Partner Spotlights
Travel Elevates is proud to spotlight a few of the many successful projects that our partners and members support worldwide. From funding education and sustainability initiatives, to supporting healthcare and economic empowerment programs, these projects support the local communities that are touched by tourism.
TreadRight Foundation
-
The TreadRight Foundation is a not-for-profit organization created as a joint initiative between The Travel Corporation’s (TTC) family of brands. Their mission is clear; to have a positive impact on the people and communities they visit, to protect wildlife and marine life, and to care for the planet we call home. TreadRight has supported some 60-plus sustainable tourism projects worldwide to date. Support is provided through donations and grants to leading partners across the sustainable travel spectrum. These projects all fall under the three pillars of TreadRight: People, Wildlife, Planet.
Planeterra
-
Established in 2003, Planeterra is G Adventure’s non-profit partner dedicated to ensuring communities touched by tourism benefit from the opportunities it provides. They help empower local organizations and communities to use tourism as a catalyst to improve people’s lives, protect their natural environments, and celebrate their culture.
Abercrombie & Kent Philanthropy
-
Abercrombie & Kent Philanthropy helps nature to thrive and cultures to flourish by positively impacting lives and livelihoods in the communities where A&K guests travel. Cambodia Clean Water Project: In 2008, AKP began building wells for families in Siem Reap. To date more than 1,600 wells have been installed, bringing fresh, bacteria-free water to more than 24,000 people. Not only does the clean water improve sanitation and health, it is also used to irrigate farm plots and provide drinking water for domestic animals. Healthy animals and good crops result in increased opportunities for families – helping to lift them out of poverty.Safe Water for Schools Initiative: In 2017, AKP started the Safe Water for Schools Initiative to introduce sustainable, non-invasive means to acquire clean water for Maasai students. The program brings the LifeStraw community filter, a high-volume water purifier designed to deliver safe drinking water, to schools in the Masai Mara. It prevents waterborne diseases common in Africa, and to date, AKP has delivered clean drinking water to more than 16,000 Maasai students.
Malama Hawaiʻi
-
Malama Hawaiʻi is an initiative to inspire mindful travel. Travel companies and volunteer organizations join forces to encourage visitors and residents to help perpetuate and regenerate the natural beauty and unique culture of their communities. Several organizations offer opportunities for visitors to pay it forward, like beach clean-ups, native tree planting, and more. Engage in some of their volunteer opportunities, and in exchange, experience Hawaiʻi on a much deeper and connected level.
Image credit: Hawaii Tourism Authority (HTA) / Heather Goodman
Natural Selection Foundation
-
Natural Selection began in 2016 with a vision to reshape the impact of nature-based tourism on conserving wildlife and wild lands in Southern Africa. Already, Natural Selection has committed over 1.5 million dollars to wildlife conservation and community outreach in Botswana, Namibia, and South Africa. Within four years they have supported 23 long-term projects and over 70 short-term projects. They are committed to their mission to make a difference—ranging from anti-poaching to sustainable grass harvesting for impoverished communities to award winning Elephant Express buses shuttling school children through dangerous elephant corridors.
Grupo Puntacana Fundación
-
The Center for Sustainability was created in 1999 to develop solutions for the environmental and social challenges facing the tourism industry in the Caribbean. The Center was originally created through a pioneering alliance between Grupo Puntacana and Cornell University in the United States. Since then, it has expanded into a diverse and growing network of national and international institutions including Harvard University, Roger Williams University, University of Miami, Florida International University, Instituto Tecnológico de Santo Domingo (INTEC), Virginia Tech University, University of Florida, Columbia University, Counterpart International, The Nature Conservancy, among others. The Sustainability Center is equipped with dormitories, laboratories, offices, conference rooms and receives hundreds of students annually.
The Karen Blixen Camp Trust (KBCT)
-
The Karen Blixen Camp Trust (KBCT) Vocational Education Initiative at the Karen Blixen Camp is proudly following the footsteps of the world-famous Danish poet Karen Blixen by empowering the local communities through education in the heart of the Maasai Mara. It is comprised of the Culinary Arts Program, the Language Program, and the Information and Communication Technology Program and Business Studies Program. The Culinary Arts Program provides an 18-month course to students of the local Maasai who seek a career in the culinary arts. Graduates are prepared for positions as chef or sous chef in camps and restaurants in Kenya. The Language Program follows the theme of “Learning for Life” by empowering students with English and German language skills that are in tandem with today’s changing world. Their IT and Business Studies courses are tailored to best fit different groups within the community. Online marketing, entrepreneurial, and business planning skills among others are part of what are courses offered.
PONANT Foundation
-
PONANT was created by sailors keen to share their passion for the sea. For more than thirty years, we have taken guests to some of the most precious places on the planet, where nature reigns supreme. This practice brings with it responsibilities towards the environment and the indigenous peoples that we meet. Local populations are often leading the charge towards sustainable tourism within their communities, sharing PONANT’s values towards environmentally-friendly travel. That is why, in 2018, PONANT created the PONANT Foundation to preserve the oceans and the polar regions in which they cruise, and to encourage exchanges between peoples. Their aim is to support local projects focusing on research, awareness-raising, and conservation.
Vayu Global Health Foundation
-
Over the past 19 years, TCS World Travel has been a strong supporter of Vayu Global Health Foundation (formally Ujenzi Charitable Trust) to help fund the development and adoption of accessible health solutions for the poor and vulnerable across more than 22 countries. Vayu Global Health Foundation recognizes the impact women and children have on the health of their families and communities and invests in maternal and child health projects that lead to healthier pregnancies, healthier babies and healthier, more resilient communities.
AmericaShare
-
AmericaShare is dedicated to improving the lives of the children living in Mukuru, the second-largest informal settlement in Nairobi, Kenya. Through their education and community outreach programs, they seek to provide disadvantaged children with access to basic education resources in order to facilitate sustainable change. AmericaShare’s headquarters is located in the heart of Mukuru at the Harambee Community Centre. The center provides an oasis of calm to the residents of Mukuru, and affords children a quiet place to study, learn and play away from the commotion and chaos of daily life in this impoverished area. AmericaShare also has three different programs aimed at helping children living in poverty remain in school, and have the opportunity to learn, as every child deserves.
Boynton Canyon Foundation
-
Committed to honoring and preserving the canyon in which they reside, Enchantment Resort created the Boynton Canyon Foundation (BCF). Their expert hiking and biking guides at the Trail House at Enchantment work in partnership with the National Park Service to ensure this high desert terrain is protected. To support the long-term preservation of the canyon’s trails and ecosystems, a portion of the profits from each guided hiking and mountain biking adventure is allocated to the BCF fund.
World Bicycle Relief
-
Backroads are strong supporters of the World Bicycle Relief. Their mission of providing bicycles to rural workers, students and healthcare providers worldwide, especially women. Distance is a barrier to attending school, receiving healthcare, delivering goods to market and other critical services needed. Backroads' involvement with WBR is helping people conquer the challenge of distance, achieve independence and thrive.