Episodes
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Leonard Ellis knows more than most tourism operators what it means to pivot a business. Over his 50-year career, and as the owner of Bella Coola Grizzly Tours, he has transitioned from hunting big game to viewing them instead. But his motivation to bring balance to nature through guided tours is unchanged. Leonard has worked to re-introduce grizzly bears to an area where prior hunting outfitters had driven them out, and he says today’s trips are a lower-impact operation. But how do we know tourism’s best role in conservation? Are we sometimes harming when we think we’re helping? This conversation brings up hard questions and gives us a fascinating glimpse into what it means to roll with the changes in a tourism life on the land.
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She’s a CEO by day and a farmer by night, but in both roles, Amy Thacker is working to help people connect with the lands where they live and visit. Amy leads the Cariboo Chilcotin Coast Tourism Association to support the tourism industry in inviting visitors to see this vast, diverse region for themselves – and experience the positive culture shock of living off the grid. In this conversation, she shares why tourism and agriculture work so well together for her and debunks some common misconceptions some visitors have before they arrive, offering insight into educating visitors as a destination.
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Missing episodes?
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Chris Harris, a renowned photographer and adventurer, shares his deep connection to British Columbia’s Cariboo Chilcotin Coast region and his efforts to document the Chilcotin Ark, one of the most biodiverse wilderness areas in the temperate world. He explores how the Ark’s unique geography positions it as a potential refuge for life in the face of climate change, and how tourism can be a powerful tool to educate, inspire connection, and promote conservation and sustainability in this extraordinary landscape.
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How can the private sector work for public good? Rod Drury is a serial entrepreneur and Founder of Xero, a successful tech company based in Aotearoa New Zealand. Since stepping back from his roles as CEO and Director, Rod has been involved in some of the most exciting innovations taking place in Queenstown related to electrification – areas like energy production, public transport, and marine technology. In this fireside chat with Destination Think CEO Rodney Payne, he shares what he has learned from those projects and advice for other business leaders looking to make an impact where it matters.
Learn about the latest innovations for tourism, travel and communities around the world at:
https://innovate.destinationthink.com/
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How can travel contribute to creating more equitable communities? Ben Lyman, Head of Communications at the Travel Foundation and Bernadette Papp, Senior Researcher at the European Tourism Futures Institute discuss new research on equity in tourism. Developed by a consortium of researchers and sponsoring organizations including Destination Think, they share case studies and strategies for travel industry leaders and how destinations are evolving to integrate tourism as a catalyst for local equity solutions.
Learn about the latest innovations for tourism, travel and communities around the world at:
https://innovate.destinationthink.com/event
You can access the Creating Equitable Destinations report after it is released at: https://www.thetravelfoundation.org.uk/
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What can travel businesses do to make a substantial impact in their climate actions? Shannon Guihan, Chief Sustainability Officer at The Travel Corporation, discusses moving beyond carbon offsetting to achieve genuine decarbonization. As the parent company of many tourism brands including Trafalgar and Contiki, The Travel Corporation has committed to reaching net zero carbon emissions. In this session, Shannon describes the company’s innovative Carbon Fund and explains how other businesses can adapt similar strategies to make meaningful progress. She also provides tips for presenting these changes to the C-suite and emphasizes why the travel industry needs a stronger voice in sustainability discussions.
Learn about the latest innovations for tourism, travel and communities around the world at: https://innovate.destinationthink.com/event
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Launched on World Tourism Day, 100 Travel Innovations is a collaborative effort among destinations worldwide to spotlight existing solutions to our most pressing challenges in tourism. By bringing together insights from 35 countries and six continents, this initiative demonstrates that solutions for critical issues like climate resilience, biodiversity, and cultural preservation already exist. With a focus on real-world examples, 100 Travel Innovations aims to inspire travellers and industry stakeholders alike to embrace these proven strategies and accelerate positive change in the travel sector.
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Travel has the capacity to create positive change, and in many places around the world, it's already happening. The team at Destination Think has been researching the travel industry’s greatest innovations to some of the world’s biggest challenges, uncovering countless ways tourism leaders are stepping up and making an impact. In this episode, get a behind-the-scenes look at our upcoming event, 24 Hours of Travel Innovation, and hear how global changemakers are driving the systemic transformation needed for a better future. Find out more at: https://innovate.destinationthink.com/event
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If it was your job to invite the world to visit one of Canada's most famous travel destinations while also working fiercely alongside the tourism industry and community to protect its incredible environment, how would you do it? You'd need to find alignment on what matters most.
Leslie Bruce and her team at Banff & Lake Louise Tourism collaborated with the Town of Banff, Parks Canada, and more than 2,000 local residents to create a vision for tourism that remains in harmony with the needs of both the community and the environment.
In this episode, Leslie Bruce shares how Banff National Park is innovating and adapting to preserve its incredible environment and visitor experiences.
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“When we travel, we pause.” Callandra Caufield knows travel can be transformative. She also knows it can transform communities for better and for worse. As Executive Director at Explore Cochrane, she’s working with residents to bring tourism’s greatest benefits to town while creating visitor experiences that match local values. In this episode, she reflects on her role in shaping a tourism economy that works for Cochrane and preserves its natural surroundings. She describes the distinct advantages the town has as an emerging destination and what it takes to put the community first in tourism planning. Hint: It all begins with taking a moment to pause and listen.
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For hockey fans, the Zamboni has long been a fixture at arenas for treating ice surfaces before games and in between periods. And for just as long, these vehicles have needed fuel to get around. But the City of Vernon in British Columbia has begun electrifying its Zamboni fleet alongside other city vehicles. In this episode, we talk with Torrie Silverthorn, Tourism Manager at Tourism Vernon and Jonny Rockall, Zamboni driver and e-bike entrepreneur, about the benefits of electrification in this growing sports tourism destination.
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Today, we turn toward travel’s role in supporting carbon removal. For Tito Jankowski of AirMiners, travel doesn’t have a future without this climate solution. Today’s airline CEOs and industry leaders have the chance to invest in carbon removal early. And wouldn’t it be nice to know that the offsets you buy from an airline are actually working? All this and more in today’s episode.
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Is carbon removal about to take off? What is its potential for large-scale impact as a climate solution? As the Co-Founder and CEO of AirMiners, Tito Jankowski is leading a global community of over 2000 scientists, entrepreneurs, engineers, policymakers, and others dedicated to reversing climate change. In part 1 of this episode, he shares why carbon removal is so important, why it’s an industry on the brink of massive growth, and how travel organizations can support the transition.
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Under what circumstances would change be possible? Questions like these fuel the work of Paul Cubbon, whose leadership at the University of British Columbia’s Creative Destruction Lab enables early-stage businesses to scale their innovations and impact in a variety of interrelated fields affecting the health of humanity, the planet, and economies. Paul has a view of some of the world’s most exciting technological innovations, and he shares what drives his conviction that rapid, scalable improvements are possible as people seek to build a better world. He offers suggestions for changemakers seeking to remove common barriers.
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Dr. Susanne Becken has been studying sustainable tourism for more than 20 years and is an experienced science communicator. As a researcher and Professor of Sustainable Tourism at Griffith University, she brings a clear perspective about the future of the travel industry in light of current climate forecasts, and what we might need to do next.
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Let’s reflect on why we care about using travel to make the world a better place. It’s something Ewout, a strategist with the Netherlands Board of Tourism & Conventions (and a new father), has been thinking about a lot. In 2023, we sat down with him to learn about his perspective on the current state of tourism and how that has impacted NBTC’s new vision going forward.
In this updated episode, we also check in with Ewout on the latest from NBTC, including this new report on the climate impact of international travellers to The Netherlands, which measures the “eco-efficiency” of each visiting nation’s travellers.
https://www.nbtc.nl/nl/site/actueel/de-co2-impact-van-internationaal-bezoek-aan-nederland
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People are going to explore, and it matters how they do it. Bend’s Wanderlust Tours guides visiting explorers is a way that preserves the lands and waters everyone relies on. Co-owner Jared Garfield shares several solutions related to visitor education and advice for tourism businesses seeking to make a positive community impact.
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“All we’re doing is building relationships.” Pine Mountain Sports is a solar-powered bike shop with a commitment to making Bend a better place to live. Owner Dan McGarigle talks about the impact his business makes as a community resource, and how Bend influences visitors.
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Around 50% of Bend’s visitors arrive by travelling through the nearby Warm Springs Reservation. Local artist and radio producer Marge Kalama discusses how tourism impacts Warm Springs, emphasizing the importance of care for the land, the continuation of her community’s cultural practices, and the opportunities for collaboration with organizations in the Bend area.
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What began as one lawyer’s mission to save a forest is now Central Oregon LandWatch, an NGO overseeing rural and urban planning related to lands, waters, and issues like affordable housing. Executive Director Ben Gordon outlines the challenges ahead for this region and explains why more holistic community planning will make Bend a more attractive place to live and visit.
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