Global Citizenship
On gorilla treks tourists are always advised to take photos from a safe distance and not worry about the Gram because they are leaving more than footprints. Curious adventure travelers are not heeding the rules many continue to get close to gorillas for the Gram but these irresponsible travelers are also infecting the endangered species. There are close to 650 Instagram images of people getting about 20 feet away from the gorillas, with some of them touching these primates. This proximity means the gorillas as becoming infected, which can be deadly to them. There has been a rise in the number of infectious cases in the gorilla population with the most recent example of human metapneumovirus infecting 11 apes in Rwanda. Two apes died due to the infection. The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Uganda and Rwanda have labeled the mountain gorillas as being endangered and estimated there are just [...]
A climbing ban on the sacred Uluru rocks in Australia brought hundreds of people to get in one last climb before enforcement takes effect. The ban, which was passed in 2017, recently went into effect after the Anangu aboriginal people claimed it was a sacred place for many thousands of years and should never have been considered a rock to climb. The problem began at the start of the early 20th century when more visitors came to the area.
Travel to a country where no visas are required and learn how easy it is to reconnect when you disconnect.
Voluntourism can be a benefit to communities, but if done improperly, it can actually be more harmful than helpful. And unfortunately, it can be hard for an outsider to know the difference. So what can socially-conscious travelers do to make sure their efforts make a positive, rather than a negative, impact?
While it may receive over 37 million visitors per year – making it seventh place on the list of most visited countries in the world in 2018 – a recent study has found that the UK is statistically more dangerous to visit than Rwanda, Romania and Azerbaijan.
The iconic white marble mausoleum intricately decorated with motifs and calligraphy may be one of the world’s most recognisable sights, but being such a beautiful building comes with its own set of problems. Overcrowding has long been an issue for the Taj Mahal in Agra, India, but will opening the site to the public at night – as the tourism ministry has announced – help reduce this issue?
Rome officials are taking steps to thwart tourists’ behavior with a plethora of rules that range from public eating to drinking from its water fountains.
Uluru is not just the geographical heart of Australia; it is considered by Indigenous Australians to be the spiritual heart as well.
It may be seen as one of the last bastions of adventure travel, but the recent boom in tourists travelling to the Arctic Circle is having a devastating effect on its environment, being damaging to both the local landscape and its inhabitants.
On this show World Footprints discusses the power of travel to generate social change and heal depression with two amazing guests. Matilde Simas is an award-winning documentary photographer who uses her gifts to generate social change. Her work focuses on human rights, people affected by trauma, and endangered ecosystems. Matilde Simas, born in 1973, studied at the Suffolk University in Boston and studied photography at the Rhode Island School of Design. As a photographer and filmmaker, she traveled to more than 50 countries and early on started to fully commit herself to human rights and the fight against violations of the rights of women and children. In 2017 the award-winning photographer founded Capture Humanity, an artistic collaborative organization that aims to document humanitarian groups that assist women, children, marginalized communities, and conservation efforts. Patience, commitment, and integrity are the core of their effort to inspire greater creative and social consciousness. [...]
Women’s rights have long been a huge issue in Saudi Arabia due to the strict application of sharia law within the country, with women only gaining the right to drive last year. However, a landmark ruling change will now give Saudi women over the age of 21 the right to obtain their own passports without the need for permission from a male guardian.
A Russian family was recently cautioned by police in Cambodia after being caught begging in the town of Battambang, raising the issue of the growing trend of begpacking and the effect it has on the countries where people practice it.
