The Better Travel Podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

We’re wrapping up Season 3 with a moving conversation with Dr. Tonya Matthews, the president and CEO of the International African American Museum (IAAM), which is due to open in Charleston, South Carolina later this year.

Dr. Matthews talks about the inspiration for the museum; how the museum approaches storytelling; and how she hopes the museum will inspire courage in its visitors. She also shares how the IAAM will help to shape Charleston’s tourism landscape.

Plus, listen up at the end of the episode, when Paige offers a preview of what to expect for Season 4.

Thanks so much for listening!

Links and things

The IAAM website: https://iaamuseum.org/

Paige’s interview with Dr. Matthews for The New York Times (unlocked link): bit.ly/3I9T4gg

IAAM on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/iaamuseum/

IAAM on Twitter: https://twitter.com/iaamuseum

How do you think about the climate impact of travel? For a lot of people, this is a complex question — both technically and emotionally.

Our guest this week, Christina Beckmann, is here to help us navigate this topic. Christina is the co-founder of Tomorrow’s Air, a collective of travelers who are investing in the scale-up of carbon removal from the atmosphere. Christina talks about how technologies like direct air capture are evolving, and shares how individuals can help support a long-term shift toward a healthier climate.

Links and things

Tomorrow’s Air website: www.tomorrowsair.com

Tomorrow’s Air on Instagram: www.instagram.com/tomorrowsair_

Tomorrow’s Air on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/tomorrows-air

Christina Beckmann’s website: www.christinabeckmann.com

Paige’s NYT article on aviation and climate change: bit.ly/3HgSigX (unlocked link)

Some extra info from Christina

As Christina mentions in the episode, Climeworks is one of the companies that Tomorrow’s Air supports. Climeworks’s direct air capture service has become so popular that most of the company’s carbon credits have now been spoken for. Because of Tomorrow’s Air’s early commitment to Climeworks, it represents one of only a very few channels that allow individual travelers to invest in direct air capture carbon removal with permanent storage. Tomorrow's Air also invests in Pacific Biochar, a company that produces a type of high-carbon residue that, when inserted into the soil, stores the carbon underground, where it does not contribute to global warming. 

Zakia Moulaoui Guery, CEO of Invisible Cities, shares how her company creates exceptional travel experiences that allow visitors to give back to the people and places they visit.

Thanks so much for listening!

Links and things

Invisible Cities website: https://invisible-cities.org/

Zakia’s TED Talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kWITmCWSZrw

The International Network of Social Tours: https://inst.ngo/

Link to register for free Sept 23 Zoom event on travel with purpose: https://bit.ly/3UrEXXs

Why is the beach synonymous with paradise for so many of us? How do beach resorts change the communities around them? And will they manage to survive rising sea levels?

In the first episode of Season 3, Paige speaks with Sarah Stodola, author of “The Last Resort: A Chronicle of Paradise, Profit and Peril at the Beach,” for a deep dive on one of humanity’s favorite travel destinations.

Thanks so much for listening!

Links and things

Sarah’s website https://sarahstodola.com/

Sarah’s book https://www.harpercollins.com/products/the-last-resort-sarah-stodola?variant=39703502389282

Flung, Sarah’s travel magazine: https://flungmagazine.com/

Sign up for Paige’s newsletter: www.paigemcclanahan.com/newsletter

Welcome to Season 3 of The Better Travel Podcast! Hosted by Paige McClanahan, a travel journalist and lifelong travel addict, this is the show that gives you a deeper understanding of the world of travel. Come along with us in Season 3 as we meet innovators, entrepreneurs and activists around the world who are challenging the status quo in the travel industry and making sure that travel gets us out of our comfort zones and opens our minds. Hit subscribe now. Episode 1 drops on September 8!

For the Season 2 finale, Paige speaks to Bruce Poon Tip, who is both the founder of a major adventure travel company and an executive producer of “The Last Tourist,” an award-winning documentary that makes the case for why we need to dramatically rethink the way we travel.

Bruce shares the film’s origin story and explains why he wanted the movie to convey a message of hope: that travel — done right — can bring wealth into some of the world’s poorest areas, creating jobs and alleviating poverty.

Bruce also talks about G Adventures, the travel company he founded in 1990, and shares the company’s innovative approach to making sure they give back to the communities they visit.

Plus, listen up for a (somewhat spicy) language lesson in Greek!

That’s a wrap on Season 2! Thank you so much for listening. We hope you’ll follow along on Instagram or Twitter to stay in the loop for Season 3!

Resources

The Last Tourist website (includes links to streaming services)

G Adventures

Information on the G Adventures Ripple Score

This week, we’re talking about safari tourism — but not the kind of safari you might be thinking of. Instead of looking for giraffes, lions and elephants on the savannas of Kenya or Tanzania, we’re heading to Italy to go wolf tracking and to Romania to spy wild European bison.

Our guide here is Aukje van Gerven of the European Safari Company and Rewilding Europe. Aukje tells us about rewilding trends in Europe and describes how wildlife tourism is opening up new opportunities — both for visitors, and for the people living in Europe’s rural areas.

Plus, Paige gets a fascinating history lesson and language lesson from Sierra Leonean star Vickie Remoe!

Thanks so much for listening. We’ll be back next week with the final episode of Season 2!

Resources

The Vickie Remoe Show

Vickie Remoe on Twitter and Instagram

The European Safari Company

Rewilding Europe

Comment piece on tourism and rewilding from Justin Francis of Responsible Travel

This week, we’re bringing you a conversation with Lonely Planet co-founder Tony Wheeler! Tony joins the show to tell the story of the company’s founding and to talk about how guidebooks have changed the way we travel. He also reminisces about the “Hippie Trail” across Asia in the 1970s and tells us about the strangest place he’s ever been.

Plus, listen up for our latest language lesson, in which our producer Artemis learns a beautiful and meaningful phrase in Czech.

Next week, we’ll be off for a quick Spring Break! We’ll be back on April 7 with the penultimate episode of Season 2.

Thank you so much for listening!

Resources

Tony Wheeler’s website

Tony and Maureen Wheeler’s book, Unlikely Destinations: The Lonely Planet Story

Uganda’s first wildlife vet, Dr. Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka, joins the show this week to share how tourism has affected the lives of the wildlife and residents in and around Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park in southwestern Uganda.

Dr. Gladys, who was recently named a UN Champion of the Earth, is the founder and CEO of both Conservation Through Public Health and Gorilla Conservation Coffee. She joins the show to talk about the important economic opportunities that have come with gorilla trekking, as well the health challenges that have arisen as gorillas and humans have come into closer contact. She shares how Uganda’s gorilla population has grown since tourism began in the area, and explains why they recently had their first gorilla poaching incident in a very long time.

Plus, listen up for Paige’s language lesson with a native of a European micro-state that’s famous for its luxury tourism.

Thanks so much for listening, and have a great week!

Resources

Conservation Through Public Health

Information on gorilla trekking with CTPH

Gorilla Conservation Coffee

Find Dr. Gladys on Instagram and Twitter

This week, Paige is joined by Erin Elizabeth Hynes, an experienced and enthusiastic traveler, travel writer and travel podcaster who shares some excellent advice for her fellow women wanderers, as well as some of her travel stories from Venice, Morocco, Greece and beyond.

But the episode kicks off with this week’s language lesson (in Japanese!), which is taught by Miyuki Seguchi, a traveler, tour guide and podcast host whose aim is to help people have immersive and transformative experiences when they visit Japan.

Did any of Erin’s stories resonate with you? In what ways do you think travel is different for women? I’d love to hear your thoughts and hope you’ll share by sending me a voice message.

Thank you so much for listening!

Resources

Erin’s blog, Pina Travels

The Alpaca My Bags Podcast, which Erin hosts

Miyuki Seguchi’s website

Miyuki’s Japan Experts Podcast