Global Citizenship
Gothenburg offers a different vision of sustainable travel—one that feels less like a checklist and more like everyday life. From public transit and bike-friendly streets to car-free islands, secondhand shopping and thoughtful local experiences, Sweden’s second-largest city shows how traveling more responsibly can still feel rich, easy and rewarding.
In Abiansemal, a rural district north of Denpasar and west of Ubud in Bali, the Ayung River cuts through rocky gorges, winding past rice fields and jungle. Down by the river, a spread of bamboo pavilions rises in a hug of palm trees and thick bushes, their wide thatched roofs fanning out like giant conical hats. From above, the complex gives off the vibe of an eco-retreat in the middle of the jungle. But beneath the thatched roofs are open-air classrooms, designed to nurture young minds through an unconventional curriculum that could reimagine education as we know it.
In this NATJA award-winning World Footprints episode, Rick Steves joins us for a thoughtful conversation about Europe, the pandemic, social responsibility, and why travel remains one of the most powerful ways to better understand the world.
When people think of Southeast Asia, Thailand and Vietnam often come to mind first. But squeezed between them is Laos, a country covered in dense jungles and lush mountains perfectly suited for growing coffee, a relatively new crop that has grown recently in importance to the nation’s economy.
After spending a week traversing the jungle and savannah in one of the most biodiverse countries on earth, I felt that nothing in Guyana could surpass what I had already experienced: encountering anteaters in the wild, swimming with capybaras, spotting rare birds in the rainforest, and searching for jaguars at night.
I almost deleted the email that led to Destination Stewardship. Looking back, it wasn’t just about writing a book—it was about something I had been noticing in destinations for years.
You can barely see the roads within Lanzarote's Timanfaya National Park—and that's intentional. When local architect and artist César Manriche designed projects for Lanzarote, one of Spain’s eight Canary Islands, in the 1960s, he homed in on nature, with a clear aim to preserve the island’s landscapes.
America has a heartland. So does the Philippines. It has 7,600 islands organized into three major island groups, with the midlands comprising the welcoming Visayas region. My ninth trip there delivered an adventurous medley of down-to-earth pensions, a luxe island resort, and a perfect lifestyle mix of everything in between. I explored six different islands where one tune always sings true: this getaway means hospitality on steroids.
A growing trend among travelers is Last Chance Tourism (LCT)—a bittersweet form of exploration driven by the urgency to experience the world's most fragile and endangered destinations before they disappear. Whether it’s walking among calving glaciers, snorkeling over bleached coral reefs, or photographing sinking cities, LCT embodies both a celebration of Earth's beauty and a stark reminder of our collective impact on its future.
Dharavi, in central Mumbai, is considered one of the largest slums in Asia, but deep within this neighborhood, below the shanty grey roofs, loosely comprised of scavenged, upcycled metal, lives a resourceful and innovative community that plays an imperative role in Mumbai’s city-wide waste management.
The best way to travel with the intent of exploring diversity is to ditch the touristy places. Sometimes, tourist attractions bring people from all over the world — the Grand Canyon or Disneyland, for example.
The Maldives islands are home to more than a thousand coral reefs, vibrant ecosystems that provide a home for marine life.
