," said Jessica. She thinks that if people were capable of growing their own organic foods it would keep food contamination under control, although she still thinks expenses would be a problem without the help of volunteers. She also thinks that giving these kids something to do other than roam the streets begging for food would help the overall moral of the community and the future of these children.


All pictures credited to Jessica De La Ossa. Taken in Fortaleza, Summer2007.

Not So Far Away

I know most of the programs I have been blogging about are opportunities to save the environment out of the US so you can get some travel experience, but I found out about an organization that offers trips all over the US.

This is perfect for those of you that are interested in travel and environmental issues but maybe you don't have enough money to go overseas, or maybe you aren't ready to leave the country for months at a time.

The program is called Student Conservation Association. SCA offers internships all over the US that aim to provide hands on experience in the field so interns can pump up their resume,receive financial benefits, and learn about conserving our natural world.

Some of the internships offered include:

Hudson Valley AmeriCorps Program- According to the SCA Web site this program is "dedicated to recognizing, preserving and interpreting the nationally significant historical, cultural and natural resources of New York's Hudson Valley."


Mount Rainier Recovery- This park was hit by a storm last fall and suffered damages from rain floods, this opportunity would allow interns to work in the park in order to restore it to its pre-storm condition.

Native Plant Corps- This program wants volunteers to learn about preserving native plant communities. According to the SCA Web site, this program is dedicated to "inventory & monitoring, invasive plant control, seed collection, propogation, revegetation, herbaria and public outreach."


There are opportunities from coast to coast to choose from. You can go to New Hampshire and work with conservation teams there, you can go and clean up the nature trails in Florida, or for all you native to Arizona, El Centro in not too far away, and there is a desert conservation team located there.


The great thing about SCA is that it is all about the students, but that does not mean you still have to actually be in school, it mean that you would all be students learning from professionals out in the fields. It has opportunities for people in high school, and offers career opportunities to those volunteers that are over the age of 21.


Although this program offers programs mostly for those who are in the US, they are not ignoring the rest of the world in their efforts to save the environment. This upcoming weekend, Oct. 13 and 14, is International Cleanup Weekend and SCA is urging people to recognize it locally. The Web site suggests that we "change the world" organizing a cleanup in our community. It can be a beach,park,trail,field, or whatever you want it to be,as long as you are cleaning it up!

India for Halloween!

Reid Park Zoo right here in Tucson is offering a sensational trip abroad that teaches about conservation. Imagine seeing the Taj Mahal, and a tiger in the wild in the same day!

The trip begins October 25th and ends November 12th. The first day will be all traveling, but from there you will have:

A few days in Delhi then on to Nagpur/Kanha National Park, which is home to the tiger,leopard wolf,sloth bear, and many more. From there you will head out to Bandhavgarh National Park, here you will be learning about the conservation of the white tigers and you will actually be seeing the tigers in the wild either by jeep or on an elephant's back!

According to Susan Basford of the Reid Park Zoo, who will be attending the India trip, the tigers are supposedly easier to spot via elephant back. Basford explained that the trip is about soaking up a new culture. She said that the trip is not as much actually acting out ways to save the environment, but more just learning about conservation.

Basford and I agreed that although there is much to be done right here in Tucson to save the environment and the local wildlife, the idea becomes much more tangible abroad when you see all there is to save in the world.

Basford has traveled all around the world observing animals and their natural habitats, and she encourages all who are able to take the plunge abroad.

"I don't think you can travel and not come back changed," said Basford.


After the white tigers, you will move on to Khajuraho and see the sandstone temples of India's ancient heritage.

Next you will travel to Jhansi/Agra to see the Mahadev Temple dedicated to Lord Shiva, and of course the famous Taj Mahal in Agra.

Agra is not only about the Taj Mahal, you would also get a chance to visit the Agra Bear Rescue Facility. After a quarantine period, the bears are put into large enclosures where they can socialize with other bears.

Then you will move on to Jaipur, which in known as the "Pink City" because of the terra-cotta lime plaster.

After this you will return to Delhi where you will begin your journey home, or you can have the option to stay a couple of days extra and go on to Kaziranga National Park, which in the only known natural habitat for the Indian one-horned rhino.


This is just one example of the trips offered by the Reid Park Zoo that you can get involved with. Most trips teach people about conserving animals' natural habitats and some offer actual interaction with the animals, depending on the trip.