Conscious Traveler Podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

The life of a travel writer typically means months at a time spent away from home. But both Kathryn and Eric have  found significant others who, far from discouraging us from taking trips, appreciate how our passion for travel drives us and encourage us to see as much of the world as possible.

During normal times, that is. This past year has been completely different. With everyone locked down and working from home, including us, we’ve had to find new ways to relate both to travel and our partners, Keith and Jeff. We thought listeners might enjoy hearing their perspectives on what it’s like being with a person who travels for a living, including how they handle our personal... shall we say, quirks. And how everything has changed lately.

Being grounded for much of the pandemic has had hosts Kathryn Romeyn and Eric Rosen taking a harder look at how our passion for travel is contributing to climate change, and asking if there are ways we can address our environmental impact without simply giving up flying altogether. In today’s episode, Eric interviews three experts on the ways that airlines, airports, and yes, even travelers, can chart a greener course for the future.

First up is  Karel Bockstael, the vice president of sustainability at KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, which has recently undertaken research into futuristic aircraft and sustainable aviation fuels, among other measures.

Next is Samantha Bricker, the chief sustainability and revenue management officer for Los Angeles World Airports. During a massive expansion, LAX is fast-tracking green building projects that will cut down on traffic, emissions, energy and water use, and waste.

Finally, we turn to Tim Johnson, the director of the U.K.-based Aviation Environment Federation to examine aviation's climate and community impacts. He also tells us how travelers can make more responsible choices when flying.

Follow and message us on Facebook and Instagram to let us know!

There are stunning examples of innovative architecture and design in hotels all over this great planet, some of which we have been privileged enough to visit over the course of our travels. But the most impressive are those hospitality ventures that haven’t taken over a landscape, but have instead become part of it, quietly. 

In this episode, we first speak with Reda Amalou, architect and founder of AW², who allowed the dynamic topography of Costa Rica’s Papagayo Peninsula to guide his low-impact designs for the intimate yet sprawling beach and jungle retreat, Kasiiya Papagayo.

On the other side of the world, on the tiny yet lush Christmas Island, Swell Lodge is the result of wildlife photographers and guides Chris and Jess Bray’s passion for what’s sometimes referred to as the “Galapagos of the Indian Ocean.” 

What Kasiiya and Swell Lodge have in common is a reverence for the natural environment that runs so deep they have not sought to change it. Listen to the episode for more from these visionaries, and follow them on Instagram at @kasiiyapapagayo, @redaamaloudesign, @aw2_architecture, @swelllodge and @chrisbrayphotography.  

Welcome back for another season of Conscious Traveler! Like the first, season two is full of our travel tales from destinations as diverse as Tasmania and Rwanda, Cambodia, Costa Rica, and Barcelona. This time around, we’ll be featuring an array of dynamic, global voices, with experts on everything from environmentally sensitive architecture to the challenges of wildlife conservation, and from the delicious dishes that can reveal a culture’s hidden facets to how travel and tourism can lift up entire communities of women. Listen for a little taste of what is to come, with the aim, as always, to inspire and inform your next conscious adventure.

Come along for the ride and follow us on Instagram @conscioustravelerpod, @ericrosenla and @katromeyn. Also like our new Facebook page!

Eric and Kathryn discuss how they adapted to the early days of lockdown and travel restrictions, and how this time to sit still encouraged us to unpack souvenirs we’ve been meaning to use for years but just haven’t found the time to do so…until now.

Among the treats they’ve been enjoying are Manjimup truffle honey from Western Australia, Iittala glasses used aboard Finnair flights, sentimental brass cutlery from Bali, and hand-dyed textiles from Rwanda and Laos. This time also helps us remember that there are hidden gems right in our backyards just waiting to be discovered, and how rewarding it can be to explore your own hometown as a travel writer, even if you aren’t leaving the country anytime soon.

Gorillas and humans share about 98% of their DNA in common. There are truly no words to describe the experience of trekking into the African highland rainforests to spend an hour with these incredible animals. It’s like visiting an ancestor from an ancient time. Happily, their status was downgraded from critically endangered to…endangered just a few years ago. But there is still so much more that needs to be done to preserve these forest-dwelling living wonders.

Building upon the legacy of visionary researchers like Dian Fossey, who brought awareness to the plight of mountain gorillas when it was most critical, conservation of these primates is a case study in how of tourism can accomplish a tremendous amount of good – not just because of the international interest and funds coming in, but because of how carefully the industry is managed by dedicated people in Uganda and Rwanda.

On today’s episode, we talk to three individuals whose work is ultimately crucial to the survival of the mountain gorillas of Africa’s Great Lakes region. Dr. Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka is the first Wildlife Veterinary Officer of the Uganda Wildlife Authority and the founder of an NGO called Conservation Through Public Health. They work to educate and empower the communities living around the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest and make them partners in protecting the endangered mountain gorillas.

Praveen Moman grew up in Uganda and, when he founded Volcanoes Safaris in 1997, pioneered the idea of luxury gorilla tourism in the country. He was also among the first operators to open a safari lodge in neighboring Rwanda after that country’s strife in the 1990s and 2000s. His unique perspective on the central role of tourism to gorilla conservation programs, and how travelers can bring much-needed attention, aid, and action to the effort to save the great apes, leaves us hopeful and all the more determined to visit this part of the world once again.

We would also like to thank Emmanuel Bugingo of Partners for Conservation in Rwanda, who spoke to us on background. His organization helps communities living around Volcanoes National Park and promotes conservation efforts by focusing on three main priorities: public health, literacy, and conservation education and employment..

When you’re on the road as often as us, you start trying to pack as light as possible. Who cares if someone sees you in the same thing twice (or seven times)? Among travel writers, it sometimes even seems like the smaller your suitcase, the better a traveler you are.

But what if you could use some of your luggage allotment to do real good for others in the places you visit? If you get a free checked bag with your international airfare, why not bring a full-size suitcase packed to the brim with school materials? Heading out on safari? Bring two outfits, and fill the rest of your duffel with much-needed medical supplies. On this episode, we explore ways that travelers can positively impact destinations they visit simply by packing a few thoughtful items.

Our first guest is Rebecca Rothney, the founder of Pack for a Purpose. Her philanthropy matches travelers up with destinations and suggests supplies they can bring along for worthy grassroots organizations across the globe. Check out some of their latest work on Instagram. 

Our next guest gives us a fuller understanding of how much-needed philanthropic efforts can impact projects like the ones Pack for a Purpose works with. Emma Kennedy is the administration and fundraising manager at Tujatane School in Zambia, which is supported by a beautiful tourist lodge near Victoria Falls called Tongabezi. The school and lodge work together to incorporate a charitable component into guests’ visits and to keep them involved long after they go home. Plus, their Instagram feed is pretty inspirational.

It’s time for a flashback. In April 2020, sensing something unprecedented was on the horizon, we recorded our first episode (chronologically speaking) when Kathryn was in stuck in Nairobi, Kenya, and Eric was quarantining at home in Los Angeles. Then, COVID-19, social distancing and quarantine were still novel concepts. This episode represents our first conversation about we can be travel writers who are unable to travel in the typical sense, and how we can all take advantage of the places in our own backyards to keep our curiosity and wanderlust alive.

In all of our extensive travels, some of the most meaningful encounters have been underwater in places including Mozambique, Tahiti, Indonesia and the Galápagos. These vibrant aquascapes are the settings for life-changing encounters with wondrous marine species that can shift our perspectives and priorities.

Snorkeling and scuba diving around the world, we’ve been fortunate to swim with everything from whale sharks and dolphins to sea turtles, sea lions, manta rays and even a few (vegetarian) sharks—all totally wild, in their native habitats. But we’ve also witnessed dangerous and poor practices, too, from 50 tourists being allowed to jump off one boat into a pod of spinner dolphins off Oahu, to businesses profiting from keeping sea creatures in captivity. Knowing what we do about highly intelligent marine mammals makes these these situations totally unacceptable, and we want to spread awareness.

We begin this episode hearing all about how underwater photographer (and children’s book author and entertainment industry executive) Pier Nirandara uses her compelling aquatic wildlife images to excite viewers about conservation. She also discusses her own boundaries and how she chooses excursion outfitters. Next, marine expert Frank Murphy, director of the Tetiaroa Society in Tahiti, shares his experiences with humpback whales as they make their annual migration past the atoll where resort guests of The Brando can safely observe them. And we connect with Chad D’Souza, general manager of Perth Wildlife Encounters, about their company’s long-running wild dolphin swims, which Eric experienced years ago but remain a highlight.

We hope listeners will come away from this episode not only inspired to plan a life-affirming swim of their own, but confident that they can do so ethically, respectfully and sensitively. What’s more, we attempt to answer the question of whether the benefits to humans outweigh any potential risk or negatives for the wildlife, since we believe these firsthand experiences can directly result in an increased desire to support conservation.

Coffee is not only consumed and beloved around the world, but it is also produced in many countries ranging from Costa Rica and Indonesia to Uganda, Brazil and Laos. Though coffee agriculture has not always been equitable for the farmers, there are innovators changing that. In this episode, we talk with two entrepreneurs who have found a way to make coffee into a sustainable and sustaining industry by creating fair-trade projects that not only provide producers with living wages, but also support local conservation and community development efforts.

Kathryn met our first guest, Dr. Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka, on a trip to Uganda in 2019. Not only is she the first Wildlife Officer of the Ugandan Wildlife Authority, but she is also the founder of an NGO called Conservation Through Public Health that works with communities living around Bwindi Impenetrable Forest to promote gorilla conservation efforts there. She and her husband, Lawrence, founded Gorilla Conservation Coffee to help farmers living around the park support themselves by growing and selling coffee at fair prices.

Next, Eric calls Todd Moore, the director of Saffron Coffee. Along with a lovely little cafe in Luang Prabang, Laos, Saffron Coffee was founded in 2006 to help farmers in the hill villages of northern Laos shift from growing opium to farming coffee. Today, they work with more than 800 farmers in 25 of these villages. That success didn’t come without challenges, though, which we learn during our conversation.

Follow Gorilla Conservation Coffee on Instagram @gorillaconservation_coffee, and Saffron Coffee @saffroncoffee. And as always, be sure to check out our own Instagram feed @conscioustravlerpod.