Meaningful Travel Summit with North Lake Tahoe

We are excited to report that nearly 450 hours of volunteering had some amazing results. Here is just a sampling of immediate positive impacts:

• 3/4 of a mile of new trail was constructed with TAMBA and Keep Tahoe Blue

• 480lbs of refuse from the lake was categorized with Clean Up the Lake

• 200 cubic yards of green waste was removed with North Tahoe Fire

• 5 elevated garden beds were assembled at Slow Food Lake Tahoe

• 1000 gallons of green waste was cleared from the U.C. Davis gardens  

Following the summit, attendees made commitments to create ongoing impact in their businesses. Check back to see where these commitments will take our community and our industry.

Check out the education sessions here.

View the presentations from our education session here.

Tourism Cares is partnering with local and national organizations to make the biggest impact in North Lake Tahoe. You can also find our partners and more meaningful ways to engage through our Meaningful Travel Map of North America. Meaningful Travel Map of North America.

To view the full list of our community partners and volunteer projects, click here.

DaɁaw (Lake Tahoe) is the homeland of the Waší∙šiw (Washoe people – the people from here). The Waší∙šiw are the aboriginal stewards of the land in and around the Lake Tahoe Basin since the beginning of time and as a sovereign nation the Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California, as it is known today, continues to advocate for the protection and preservation of Waší∙šiw ɁítdeɁ (the Washoe peoples homelands).

The Waší∙šiw relied on the land for survival; hunting, fishing, and gathering of traditional foods and medicines within their homelands was an integral part of the wá∙šiw (Washoe) culture and through this intrinsic relationship they helped shape the natural beauty of the Lake Tahoe Basin that so many enjoy today. As colonizers arrived in mass during the gold rush era, the Wá∙šiw summer camps became prime locations for logging and cattle grazing and the Waší∙šiw were no longer allowed to manage their lands as they had done for millenniums.

The removal of Wá∙šiw people from the land and increase in tourism to the Lake Tahoe Basin has negatively impacted an area that is not only renowned for its natural beauty and pristine waters but is now in dire need of rehabilitation and protection. The Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California has maintained their role as environmental stewards of the Lake Tahoe Basin, despite policies that sought to eradicate them, by continuing to advocate for their homelands and to protect, respect, and take care of Waší∙šiw ɁítdeɁ. As we acknowledge the Lake Tahoe Basin as the homeland of the Waší∙šiw, we ask that you, as visitors to these lands, treat this place with the same respect as those who walked before you, the Waší∙šiw.

See the Washoe Tribal Map here.

Tourism Cares’ Meaningful Travel Summits are designed to educate and encourage collaboration for positive impact in the destinations we all depend on. Creating that impact requires action. On the final day we asked attendees to make a formal commitment. Below are some suggested commitments, though attendees were also encouraged to create their own. If you attended the event and wish to share a commitment please email community@tourismcares.org so that we can recognize your journey. Tourism Cares and MaCher are both available to offer support and resources to help you achieve these goals.

Black Diamond - Suggested timeframe: 6 months to 1 year
(Recognition: Can choose from a brief speaking opportunity at a future event, a guest blog, or a focused article in a Tourism Cares newsletter)

• Commit to Net Zero by 2030, aligned with Science Based Targets initiative

• Complete a pay equity assessment for your organization and publish results or future goals

• Roll out a company wide policy on Indigenous Tourism

• Achieve company-wide livable wages

• Create and employ a vendor sourcing strategy that includes environmental and social impact assessment and goals

• Eliminate single use plastics and extraneous paper from your product offerings and business operations

• Design and offer a product that specifically caters to an underrepresented community

• Adopt an Ethical Marketing policy which includes addressing diversity and inclusion through your marketing

Blue Square - Suggested timeframe: 3 months
(Recognition: Can choose from a guest blog or a mention in a Tourism Cares newsletter)

• Put together a sustainability/impact team within your organization and meet to start planning, measuring and goal setting

• Sign the Glasgow Declaration (halve emissions by 2030, netzero by 2050) and begin climate action planning

• Create a strategy to systematically include meaningful travel product to your tours (using the Guide to Meaningful Travel Product, available to Tourism Cares members)

• Craft and utilize a Land Acknowledgement for your organization, including a collaboration with local Indigenous Peoples when possible. Consider what next steps you can take to respect indigenous peoples’ desires for their own lands

• Complete the BCorp Assessment for your organization

• Provide a scholarship for Indigenous person(s) for tertiary education

Green Circle - Suggested timeframe: 2 months
(Recognition: Tourism Cares social media shout out)

• Attend two live or recorded webinars on climate action, community tourism, indigenous tourism or a similar topic and share what you’ve learned with a network of coworkers

• Add two Meaningful Travel Map organizations into your products

• Estimate the carbon footprint of your product for one week of operations (or whatever time frame works best for you) and communicate that measurement to the leadership in your organization

• Complete the training on the Tourism Cares Meaningful Travel Platform

• Learn about the Good Life Goals and implement one new, significant change in your personal life to advance the UN Sustainable Development Goals

Tourism Cares uses detailed checklists when sourcing for event materials, as well as using materials we currently have on hand to reduce unnecessary waste. Here are some specifics for this program:

• We have worked closely with Palisades Tahoe to create menus that utilize local food wherever possible

• Name badges are made from recycled paper. Neck wallets are provided by MaCher and are meant to be reused at future programs. Please return them to a designated receptacle or Tourism Cares staff member before heading home.

• Additional hand sanitizer and sunscreen is available upon request. Sanitizer and Sunscreen are made by Stream2Sea, a company that creates products safe for the environment and free of harmful toxins.

• A limited number of rain ponchos are available upon request. These ponchos are reusable, recyclable and made from recycled materials.

Waste

Minimizing waste is a top priority when running any of our programs, hence why we are providing all event materials digitally. With reducing waste in mind:

• We are working closely with the hotel to provide accurate food counts to reduce waste

• Palisades Tahoe will be composting leftover food where it applies

• Utensils and condiments will not be added to lunch boxes so attendees can use only what they want/ need

Offsetting

Tourism Cares will offset all of our attendee and staff travel as part of our Carbon Offset program with South Pole.

We are dedicated to moving our industry forward in meaningful ways. To do this we’ll need to ask important (and sometimes uncomfortable) questions that help us get there.

Our industry is built on shared experiences – to listen and learn from community members knowing that tourism can be a means to celebrate our differences. Yet, we know we sometimes need to do more around justice, diversity, equity and inclusion. Here are some of the ways we are committed to making out programs and our industry in general, more inclusive:

We Welcome All

ALL are welcome to attend Tourism Cares events and/or engage in our programs regardless of age, race, ethnicity, ability, gender, sexuality, or religion. We approach every event with accessibility and inclusivity in mind, ensuring that we are proactive in everyone’s ability to participate.

We Involve Local Stakeholders

We commit to approaching local communities in a way that elevates the local voice and respects their vision of tourism. We encourage full, effective, and equitable participation and treat community partners as equal program partners.

We Create Space to Share Identity

Self-identification is important, and we understand that we each have our own understanding of the words used to describe our own experiences. So that we can best honor your identity and experiences, we have provided attendees the opportunity to share pronouns and have included them on name badges. A pronoun is a word that substitutes for a noun. Examples include They, she, sie, he.

We Remember That We are Guests

Tourism Cares will support respectful visitor-host interactions that foster responsible tourism practices, benefitting the well-being of the culture and environment.