Green Holidays

If you lost your dog on holiday – what could you do to get it back?

When you are in a new area – you may not know about the local vets, rescue centres or capture policy for ‘found’ pets.

And you really should!

Needless to say, if there was a simple and fast service available that did all the searching for you; shouldn’t you know about it?

Obviously not all countries offer such services – but if there was one available where you were heading – shouldn’t you really be signing up? Otherwise how would you find your lost dog?

Pet Finding Procedure:
Generally, if someone loses a pet like a dog, they would start by calling a few local vets and rescue centres locally, leaving details with everyone about their dog.

They may also contact other local services like pet stores to take their details – possible enlisting people to start travelling around looking for the animal.

And all this costs money and uses other people resources. The owner may just be making phone calls, but it is the charities that are using up time and money keeping records of all these details.

photo credit: ToniProtto

On average my local pet rescue centre gets 3 or 4 calls every day with people looking for their lost dogs and other pets. And each call takes at least 10 minutes of (volunteered) time, as well as ink and paper to record the details.

And if you multiply that up by all the other people that are called up about the same pet – and all the lost pets in a month – this can get quite costly.

But What If You Are Lost Too?
This is the standard route for someone living at home – but what if you were travelling and you were in a new town or city. Would you know which companies to call to help you? Would you even know where you were to say where your dog was last seen?

And – what is the standard procedure for finding dog owners? Some countries use microchips, some use tattoes and others give you 7 days to find your own dog in a Lost Dog Shelter – otherwise it is simply rehomed!

That is why it is worth knowing what happens to pets in the areas you are visiting – or finding someone who does!

The Experts:
There are several companies available now who know all the local vets to any given address in an instant.

Once your dog has been reported to them, they will alert all relevant centres and vets as to the description and contact details of you and your dog. You don’t need to worry about a thing.

Having built up a relationship with all these vets and centres, their faxes and texts are treated as urgent rather than as routine. So if your dog has been handed in to anyone on their contact list – you will have a result in no time!

No wasted calls, no endless reciting of your details and dogs description – just one call and then you can focus on looking for your dog rather than on the phone!

So I think it is best practice to make sure you find out about these companies before you head off on your green holidays – rather than wasting resources after the event!

This is where the phrase ‘Leave it to the Experts’ rings true!

If you want to live in a Mediterranean climate – carry on regardless!

Climate change is real – and is happening every day.  Your choices every hour, even every minute are making it a reality.

You may well now be bored of hearing that you should ‘turn off your lights’, ‘don’t leave the TV on stand-by’ and ‘turn down the thermostat by 1 degree’ – but people still aren’t doing it!

I can visit a friends house and see these very basics being ignored; and taps left dripping, single item washes and radiators heating empty rooms.  People just aren’t taking this whole thing seriously.

And as a result – the world is getting warmer……

Your Green Holidays:
So, you need to make sure that the people you are paying your hard earned money to for holidays, trips and other services are doing their bit.

If you want to stay home and admire the beautiful Lake District, the Fens or some beautiful coastal villages – then you need to make sure that they can survive climate change:

If the temperature of the Earth rises just 2 degrees – you will no longer have those clear lakes.  The warmer weather will encourage flash floods – which will in turn encourage algal growths – as well as reduce the amount of water reaching the ground.  And with less water falling as rain in the first place; humans will need to ‘take’ more of it for survival and industry – so you won’t be finding it laying about in ponds and lakes!

Higher temperatures will also bring rising sea levels – and so the low-lying Fens will soo be underwater.  Just a meter sea level rise could see vast swathes of eastern England permanently underwater.  All that land which was so carefully drained for farming will be lost to ‘poisonous’ salty marshes – useless for human agriculture and living.

Rising sea levels and increased storms will soon put an end to a trip to the seaside!  Many cliffs and low level defences will be overcome by violent storms or just increased erosion.  Many houses are lost each year already due to this effect – but it could be worse if it happens when the country is already stressed.  Funding won’t be available to save a few cottages from destruction when the capital is under threat too!

photo credit: Orange County Archives

Higher temperatures and less rain will also mean that your local species will start to be outcompeted by more drought-resistant plants and animals.  Gone will be the oaks and chestnuts and in will come the corks and palms.  Apples won’t get their frosts so will soon die out and we will have oranges and lemons instead.

As a result, all the insects and fungi that feed on these plants will be gone too – and it feeds up the food chain.  If there are no insects to feed the blue tits and robins – they will be gone too – and the owls and hawks and foxes that feed on them?  If the seeds of these trees are no longer available – then what will the squirrels and deer eat?

Your Impact:
By all means carry on going on your trips – as your money spent on local services is vital for keeping these places alive and cared for – but make some demands of your own before booking.

I know it all sounds a bit petty to ask that your towels aren’t washed every day and food is locally sourced – but unless you do these things you are directly contributing to climate change and the ultimate demise of the English countryside.

You often hear the quotes of ‘if everyone in the world did A, then we could save so much of B’.  But everyone in the UK isn’t even doing A – so how can we make a real difference?

With your money. 

Money really does talk in the service industry – and if someone is running an eco friendly hotel and bed and breakfast; they should be encouraged to keep that up – with your money.

People who don’t make an effort to be green and continue to waste resources, waste water and buy cheap plastic over-packaged products should be left out of your holiday plans – ie: no money – you don’t stay with them at all!

They can either change their ethics to stay in business – or you can make sure they become extinct instead of our native wildlife and plants!

If you are planning any wild swimming – read this carefully…..

There are many waterborne illnesses and diseases carried in rivers and streams – so you should really be aware of the risks of each and their symptoms.

Being safe in the countryside is obviously something you need to think about – but it can sometimes seem like a chore or something that makes your trip ‘less fun’.

For example, ideally you shouldn’t swim or splash about in river water – and you certainly shouldn’t drink it – but how much fun would wild swimming be if you can’t let the water get on your skin, up your nose or in your mouth?

However, these are the very things that could put you at serious risk from Leptospirosis and Weil’s disease.

Waterborne Concerns:
There are of course, plenty of things that could happen to you if you submerge yourself in fresh water, lakes and ponds; ranging from diarrhea, through to infected cuts all the way to the more serious diseases like Typhoid and Cholera.

And you can get really ill or die from infected water – which could appear to be very clean and fast flowing.

Needless to say, if you can reduce the chances of becoming submerged, swallowing water and getting water up your nose then you can reduce your risk.  Also, making sure you don’t cut yourself in the water and cover any existing cuts with a water-tight plaster can be a huge help in lowering the chances of infection.

And vaccinations against the serious culprits will be an advantage.

The Symptoms:
Knowing what to look out for in terms of symptoms after infection can also be a worthwhile pursuit as spotting an illness early will greatly increase the chances of the treatment working and so your chances of recovery will be greater.

Keeping a log of your outdoor adventures will be helpful as sometimes you might not feel ill for around 3 weeks after you entered the water – and finding out where the water you are swimming or rowing in comes from in advance can also help – as cows can pass on diseases in rivers and streams that they have access to.

photo credit: AnnieGreenSprings

Many waterborne illnesses result in flu-like symptoms or upset tummies - which really doesn’t help you much when on holiday as you may get these even if you stay on dry land - so tie it in with your river adventures and act on it. 

Yeah, you might just have a few headaches and stiff joints due to lack of sleep or over-work – but if you had fallen in water in the past few weeks – then maybe get it checked out and tell your Dr where you have been to get a better diagnosis.

An hour of your day for a wasted Dr’s appointment is far better than 3 days in hospital seriously ill!

So, go have fun on the water – but know the risks!

Taking a few wrong turns could really clock up the environmental cost of your green holiday!

Sometimes, you can really enjoy a diversion – and many people plan their vacations based purely on where the wind takes them – but not planning your route when you are aiming for a specific place can really clock up your eco footprint!

Not only will you use more fuel, you may get stressed, have to re-fuel, eat out or even book an extra night in a hotel you happened across out of desperation!

Extra Fuel:
This one is obvious really – if you have to drive further to get to your destination – then you will use more fuel.

However, diverting down country lanes, through villages and up and down steep hills can seriously add to this with the reduced speed, gear changes, stopping and starting and increased risk of hazards.  Yes, sometimes these are the fun parts of a journey – but if you haven’t planned them in advance, they could add money to your budget.

The Vehicle:
By getting diverted off a smooth motorway surface onto a B road surface could affect your everything!

Not only could it put extra pressure on the tyres with the uneven surface, you could drop into a pot hole, spray up gravel or mud onto your underside and even scrape through branches and twigs as you pass another vehicle.  None of which will do your vehicle any good!

All the other little things soon add up too, including the extra cleaning it now needs, windscreen wiper use, brake pads, wing mirrors, general wear and tear, rick of puncture, etc.  You could even lose some value off your car if it is brand new!

I know they all seem petty – but all these things add up over time to give your vehicle a shorter lifespan and you the need for extra resources to clean and repair.

Food & Drink:
By getting lost or taking a long diversion could increase the chances of the passengers becoming hungry or thirsty along the way.  Now, you may well have planned for packed lunches or a favourite pub along the way – but diversions just ruin it all.

After a 30 minute panic to get back on route – you may well find that toilet breaks and eating take on a life of their own and you end up paying out for takeaway food along with its associated packaging and carbon footprint just to feel ok about using their toilets.

photo credit: Risager

Not only will this cost you more in money and time – but could waste the plans you made beforehand – I mean those cheese sandwiches you made before you left aren’t going to last all day in a hot car.  And the thermos only keeps coffee warm for so long!

So eating out has not only cost you more in the first place – it has also caused you to waste your own money and resources along the way – and you aren’t even any closer to your destination!

And There Is Yet More:
Obviously there are loads of other things that can end up costing your more in terms of resources if you get lost along the way. 

For example, an unexpected night in a hotel for you all after a few wasted hours.  Just like the food – the hotel you had originally booked won’t give you all your money back after cancelling at such short notice (and could remain empty all night now) and you will have to pay the full price of the only other place you could find for that night. 

Plus, you may have to rush your journey the following day to catch up on where you should be – maybe missing out planned landmarks or viewpoints to do so.

This leads to the worst enemy of a long journey – STRESS!

The more things that go wrong, and the more things you have to cancel, the more stress you will be under to enjoy the holiday in the first place!

So, plan ahead – plan for problems and plan to have a great time!

Hello – and welcome to a one man/not many tigers Green Holidays Blog Carnival!

I chose this one post to use today as it really made me think about the whole ‘green’ and ‘eco’ travel ethos. And the fact that WWF are currently running a campaign to help save the tiger (still).

Time and again there is the ‘grey area’ that catches out so many people trying to ‘do the right thing’ on their vacations.

Should you/Shouldn’t you?

Sometimes it just isn’t so straight forward once you take into account all the alternatives as well as comparing experiences and events like for like – especially when you are traveling outside of Western Nations in countries with a whole different culture and belief system.

Take this article as a classic example: A Tiger Petting Zoo « Travels with a Nine Year Old – a blog I regularly read for the great pictures and the amazing discoveries this young lad is lucky enough to experience.

But this article shows both sides of animal tourism – as well as the choices that parents can make with their kids.

Should you deprive a young child of an amazing experience because it isn’t really ethical or should you allow them to do everything that kids find amazing regardless of the impact – but because it will be something that they may never get the chance to do again?

Read this boys parents struggling with those very questions and make up your own mind afterwards.

And, if you love Tigers – use one of these banners, Twitter backgrounds, wallpapers or phone apps to show your support and to share your thoughts with others.

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Is that beautiful picture of a tiger really so beautiful?

Were you aware that there are animal farms across the world where ‘wild’ animal are bred specifically for wildlife photography?

Did you know that there are places across America and Europe where tigers, pumas, wolves and foxes are kept in small cages specifically to look ‘wild’ for a paying customer?

It happens all the time apparently to ‘get a great close up shot’ for a magazine or website – but is it infact just a lie?

Is the shot ‘perfect’ because it is of a beautiful animal regardless of where the animal was just 10 minutes before the image was created – or should the best shots only be of wild animals?

The Problem:
There has only really recently been a heavy discussion about this ‘canned’ photography since the winner of the BBC Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2009 was proved to be a caged wolf that had been hired by the photographer and ‘made’ to jump the gate for the winning shot!

People were in uproar when it was discovered as it exposed the dark side of wildlife photography – and the lies of the photographer.

How many times he had made the wolf jump the gate to to get the right shot we will never know – but is the fact that he resorted to a captive animal good ethics anyway?

The Facts:
If you want to use caged animals for your photos that is your prerogative – and there are some really well maintained establishments that do this – but it really isn’t the way to get a ‘true picture of wildlife’ is it?

Knowing that the animals are caged – most of the time in sub-standard environments – should be enough to put nearly all true wildlife lovers off immediately.  But as these places still exist, we know that people have been using them an awful lot of the time and all over the world.

How many photos have you thought were amazing – but will never know that they were filmed in a ‘set up’ location with a totally unwild animal?  Shouldn’t these images be clearly marked when published?

Baited Scenes:
However, where do you stand on actual wild animals being lured in to a ‘shot’ with food?  Basically leaving out food to attract the animals to exactly where you want them to be.

We do it all the time for our pleasure with bird feeders and certain reintroduced species – but does it infringe on ethical photography?

Great Tit On Feeder

Should you sit around animal nests knowing that there are young inside – but potentially stressing the parents with your presence?

It all starts to get a bit confusing when you analyse the role a photographer plays in the landscape – as animals don’t just live where we see them – they live in the surrounding countryside, so you traipsing through it day after day to get a ‘good picture’ could actually be making different species move out of the area!  And feeding them could actually attract even more to the area.

But surely all wildlife photography isn’t that bad?

Well I say: stick to footpaths - and get a camera with an excellent zoom!

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We all think that all ‘green’ and ‘eco’ travel definitions are around about the same: but no!

A friend of mine recently got a book called ‘The Ethical Career Guide’ out of the local library only to be surprised by what was in there.  There was no mention of conservation or the environment, and global warming was not even touched on.

Why?  Well ‘ethical’ always refers to working with people to create equality as well as supporting communities and cultures – it doesn’t really have anything to do with the natural world.  So an ethical holiday isn’t necessarily a green holiday or even eco friendly!

So I have put together a simple definitions article for the main words we use to define our holidays and travel so you can be sure to focus on the best one for your requirements and prefered areas of interest.

Ethical Travel:
“Travel to any location that includes offering respect and courtesy to local people, as well as thinking about the long term effects of your actions for the communities that you visit.”

So for example, ethical travel would include supporting the community you visit financially by using local services and buying local goods – and at a reasonable price.  It would also look to not exploit natural resources – or local people, and includes not offering gifts or money to ‘begging’ children but to the places that will benefit the children most, like schools and local groups.

Responsible Travel:
“Travel to any destination in the world – including cruises, luxury villas, skiing and volunteering – can be ‘responsible’ if they can prove that they care about the people they come into contact with and their culture as well as their surrounding environments and it’s wildlife.”

For example, if you travel to a ‘responsible’ African safari lodge, you would expect it to be run by or employing local people and spending some or most of it’s profits and time on helping protect the surrounding wildlife for the future. 

It doesn’t matter if you have to fly across the world to get there and only stay for 3 days (although longer stays can help communities more) - it is what you are supporting while you are there that counts.  And if it is a big step away from mass tourism – it is ‘responsible’.

Eco Friendly Travel:
“Travel to destinations with the intention of reducing your overall impact on the environment, including the avoidance of many of the usual destinations, modes of transport and travel products.”

For example, we know that flying creates higher than average emissions and cruises create more than their fair share of waste – so the eco friendly traveller would try to travel using other means, or would use these modes of transport more wisely by staying in the destinations longer or choosing a more eco friendly company to use.

Eco friendly travel would also include not using products that can damage or put undue stress on the environment they are visiting, so would try to use biodegradable toiletries, wash clothes less, eat local foods rather than expect locals to import things 1000′s of miles in, take all rubbish home with them if no recycling exists and not buy products made from endangered resources – or animals!

This type of travel would also look at certain destinations that are being overcrowded or exploited with the end result of the area/destination/beach/local community being degraded, overused and ultimately destroyed.  Mass tourism destinations would be among the places to avoid, although something could be said for keeping all the ‘sun-seekers’ in one place!

Green Travel:
“A type of travel that includes both using modes of transport which reduce or limit the environmental impact of getting from A to B as well as limiting environmental damage while preserving natural resources and reducing pollution and excessive waste.”

Although quite similar to the Eco Friendly Travel definition above, Green Travel really focuses on self control while travelling – enough sometimes to not even travel in the first place!  Eco Friendly looks at still taking a trip but looking for less damaging alternatives – whereas green travellers might look at taking a different trip entirely.

Walking through fields or woodlands off the main footpath wouldn’t really bother any other type of traveller – but a green traveller would think of the potential for localised damage – for example trampling on rare plants or invading areas used by courting mammals and birds.

The Result:
Well, as you can see there is a fair amount of overlap with these definitions, but some are more social and others more environmental.

Yes – the 2 are sort of linked up anyway as if the community are supported they will take better care of their environment, however many travelers want to see the direct link to their personal beliefs and their actions.

For example an eco friendly traveler would take pride in buying all the most chemical-free, animal-friendly, waste reducing and natural products they can to take with them to visit a local community - whereas a social traveler would take more pride in helping a community to support themselves for the next 20 years whether their shampoo was biodegradable or not!

And a responsible traveler wouldn’t mind flying in to a remote mountain lodge on the other side of the world to support a 5* business built up, owned and run by local people – whereas a green traveler would possibly choose to go camping 1* in a nearby woodland with their local scout group teaching them simple field-craft techniques for free!

So, it is your choice really as to which of these you choose to be like when planning your next vacation, because sometimes they will take you to totally different places!

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I had 2 weeks booked off work to spend on days out – and I was very disappointed!

There are 2 main reason why planning a day out in the UK at this time of year can be a bit difficult – and it seems that when you do decide on where to go, it can let you down a bit too.

Planning:
I decided to look at houses and gardens for some day trips – and I don’t mind driving a few hours to get to them if they are going to be a full days entertainment with plenty of photo opportunities!

However, a lot of properties are closed for the winter either for cleaning and maintenance, or because the expected number of visitors won’t raise enough money to pay the staff that they will need for wardens, guides and ticket office staff.

Both of these are fair points when looked at on a personal level, but it doesn’t really go towards helping to keep holiday makers in the UK:  ‘It’s cold here and half the places are shut – let’s go on a cheap sunshine holiday instead!’

Most of the place I found open were ‘free entry’ landscape and beaches etc – so going there can be done anytime you want – so not worth making an effort to go and see while on your holidays!

Arriving:
We finally selected an ornamental gardens, with woodlands, water features, long walks and a special butterfly event in the glasshouses apparently with butterfly experts on hand to discuss wildlife tips and the butterflies themselves.  It also had a great garden centre attached so we could be sure of a full days fun.

Wrong.

Firstly, there was no butterfly expert on hand, there really weren’t even that many butterflies – and half of those in the glasshouse were still in a state of inactivity, having only just escaped from their chrysalis.  So they were hanging lifeless from branches with their wings all wrinkled up.

Secondly, most of the grassed areas and many of the large plant beds were closed off for re-working and planting.  Quite a lot of the beds from autumn were completely gone with just earth in their place, and many new projects hadn’t started yet, so were just fenced off.

I wasn’t expecting full beds of bright flowers and beautiful bushy shrubs – as I like plants in winter – but closing off these areas was a bit of a disappointment in my eyes.

Thirdly, we left an hour or so at the end to look around the garden centre and to take away some plants and seeds as well as a great cactus for a birthday pressie – but it was closed!

They hadn’t even told you this on the way in, or on the way out or even at the start of the path to get there.  You literally had to walk all the way to the doors to find that it was shut. 

After standing there for a minute or 2 in shock from this, you then walked back down the path past all the other people still walking up to the door to find out the terrible news for themselves!

The Result:
It’s a shame when you are charged the full amount for entry to somewhere, when they don’t tell you that around a 3rd of the attractions are closed!  I mean, there are plenty of other gardens out there – and you want to feel that you got value for money.

If that was the first time I had been there, it is possible that I wouldn’t return!  The butterflies were enough to make the day not a total waste, but having known about the closed plant centre, and the fenced off areas, we may have gone somewhere else that day and come back here another time.

I know the bosses won’t want to be turning people away, but if this one entry fee from Family A is all they ever get from them – then it wasn’t worth it.  But if Family A turn up and have the best day ever – then Family A may be coming back next holiday – or may even become members.

We won’t be!

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If local women are not allowed to visit somewhere – why should female tourists get access?

I was just reading an article in last months National Geographic about a peninsula in northern Greece filled with around 2000 monks.   This self-governing state is seen as the focal point of Orthodoxy in this region, and is home to over 20 monastical buildings and various other shelters and buildings – and not one single woman!

The males here have decreed that there should be no women allowed to visit, work or live on the peninsula – and they have lived here a long time holding on to this wish.

Mainly as they do not want to be distracted from their busy lives of worship and also as the land they occupy is hemmed in by great mountains, and only accessible by boat, so they have a certain amount of control over who enters.

Everything that happens here is ruled by the self appointed ‘rulers’ and they are sticking to their word.

However, now Greece has become involved in the European Union and many of the monasteries are receiving financial support from it – there is talk of ‘changes’ to modernise the area and bring it into line with the rest of the country.

And this could mean allowing women to visit!

Is That Wrong?
Just because we (as travelers) can visit virtually anywhere in the world that we want to, including remote Amazonian tribes in Brazil and Aboriginal families in the vast wilderness of Australia, does that mean we can ignore their culture – and their history – and in this case; their beliefs?

So, should men be able to stop women visiting this region?  Well, I think so.  Or more correctly – women should see how important this is to the monks and refrain from going there.

It is directly comparable to our personal space.  For example: when we go to the gym – we don’t just wander into the men’s locker room?  When we visit someones home – we don’t just go looking around their bedroom – so why should we go and ‘look’ at their monasteries?

It’s a matter of respect really.

Preservation Of Culture:
We all know that as the world expands, so history and culture are lost – so why are we not helping to preserve them?  Things may well eventually have to change – but we shouldn’t be the one’s speeding it up.

There are plenty of people living in the world today that do not want to or do not need to become modernised and have everyone trampling all over their land to see what they are like.

They should be able to just continue doing what they have done for centuries before without being ‘studied’ or dissected to see how they ‘fit in’.

It is amazing to think that their are still places in the world that we don’t know about – and I must admit that I enjoy reading about such places and the people who live there.  People living their whole lives in religious seclusion or totally isolated from the rest of the world.

And sometimes, I just hope it will stay that way.

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Welcome to the final Green Holidays Blog Carnival of 2009.

It has been snowing where I am for days now and the ground is thick with snow! Great stuff – but not so good for all the people who are trying to get home before the new year!

And, not so many to choose from this month – maybe as everyone has been out visiting families or trying to escape to the countryside rather than be stuck in town on the holidays!

Anyway, we are here to talk about some green holidays – and lets start with a short one about voluntourism from Mircea: Tips for Volunteering and Traveling Abroad

Next, another short post about feelings running deep in some countries about cultural sites and landmarks where Dan gives us his opinions on The Ethical & Responsible Travel Minefield. Linking to this is a similar post by another writer: Take Care Not To Climb Uluru.

Ther is also another article about the ethics of travel these days, and poses some interesting questions and ideas.  Compare it to what you think when reading Should We Be More Travel Eco Friendly?

Lastly, Theo presents Green Christmas Ideas Revisited where he covers a few ideas for having greener holidays at home and with family at this time of year.

So, it’s ho ho ho and see you in 2010!