These Destinations Are Enacting Pledges to Encourage Mindful Tourism

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A collective of mountain towns in the west is launching “Pledge for the Wild” this week. The campaign — which includes the cities of Bend, Oregon; Bozeman, Montana; and South Lake Tahoe, California — encourages visitors to donate $1 per hour they spend in nature to an environmental nonprofit.

When visitors are trekking through the wilderness or having a drink at the local brewpub, they will see ads for the campaign with info on how to text to donate. All money donated will stay local to benefit the small organizations that are maintaining the destinations.

“By making this a collective effort, Pledge for the Wild communities hope to elevate the conversation nationally and have a long-term positive on the land, the local economy, and the world around us,” according to the group’s website.

Any community who is interested in joining the program is encouraged to contact Pledge for the Wild.

And, more destinations around the world are also finding ways to encourage responsible tourism.

Last year, locals in the Californian town of Big Sur launched the “Big Sur Pledge” in an effort to make visitors think about their environmental impact. The eight-part pledge encourages visitors to “share our coastal roads in a safe manner” and to “leave no trace and not damage or take what is not mine.”

In 2017, the island nation of Palau enacted a pledge in the form of a passport stamp. Visitors must sign the stamp which reads: “I vow to tread lightly, act kindly and explore mindfully. I shall not take what is not given. I shall not harm what does not harm me. The only footprints I shall leave are those that will wash away.” The pledge is written into the nation’s immigration laws and visitors can not enter the country until they have signed.

How Post-it Notes Can Extend the Life of Your Passport

For frequent international travelers, there are few encounters more quietly frustrating than when a customs officer stamps a completely blank page with a flagrant disregard for visa space.

Visas require at least a full blank page — and some countries may require between two and four blank pages.

Related: What Your Passport Color Really Means

But there’s one clever trick using common office supplies that can keep passport pages pristine for future visas.

Chris Chamberlin of Australian Business Traveler recommended saving blank space in your passport with two Post-it Notes and a gently written note.

Stick a note on each page you would like to remain blank with a polite and concise message to the effect of “stamp elsewhere.” In his passport, Chamberlin has written “Please kindly stamp on any other page. Saving space for one visa.”

“I’ve been travelling with these in my passport for over a year now to preserve my last remaining ‘double blank’ page, and all the passport officers I’ve encountered have been most obliging,” Chamberlin wrote.

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Chamberlin estimates that the trick will have extended his passport’s life by about two years.

Because the Post-it Notes are impermanent and easily removed, they do not break any passport regulations. And, if worst comes to worst, the immigrations officer can rip off the Post-it and stamp wherever they please.