Blue Sky Cafe

Gecko Villa was launched in 2000 amongst the rice paddies of Northeastern Thailand, a part of the kingdom seldom visited by travellers, who tend to follow the crowds to the tourist destinations of Phuket, Pattaya or Chiang Mai.

The aim behind the project was to create sustainable employment in the region, to avoid economic migration and the traditional breakup of families by offering guests the possibility of escaping from the homogeneity of city hotel rooms to the comfort of their own house and a private swimming pool as well as freshly cooked meals – in the heart of the countryside.

Guests may either enjoy the villa in complete privacy, or allow themselves to be integrated fully into the local ways of life by the local villagers, who are best placed to explain time-honoured traditions and details of the local culture and accompany visitors to hard-to-find local areas of beauty or historical interest.

There is a wealth of things to see and do; from World Heritage museums to visiting small rural villages, schools, markets and temples, to music and morlam festivals, to experiencing traditional rites, or simply enjoying areas of natural beauty with lakes and waterfalls.

As those who have visited the northeast (or “Isaan” as we call it) will testify, Isaan is known to have the most friendly and welcoming people in the country, and offers guests the chance to “go local” in a region mostly unchanged by rapid industrialization.

The timing of any visit to Isaan will largely govern what you will see and experience there. From May to October most locals are busy ploughing and planting the rice paddies, so the area is green and fertile. Guests may be offered the chance to try their hand at ploughing or planting in the paddies: but be warned, this is hard work! December and January are considered the cool season: although days are hot and sunny, nights can be cool and fresh. From February and through till May the region really gets very hot and a splash in a pool or lazing in a hammock is always more appealing than strenuous labour.

The food in Isaan will be one of the highlights of your visit. Whilst the people of Isaan are famous for their ability to eat whatever moves (including lizards, snakes, frogs and insects), the region is home to numerous spicy and fresh dishes that are now favourites throughout Thailand. At Gecko Villa, the local owners are delighted to be able to show guests both Thai and Isaan cooking - not from inside a kitchen, but by taking them through our garden, picking the fresh herbs and spices needed, and then showing them how to make more unusual specialties. They grow much of their own produce organically, including pandanus leaves, kaffir lime leaves, limes, mint, coriander, mangoes, papaya, passion fruit, jackfruit, etc.

The property:

• Controls water and electricity consumption using both traditional and modern methods, and harvests rainwater.
• Distributes all profits within the local community, & creates employment in one of Thailand’s poorest regions, preventing economic migration.
• Employs a majority of women
• Has a permanent recycling programme
• Helps the local community via donations of equipment and funds to village schools.
• Takes demonstrable steps against deforestation, and plants new trees regularly to help sustain the local ecosystems.
• Operates its own organic herb and fruit gardens
• Promotes local ways of life and cultural heritage.

But at their heart is the wish to offer very enjoyable holidays to a variety of visitors, thus promoting the idea that responsible travel is fun! Do visit www.geckovilla.com and consider staying there during your next trip to Thailand!

Will the credit crunch usher in a green backlash, as people abandon environmentalism in favour of what they consider more pressing economic concerns, and how should the green movement respond? Throughout the weekGuardian has asked a number of leading thinkers to assess the lessons of history and the changing tactics necessary to deliver their agenda during a recession.

Read more here

But what impact will the fiancial crisis have on the Green Travel Industry? Harold Goodwin of the responsible tourism Awards, announced this week, explains how tourism can and should be a force in these cash strapped times.

All the champions of responsible tourism report high levels of repeat bookings and referrals; tour operators say that responsible tourism has been good for their businesses. Caroline Bremner of the market research company Euromonitor, which released its Global Trends Report at this week’s World Travel Market in London, reports that “the desire for environmental responsibility, social interaction, authentic travel experiences and fair trade practices” has more relevance to more travellers in the current economic environment. But that change in our attitude to travel has been a while in coming.

See full article here

The warning comes in a book, Photoclima, launched this week by Greenpeace in which images of some of Spain’s most emblematic places have been altered to show what they could look like in the future. Using statistics from the UN panel on climate change and a touch of digital makeup Greenpeace hopes to scare Spain into taking action. Full article here

According to a recent article, Between 1/4 and 1/3 of the global population does not have access to electricity. It is predicted that the rate will be less in the years to come but also that the nominal amount will remain roughly the same, i.e. 1.5-2 billion people. The majority of them living in Africa and on the Indian peninsula.

Irresponsible Tourism is a forum designed to give YOU an opportunity to blow the whistle on practices in the travel and tourism industry which you think are irresponsible, and to discuss them with others.

The forum and its threads are accessible to anyone, but only registered users can post responses, comments and create new threads. For full forum information please click here

…are proud to present, for the eco traveller, four delightful eco friendly hotels for accommodation in Bali, Borneo (Kalimantan), Flores (Komodo) and Jakarta (Java). Join us for an adventure and see nature at its best…walk with komodo dragons … observe orangutans, gibbons, tarsiers and monkeys in their natural habitat… study magnificent, rarely seen butterflies and birds… dive on pristine coral reefs… trek through tropical rainforests… enjoy a game of cricket or just relax in eco friendly surroundings. Our aims are to provide, at a reasonable price, comfortable clean accommodation for our guests with airport transfers, helpful staff and excellent fresh tropical cuisine. Our emphasis is on environmental protection through education of guests and staff, recycling of water and waste as well as efficient use of electricity, solar heating and rainwater. We even have a worm farm for composting! Eco hotels and eco tours and travel are our speciality! Now GreenGlobe Certified!
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Frontier TV is an ethical business & living Internet TV channel and website featuring videos, commentary and resources for ethical consumers, as well as enterprises with an ethical focus. Its aim is to increase awareness for society and environment to affect positive social change.

The purpose of Frontier TV is to provide innovative, uplifting and highly relevant programs, news and documentaries focused on the cutting edge of today’s top social, spiritual, economic, scientific and environmental issues. The channel aims to create open and honest forums of discussion that bring together the business, environmental and ‘quality of life’ communities with a commitment to mutual respect and creative win-win solutions. www.frontier.tv

Libya has unveiled an ambitious ecotourism project know as ‘Green Mountain’. The project utilising a raft of renewable energy technologies, recycling, biofuels and environmentally friendly building development will also serve to protect the world renowned Greek and Roman architecture and a coastal eco-system described as fragile. The International Herald Tribune reports on the story in some more detail.

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ethicalescape is ranked number one in Google for the essential search terms for your target audience, ecoholidays, ethical holidays, ecotours and ethical accommodation. We are also ranked in the top ten for the search terms, ecotourism, responsible travel and have high page ranking for a number of other relevant search terms.

Over the last couple of years we have been referenced by a number of international publications, national press and websites, achieved both print and television coverage and ranked in the top 20 ethical living websites in the world in Amazon.com. We receive 35 - 40,000 unique visits per month, primarily from UK based customers of middle to high income with an ethical and environmentally responsible outlook.The majority of our visitors are based in Europe with the majority based in the UK, however we have a worldwide reach with Australia and Canada offering a significant amount of our readership.

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Well here it is, a pig’s battle for sustainability… the meatrix