How to make choices✔️
Clues to follow when it is not black or white✔️
The dilemma✔️
Be the change you want to see in the world✔️
The world is big and plenty of choices. We have a huge variety of destinations and activities, so which one to chose? The natural step up is to select it in term of ethic. This way we direct the market and evolve.
We can choose what to support, and if we turn away from destinations or activities that are not serving the world, they will eventually cease to exist or won’t have any other choice than to change and meet our demands.
I know it is not easy to see what is good and what is not (what causes harm for people, environment, animals), it is not always black or white. The clue I always follow is nature. I always ask myself or research what is the natural way. I also google “is x place ethical?”, check the reviews on trip advisor or blogs.
“Every time you spend money, you’re casting a vote for the kind of world you want.”
― Anna Lappe
Sometimes we can get a real dilemma… so the choice should be the one you feel morally the most comfortable with. Look at those examples.
I always try to support local business, but sometimes you have a situation where you can buy a coconut with a plastic straw from a local guy, or a coconut with an agave straw (or other biodegradable kind) in a fancy hotel owned by a businessman from abroad.
There are institutions and people who own wild animals, like lions, elephants, rhinos, and so on. In a normal world, the wild animals should live in wilderness. This is a natural way, but in a world with poachers they are not safe. So for now, we have to protect endangered species.
There are animals harmed by people, so now we need places to heal and care for them, otherwise they would’t make it in nature.
My dream was to swim with whale sharks and it was also a huge dilemma for me. I’ve red that they are feed by people and it ruins their natural habitat and lifestyle, but on the other hand, if they wouldn’t be a tourist attraction, those beautiful gentle giants would be killed and eaten…
Animal sanctuaries are usually wonderful places run by passionate people and it was a pleasure for me to visit some of them and volunteer for the animals. However, it is also essential to check reviews before donating your time & money because not all of them are honest.
The famous Lion Whisperer revealed that one park “bred lions to ensure a supply of cubs year-round. When the lions reached maturity, they were shipped out to canned hunting operations because they were too dangerous to be near tourists”.
Some lands are beautiful and we would love to visit them, but their traditions are not compatible with ours, f.eks. they kill dolphins. So is it really worth visiting and spending a lot of money in a place like this? It can also apply to activities like corrida in Spain.
For me the no go destination is Faroe Islands that must be amazing but I cannot support a place flooded with blood of dolphins and whales. I hope one day we will all realise it’s better to keep them alive and appreciate their existence next to us.
There is a place in the world were you can swim with dolphins in their natural habitat, but it became so popular that now, it looks more like chasing them by boats packed with tourists who often treat them like objects, not living creatures. I didn’t want to be a part of it, and had to resign for now.
Some choices are obvious, some cause a real quandary. With a mix of common sense, awareness and heart, we can make the best decision based on reality, not a perfect fantasy world. We’re not there yet 😉 First, we need to take the responsibility and fix damages caused by human. We can do it 💪
With love to planet Earth 
2 thoughts on “Ethical choices & traveling.”