Category: Sustainable travel

Teja on the Horizon began from events in my life that came together at the time of my volunteering experience in the Maldives. But that trip was just the completion of an idea that began germinating the previous year, during two other trips volunteering for environmental NGOs, in the Perhentian Islands, and in India.

And that was to see if I could do something more, to communicate environmental science and sustainability concepts to the public.

A marriage with the humanities – are there any polymaths in the house?

But while scientists are great at analytical thinking and precision, the most effective forms of communication belong to the humanities. It is the province of literature and art, of marketing and psychology.

The fact is, ideas don’t become popular and turn into the new normal, because people understand them. It’s because people could see how it fits into their lives, how it fulfils their needs, and makes them feel better.

Only a few people buy an iPhone because they are convinced of its technology. Most people do it because Apple successfully made them desire it.

Consequently, achieving this is not about communicating knowledge. Not about analysis. Nor about being conclusive. Rather, it is about connecting with what people value. Their hearts. Their imagination.

Instead of making people seek the knowledge, have it delivered.

So I thought I’d try and do something a little bit different. What if I simply presented a sustainable mindset as a normal part of life – of travel, for instance. As if it were already the default.

What if, environmental science knowledge is simply embedded into normal things people seek for their own reasons? Just like how in childhood I learned about the sphinx from reading the back of a cereal box at breakfast. So that people did not have to make an extra effort to learn it?

Would people remember it better? Would it resonate more? Perhaps, would it even be copied? Would it be shared more? After all, for much of human history, we taught our most important tribal knowledge, in the form of stories. [Seriously, though. If you agree with me, share the stuff. Copy the approach into other things.]

And that is why, you might notice if you look closely, sustainable travel concepts are found in almost every article on this blog.

But you can find in this section, those articles that directly discuss a concept, a destination, or activity, related to sustainable travel.

What do you think?

Quick links to the Sustainable Travel article series:

Two Simple First Steps to be an Effective Sustainable Traveller
Three Essential Next Steps to be an Effective Sustainable Traveller
One Key Choice to Sustain the Sustainable Journey