Don't leave home without these essential tips, resources, and websites. » Read More
Ultimate Guide to Sustainable Travel: Shopping
26. Buy from Local Artisans
"While travelers are becoming more aware of the environmental fragility of our planet, much more attention needs to be paid to the fragility of the ancient living culture of the places we visit," says Jim Kane, founder and owner, Culture Xplorers, an immersive cultural adventure tour firm focused on the people and living traditions of Latin America. "Support and celebrate the local culture by purchasing hand-crafted artwork directly from the artisan whenever possible."
In Peru, Kane's firm partners with the nonprofit Center for Traditional Textiles of Cusco (CTTC) to sponsor the annual Culture Xplorers Weavers Awards. The awards, which honor the indigenous textile artists of the Sacred Valley, have helped spark the revival of Peru's endangered 2,000-year-old textile tradition. More than 500 indigenous weavers from nine countries participate in the awards program.
Travelers' economic decisions directly impact the survival of the local culture. So instead of buying 100 little machine-made sacks for a dollar each to give as gifts to friends and family back home, spend $100 for a single handmade textile you can display in your home and share with guests when they visit.
Explains Kane, "By buying the cheapest souvenirs you can find you are unintentionally supporting the mass-market, cheap product and moving people in the area away from their traditional culture. Artisans and people that are maintaining their ancient living cultures are like everyone else. They need to put food on the table for their families, they want a place to live, and they want to sustain themselves. So if they are not selling their handmade textiles, which are taking them months to produce using natural dyes and ancient techniques, they are going to say, 'I am going to go pick cocoa leaves in the jungle. I am going to go to the city and get a job.' They are going to lose their roots and their traditions."
27. Know What's Endangered
You know not to buy any products made with elephant ivory or reptile skins, but what about black coral or big-leafed mahogany? Before you travel, access up-to-date information on which animal and plant species are considered endangered around the globe by consulting the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).
"Local merchants in many countries have jewelry, clothing, and accessories widely available for the tourist trade that are made from endangered species such as sea turtle shell, black coral, reptile skins, ivory, and animal furs," says Alyssa Johnson, president of Oro Azul, a Seattle-basedecotourism and sustainable tourism consulting, and international small business development firm."You can help by not purchasing such items, and lessening the demand on these products. Instead, consider buying organic sustainable products such as items made from renewable sources like trees, cocoa, bananas, coffee, coconut shell, or preserved fruit products."
