learning on it and specialist guides creating trips around the Discovery Channel programme’s content," says Poon Tip. "When the Discovery Channel did Frozen Planet and Planet Earth we did trips around those themes, for example. It’s been a really successful relationship for us.”
PLANETERRA From the very start, it was important to operate in an ethical and sustain- able way, says Poon Tip. “From day one it was always about people for us, about cultures meeting cultures. It always made sense for us to have an intimate relationship with our hosts. It’s about doing the right thing, which is one of our core values. “First of all it was about creating jobs and benefi ting local economies, but we became very successful in the process. There came a tipping point when we knew we had to do some- thing more than just giving people jobs. It made sense to go that next step. There comes a point when you have to really get serious and incor- porate doing the right thing into the entire philosophy of your business.” In 1996, G Adventures started to
partner with other non-profi t organi- sations in order to give back to the communities in which it operated. Poon Tip soon became frustrated with the bureaucratic nature of the NGOs they were working with though. “Because we were so entrepreneurial and quick to market with our ideas, we felt the
ISSUE 3 2012 © cybertrek 2012
"There comes a point when you have to
really get serious and incorporate doing the right thing into the entire philosophy of your business"
non-profi t organisations were really slowing us down,” he says. The answer, he decided, was to go it alone, and in 2003 G Adventures set up the non profi t Planeterra Foundation, dedicated to the development and support of small communities around the world. Planeterra’s is currently running
more than 50 projects, spanning health, education, employment skills training, cultural heritage preservation, and environmental conservation. “From the beginning I thought Planeterra would end up being bigger
G Advntures operates in six continents, off ering a wide range of trip styles
than G Adventures, because there is so much potential there, and I think that prediction is coming to fruition,” says Poon Tip. “As an adventure travel operator, you’re a niche operator. Giving back is more of a mainstream proposition, with the potential to appeal to more people." As an example, Poon Tip cites an appeal that was launched during the Kenyan droughts several months ago to raise money to build water tanks for families travelling to refugee camps. “We raised $50,000 in 24 hours with a single tweet,” he says. “Then we raised another $50,000 the week after. Suddenly, we’re involved in dis- aster response, which was never on our agenda. We made $100,000 in a few days, and that cost us nothing as a company. It shows how we can tran- scend our product and engage our customers beyond travel.”
Read Leisure Management online
leisuremanagement.co.uk/digital 41
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