Green Holidays

.

There are up to 5 million elderly people in the UK who don’t have and family or friends to visit them according to the UK charity Help the Aged.

And how much trouble would it be to you to help them out a bit in the cold weather, visit them every so often or drive them to the Drs if they needed a flu jab!

Depending on where you live and how many neighbours you have, you could help out an awful lot of people with very little effort - making everyone’s life a little better!

Why not try to make something that your village or neighbourhood can be proud of - and that stops your neighbours being isolated in their own homes.  I mean, if they aren’t very mobile the lady 2 doors down from you could have been sitting alone in her sitting room every evening for a whole week while you are just a few metres away watching a DVD or playing computer games.

What You Can Do:
Here are some ideas of things that you could do to help your local community, ranging from a tiny effort to a full on adventure!

Make A Cake - Taking around some tasty cakes or a hot dinner to a neighbour could really cheer up their day - and give them something to talk about!

Take The Lead- How about offering to take an elderly persons dog out for a walk for or with them.  Dogs and cats offer a real companionship to people living alone, but they can sometimes need more care than people can offer them - so why not step in.

Play Cards - Think about spending a few hours around someones house doing something that they like.  Rather than watch another episode of something-or-other, why not try to improve you gaming skill the old-fashioned way!

Home Delivery! - Getting out to the shops for the heavier items - like tinned food and cat litter can be quite daunting for a single elderly person to consider, and they may need to make several trips back and forth to get their normal groceries as well.  So why not offer to make a regular trip on their behalf when you get your own shopping?

Become A Taxi - Local bus services are great for people to do a bit of clothes shopping or nip into the Bank, but when you need to get to an early Dr’s appointment, or you end up getting stuck at the hospital longer than expected - how can the bus help you then?

Find Some Numbers - Why not put together a list of numbers and information that could be useful to someone on their own and give one to every home in your areas.  It can include things like the numbers and events for local day centres, meals on wheels type organisations, and even emergency plumbers and other services (that you know offer excellent services and a fair price).

Include local bus times and locations of bus stops, local taxis, local stores, the numbers of neighbours with certain skills or spare time, and even government details on available grants and services free to certain individuals.

Start Something New - If you really want to get your teeth into something really special for all those single, lonely and elderly people out there by arranging for your own regular ‘coffee morning’ or day centre.

I’m sure that you could find a church hall, community centre or local school that had a free spare room every other Tuesday or whatever you fancied.  And I’m sure that getting together a few volunteers to help out won’t be too hard either.

Imagine the looks on their little faces!

Can you tell the difference between a blackbird and a robin?

If you can - and you aren’t doing anything much at the end of January, why not step out into your garden and watch the birds?  The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (the RSPB) are running their annual bird count on the 30th and 31st of the month - and your would really be helping if you joined in.

The Count:
Don’t worry about learning every single garden bird - they just want the common species. 

And, they only want you to count the most you see at one time rather than clocking up every single bird that flutters past your garden.  So basically if you see one blue tit - you mark down 1.  If that one flies off and later you see another blue tit - it still counts as only 1.  So you don’t need to add them together. 

However, if 2 blue tits fly in together, then your count goes up to 2, as you only every count the total number of each bird seen at one time.

A quick read of their website will help explain the ‘rules’ which couldn’t be simpler - and you could be helping to make sure that they can monitor the rise of decline of some of the UK’s garden favourites.

House sparrows were top of the table in 2009, with starlings and blackbirds coming next.  Do you often see them in your garden anyway?

Why Count Them?
Counting birds in your own country is just as important as counting birds in the Amazon or in the jungles of Borneo.  Just because they aren’t a tropical species, or live in areas of mass deforestation - it doesn’t mean that they aren’t important.

Losing species close to home can also be an indicator of changing climate, habitats in danger and the effects of mankind - probably more important to you than those birds on the other side of the world - and you don’t need and international flight to keep an eye on these ones!

Joining the RSPB could make even more of a difference, but you don’t have to go that far if you don’t want to - just going into your own garden is far enough!

.

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!

.

Are You A Vet or Vet Nurse and want to be involved in something for the community of Peru?

A friend of mine has just got back from an amazing eco adventure in the Amazon, doing the very thing that she loves doing!  Helping animals and their owners with Amazon Cares - a charity that has been working in Peru since 2004.

She took part in a fantastic charity drive to help treat and neuter pets in Iquitos for those people who cannot afford private treatment - and in a region that is so heavily visited by tourists and other travellers that it is surprising that there is no state care on offer.

Their website is constantly updated with blogs and (great) photographs of the workers and patients throughout the day - and it is a job to keep up with all that they get through!

How Can You Help?
If you are a qualified veterinary surgeon or veterinary nurse - you can apply to help with their volunteer drives; next one is starting on the 21st December through to the New Year - although they run regular trips outside of the holiday season.

Use your surgical skills and improve your CV with this short trip to help others and see some amazing sites; the veterinary team have to take a boat down the Amazon to and from work every day!  It’s a hard life!!!

If you aren’t qualified in the trade, you can still help by signing up to follow their twitter account and by becoming a CARES member (which is free). 

This way you can show your support for their work and let the team know that there are people out there who think that this is a great cause - and they can work in this location as part of a team of complete strangers knowing that people on the other side of the world are watching what they do and spreading the word.

People Like Me:
And finally (and possibly in conjunction with one of the above) you can donate money to them!  So that means hard cash or it could mean going shopping!  If you shop through We-Care.com for your Amazon books or your pet food from PetCo - then huge amounts can go to Amazon Cares absolutely free!

Buy your gifts and personal items through their site and raise funds without thinking!  There is even a donate-o-meter to help you keep tabs on how much you have actually donated just by going shopping!

Not just 1, but 2 chances to make a difference in London for you and your friends!

There is a great build up of events across the world in the build up to the Climate Talks in Copenhagen this December, so make sure you drag your friends along to as many as you can so that our voices can be heard.

Remember, great things can be achieved if you let someone know your opinions - and voting with your feet or your money are the best things out there!

Event 1: Your Feet (and some blue gloves!)
Starting at Grosvenor Square in London at 12am is The Wave. An event where (hopefully) thousands of people will march through the streets of London dressed in blue like a giant wave!

A tide of change if you like!

There are events leading up to the rally, and events after the rally - with the big climax involving blue ‘waving’ - which is where the blue gloves are going to come into their own!

Bring as many friends as possible and spread the word to complete strangers too! The more people - the greater the impact!

And, Megabus are offering a massive number of buses into London for the event from just £2 - check online for details………

Event 2: Your Money
Bring your money and your re-usable shopping bags to the greatest Eco Christmas Fair in London!

The Royal Geographical Society are opening their doors in South Kensington and offering you the change to try and buy from a whole host of eco friendly and community-driven enterprises and goods.

From baby wear to body care, fair trade to hand made, and much much more including and eco puppet show - free for the kids!!

And don’t worry if you are busy at the demonstration above - or don’t want to go shopping in blue - then visit the Fair on the following day from 9.30am.

Two green events in 1 great weekend!

If you fancy getting your wellies on and digging a hole - then find your local tree planting event!

Every year the National Tree Council run and support National Tree Week - this year running from November 25th thru to December 6th - so more than a week really - but more time to get involved!

What Is It All About?
Basically, it is a time for people to get involved with community planting events in the winter, and make a difference to local woodlands and parks - and to the environment.

Running since 1975 (wow!), this national event has dramatically changed local communities, schools, parks and gardens across the country - and this year is no different! 

With a list of events running all over the country - and the chance to list your own event - they expect over a quarter of a million people to get involved.

What Else Can You Do?
There are plenty of things that you can do to support National Tree Week that don’t involve any costs, and are just as fun!

1) Your Own Garden: If you can’t make one of the tree planting events - then why not plant your own tree in your garden?  Get your family involved and make a day of it - dedicating your tree to your kids, parents, favourite pet or whatever.  A tree is a tree, so whatever the reason - it doesn’t matter.

2) Record Breaker?:  Although, if you can plant your tree on the 5th of December this year - you could take part in the record-breaking event being hosted by BBC breathing spaces.  All you need to do is make a pledge to plant your tree on their website, then take a photo of you planting it and send it in to count!

3) Go Exploring:  You don’t have to plant a tree to support trees - take a walk in the woods.  By regularly visiting your local woodlands you are helping to make sure that they remain.  If people don’t visit these places, they will simply disappear or become private.

4) Capture The Image: Go out loking for great trees to photograph in your area. You can attach your images to Google Maps so that when people search for your town, they can see your photos of amazing trees!

5) Living Giants: Go out looking for huge trees to add to the Woodland Trust Ancient Tree Hunt database. THey are hoping to create a map of all the oldest trees in the UK - so need you out there finding the undiscovered ones!

6) Learn More:  Take the time to teach yourself and your family about the UK’s native tree species and how to identify them.  The more you know about something the more you can get involved, and the more your kids know, the safer the trees futures will be. 

7) Collect Seeds:  When you know the difference between an acorn and a hazelnut - you can plant them yourself and grow your favourite trees from seed!  Not all the seeds that fall to the ground in autumn will grow into trees, so why not take home a few nuts and seeds and try to grow them yourself.

If they survive and last the year - you will have your own trees to plant out for National Tree Week 2010!

.
.
I know it’s early yet - but keep the date clear in your diary!

I have been to this show for several years now - and I love it! 

It has got everything from volunteering, gap year advice, great products, specific seminars and great food!

I would really recommend a visit here for any travel related queries. The experts on hand can offer you all sorts of tips and tricks and new ideas - whether you know what you want already or you want to be taken completely by surprise!

This show has inspired us to finally travel to Costa Rica for a month to watch the wildlife - which was one of my best travel experiences yet - as well as numerous other trips and ideas!

I remember sitting in the Overland tours bus that was rolled into the hall watching a great video about Africa wondering where on earth anyone was supposed to go to the toilet!

So whether you are looking for inspiration or want to fine tune your ideas - this is the place!

Go to their website: Adventure Show 2010 for more details and to sign up for their newsletter…..

.

You must have heard of WWOOFing?

Basically it’s a great way to travel the world and get to know all about the food we eat and the land we need to use - World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms.

What better way to discover how delicate the land is that we rely on for our fruits and vegetables, and the rest as well than to work on the very farms that produce it.

And There’s More…..
You get to live on the farm for free too!  I know it’s hard to believe, but you need not worry about all the normal expenses of accommodation and food - it’s all included!

In return for your labour, the organic farmer will fill your tummy with yummy home-grown organic food and give you a place to stay as well.  Many of the farmers also like to teach you about organic methods too, making the experience even more of a green adventure.  You can come away with a belly full of food and a head full of eco facts!

How Does It Work?
Well basically, you decide which country you want to volunteer in and sign up for the list of available farms looking for helping hands.  Some countries require you to get a working visa - for example you will need an american visa - but others treat you as a volunteer tourist, so do bear this in mind before setting out!

Once you get your list of farming opportunities you speak directly to the farmers who appeal to you - and then confirm the dates and the length of time you want to stay there and help out.

So, if you want to volunteer on organic farms anywhere in the world for as long as you want - then make sure you take a look at their website.  And start thinking about which country you fancy……

Now is the time to get packing and set of on your grown-up gap year!

Due to the current financial climate in many countries at the moment - this seems to be the perfect time to ask your boss for some time off!

It is normally quite tricky to get your company to agree to a holiday longer than 2 weeks - but with many companies tightening their belts and looking at redundancies and pay cuts now is the perfect time to offer your services!

How Can I Help My Company?
Well, if you think about it, your company is probably thinking on ways to save money. This may include reducing staff hours, offering early retirement, reducing expenditure on stationary and staff services like cafeterias etc.

Basically they need to cut back on as much as possible to keep running at an acceptable level. This is where your salary comes in to action.

You could save your company your salary every day you are not at work.

They could save $1000’s on just you alone - say you were earning $200 per day - that would be a minimum saving to your company of over $6000 a month

So if you were to take just 3 months off - that is over $18,000 saved - plus all other work paid contributions that your company pay on your behalf. You will also be saving them a whole host of other costs that are usually not thought about.

These include the cost of cleaning your office; toiletries and water you would use if still at the office and all the stationary and electricity you use on a daily basis that isn’t strictly work related.

Places like the cafeteria will still be working while you are gone, but if catering for less staff they too can reduce their expenses by ordering and preparing cold drinks and hot food. Same goes for car park maintenance and general cleaning contracts.

It all adds up.

They May Even Offer You Longer!
It could be that your company haven’t thought of this as a way of saving money and so you could be the first to offer up the suggestion to your bosses and get the credit!

Usually, companies will do anything to keep their staff for as long as possible as it is very hard to get reliable staff back when this bad patch is over! So letting you have time off knowing that you will be back in X months could really help them out - and may even help to keep your company running!

You may be brave enough to ask for just 3 months off - but if your company are thinking of stalling all new acquisitions or reducing big projects until the new financial year for example - then they may well offer you a longer ‘break’ so you are off until they need you.

You won’t find out until you ask - and it could be the best move you ever made!

.
Want to see a 7.5 meter-wide giant Manta Rays swimming around you?

Well, you can if you take part in a manta ray project anywhere around the worlds oceans. These giant rays live anywhere there are warm tropical waters - including the Maldives, Thailand, Baja California and all around the coasts of Africa.

Why Manta’s?
Manta Rays (Mantra birostris) is the largest species of ray in the world - and there are around 500 species of ray - and can reach up to 2,000kg or around 5000lb. Yet in water, they look like they are flying!

Although sharing much of their evolution with shark - rays have no true teeth and are filter feeders as a result, eating only plankton - not green volunteers!

Manta’s are also extremely curious of humans and so will approach divers close up. Many tropical holiday resorts feed mantas all year round to make sure that they are around for the tourists. This isn’t always a bad thing - but don’t pick a destination that sells itself of semi-tame individuals - go for the wild ones - they are just a friendly!

Due to their size, manta rays are rarely ever found in aquariums, so seeing them in the wild is one of the only ways most people can get close!

Why Do They Need Help?
This species are classed an near-threatened according to the IUCN as they have reproduce at a very slow rate meaning numbers can be devastated by over-fishing or habitat loss.

Tourists coming too close to their feeding areas or breeding grounds could easily drive them away or prevent natural behaviour - putting them under stress. And there are plenty of people and un-reputable companies who offer diving and snorkeling in these sensitive areas.

Local communities need to see that there are other options for their time and money. If they can only make money by fishing, developing isolated beaches and running desperate ‘guaranteed manta ray tours’ then that is what they are going to do.

However, with education and further study, they may realise that the rays and their habitat are worth more in one piece - and for longer.

Who Can Help With This?
You can for a start, by not paying for a diving tour that doesn’t offer a completely beyond-all-doubt eco friendly and manta friendly trip! Make sure you seek out those trips that respect the environment and the wildlife in the seas - and let them know that that was the reason you chose them - remember demand makes things appear!

You can also join a society that support them or their habitat - without getting wet! Save Our Seas Foundation will willingly spend your donations on indepth research! You can read about all their projects and the people in charge of collecting and interpreting the data. You can also sponsor a Manta for free with Save The Mantas who carry out plenty of research.

Or, the best option is to join a volunteer trip that sets out to monitor their movements, feeding and breeding.

Volunteer Latin America are offering a Manta Ray project in Ecuador from 2 to 12 weeks - where you will help with photo-identification of the individuals living in the area by swimming with them!

African Impact offer a combined Manta Ray and Whale Shark conservation project in Mozambique. These projects can last from 4 weeks or much longer - as long as you are over 18 - with all meals included as well as plenty of close encounters!

I’ve seen these beauties swimming along the shores of the Maldives - albeit at the smaller end of the scale (about 1 meter wide) - and I think they really are worth learning more about!