Three Ways to Make Your Travels More Sustainable
Posted On
02/27/20
Author
Dragons HQ
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[post_content] => Planning any kind of travel means asking yourself a laundry list of questions: Where should I go? What should I do? What do I pack? More recently, articles identifying air travel as a major emitter of greenhouse gasses have demanded climate-aware travelers ask themselves: How can I travel if I care about the Earth?
Experienced travelers at Dragons have wondered the same and are always looking for new ways to reduce our impact. We want to add to the conversation by sharing what we have learned from our years in the field. We also want to hear from you about the ways that you are choosing to be conscientious in your daily life!
For us, it all starts with taking stock of our environmental impact. Simply existing on planet Earth begets a carbon footprint. However, the decisions you make in your everyday life can help control how big or small that footprint is. Our advice? Start small. Break down your travel choices one-by-one and find simple, actionable, and measurable changes that can help reduce your footprint—especially while traveling.
1. Reduce
Have you ever tried to keep track of how much waste you produce every day? Many products designed to be convenient are used once or twice and then sent straight to the landfill. Yet much of the time, it’s relatively easy to choose a less wasteful option. For example, you can:
- Carry a reusable travel mug for your morning coffee
- Use a steel instead of plastic straw
- Carry a packable reusable bag in your backpack or purse for all your shopping needs
2. Buy Better
From the many apps available for buying used goods to brick and mortar second-hand shops, there are numerous ways to shop for used gear. Choosing a locally-oriented app or used store as opposed to websites like Amazon eliminates carbon emissions associated with shipping and transportation. Research reusable travel products and then look for a used version that is still in good condition. Want to use top-quality gear but don’t need it to be new? Environmentally conscious companies like REI and Patagonia have designated used-gear sections. Want to go even further? Rent or borrow from a friend or family member! Host a gear swap and encourage your community to dig out their unused gear to help support your mission. Gear You Find Used/Borrowed:- Backpack
- Down Jacket
- Warm Layers
- Camping Stove
- Sleeping Bag
- Camping Gear
- Refillable Water Bottle
- Steel Straw
- Reusable Shopping Bag
- Bamboo Toothbrush
- Reusable Shampoo and Conditioner Containers
- Toothpaste Tablets
- Reusable to-go container
- Reusable Spork/Utensils
- Handkerchief
- Rechargeable/solar batteries
- Reusable silicone bags instead of zip locks
- Opt for bulk or homemade snacks to avoid excess packaging
- Opt for digital copies of documents whenever possible
- Politely say no to unnecessary promotional items and explain why (organizations will stop sending them if they hear the message from their clients!)
- If ordering any food “to go,” try offering to bring your own reusable containers for food transport.
- Kindly decline single-use plastics on airplanes by asking for the drink in a can with no cup, or using your own coffee/tea mug.
- Remember, every time you politely decline single-use plastics (bags, straws, cups, etc.) you send a gentle message to the establishment about how they can make their clients happier.
- Wear reef-safe sunscreen in oceans.
- Don't purchase souvenirs that steal from nature (shells, ivory, etc.).
- Be mindful of your environment if you choose to use chemical bug repellants.
- Vote with your dollar.
- Do research on the companies that you choose to support; from the products you use to the places you shop or the airline you fly.
- Choose to buy from companies whose values align with the environment and social justice.
- Support B Corp certified businesses and join the global movement of people using business as a force for good.
- If air travel is your only option for travel to your destination, choose an airline that already offsets their emissions. Fly economy so that more seats are taken up on your flight. Fly direct whenever possible to eliminate unnecessary emissions.
3. Go Slow
Join the slow travel movement.- On your way: Use public transportation. Travel by boat, bike, bus, train, rather than airplane.
- When you get there: Stay for longer, shop local, sit down to eat instead of taking food to-go, stay in locally owned accommodation
- When you get home: Apply the minimal-waste mindset to your daily life. Inspire your community to do the same. Share your reflections and decisions with others.
- Offset your carbon footprint: Carbon offsetting is the act of reducing carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions to compensate for emissions that were produced elsewhere. For example, you can offset your flights by donating to an environmental project.
- See what Dragons is doing to offset our emissions.
On my Dragons program, we talked a lot about using our money thoughtfully and buying products that we knew were being produced in fair conditions where the people who were involved in making them directly benefited from the sale of their work. Now that I am at home, I think about where my clothing was made, and whether the people involved in making it were treated and paid fairly. I think about where my food comes from, and whether it makes sense environmentally to buy produce grown in another country —Lindsay Eiseman, Student.
PS. WANT DRAGONS BLOG UPDATES SENT DIRECTLY TO YOUR INBOX? ONE EMAIL A WEEK. NOTHING MARKETY. UNSUBSCRIBE ANY TIME. SUBSCRIBE TO DRAGONS BLOG AND STAY CONNECTED TO THE COMMUNITY. ❤️
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[post_content] => In addition to taking on everything from chaos theory to Rosa Parks, trusty and entertaining hosts Josh Clark and Chuck Bryant have addressed ALL the questions associated with Gap Years in a recent episode of the Stuff You Should Know Podcast.
In 55 minutes they banter with hard research and humor on subjects including:
The history & evolution of the Gap Year- The risks of schooling burn out
- Stats that will soothe parent concerns regarding a child's wish to do a Gap Year
- Different ways to approach planning & doing a Gap Year
- How colleges are responding to incoming students who want to do a Gap Year (#positively!)
- How to offset the costs of a Gap Year
- and lots more.
"I've always thought asking 18-year-olds to pick a college major is a recipe for disaster. How can we expect anyone with such little life experience to know what they want to do for the next 40 years? After writing this article, though, I can definitely see how a well-planned gap year might just help some people make better decisions about their future. I think it's great to take a year after high school to learn more about yourself and your interests, and even have a little fun in the process. It certainly beats switching gears when you're a few years into college, or worse, saddled with the responsibility of a family, career and mortgage!"
If you have more questions after listening to the episode, feel free to post them in the comments and we'll answer them.PS. WANT DRAGONS BLOG UPDATES SENT DIRECTLY TO YOUR INBOX? ONE EMAIL A WEEK. NOTHING MARKETY. UNSUBSCRIBE ANY TIME. SUBSCRIBE TO DRAGONS BLOG AND STAY CONNECTED TO THE COMMUNITY. ❤️
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Josh and Chuck cover “What’s a Gap Year anyway?” on the podcast: Stuff You Should Know
Posted On
01/01/20
Author
Dragons HQ
Description
Trusty and entertaining hosts Josh Clark and Chuck Bryant have taken on ALL the questions associated with Gap Years in a recent episode of the Stuff You Should Know Podcast... Read MoreWP_Post Object
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[post_content] => If you're wondering what type of thing reduces the Boulder HQ administrative team to tears, this is it:
(Thank you Nina Saligman, specifically, for featuring the faces of so many Dragons instructors we know and adore!)
Ps. Want Dragons blog updates sent directly to your inbox? One email a week. Nothing markety. Unsubscribe any time. Subscribe to Dragons Blog and stay connected to the community. ❤️
[post_title] => A Phenomenal Destination (Short Film) by Dragons Alum Nina Saligman
[post_excerpt] => If you're wondering what type of thing reduces the Boulder HQ administrative team to tears, watch this vide. (And thank you Nina Saligman, specifically, for featuring the faces of so many Dragons instructors we know and adore!)
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A Phenomenal Destination (Short Film) by Dragons Alum Nina Saligman
Posted On
09/19/19
Author
Dragons HQ
Description
If you're wondering what type of thing reduces the Boulder HQ administrative team to tears, watch this vide. (And thank you Nina Saligman, specifically, for featuring the faces of so… Read MoreWP_Post Object
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[post_content] => 
Twenty-two years ago I walked into a small town in southwestern China near dusk and realized I was in trouble. I had the equivalent of just a few dollars left in my wallet and the only bank in town was closed (there weren’t any ATMs). I had no place to stay for the night, no ticket onward, and knew no one in the area. Like most people at that time, I didn’t have a cell phone—even if I had, I’m not sure who I would have called.
I stood on the steps of the (closed) bank, one of the larger buildings in town, and watched the warm, late spring sun sinking lower in the sky, considering my options and feeling angry with myself. I was also exhausted and hungry after walking all day. This wasn’t my first brush with the consequences of failing to think ahead (nor would it be my last!) but in a completely unfamiliar place, in a country then still very new to me, with Chinese language skills that might be generously described as “intermediate”, traveling solo… I was feeling both stuck and stupid.
The days and weeks leading up to this moment had been some of the happiest and most exciting of my life. I’d taken a year off from college and worked all fall so that I could join a study program in China in the spring. This kind of travel, which was never in the cards for my family growing up, was something I’d always dreamed of. To explain why, I have to tell another story first…
WHEN I WAS SEVEN YEARS OLD...
The town where I grew up sponsored a group of Cambodian refugees who had fled the genocide carried out by the Khmer Rouge. One of these refugees, a boy a couple of years older than me, named Kiri, became my friend, and something like an idol. Kiri’s life experiences were different from mine in pretty much every way. I grew up in small college towns in New England where life was mostly quiet and peaceful. Kiri’s family had all been killed in the chaos that enveloped Cambodia at that time and he fled with other children through the jungle, arriving eventually in a refugee camp before coming to the US.
Kiri’s childhood experiences left him with scars I couldn’t see, but had some sense of, even as a kid. His experiences also left him with great survival skills—including what, to my seven-year old ears, was a knockout sense of humor. Kiri was still learning English, and one day when he was over at my house, he discovered the power of the phrase, “never mind.” From that moment on, every time Kiri and I needed a boost of extra entertainment as we played upstairs, Kiri would call to my mother downstairs.
“Hey, Susan?”
“Yes, Kiri?” my mom would answer knowingly.
“Never mind!” (cue cascade of two boys laughing).
My mom was very patient.
Kiri also had concrete survival skills as a result of the time he spent escaping war in the wilderness. One day, Kiri came with my family for a walk in the woods and he and I went down to a stream below the path. I watched him pull a live fish, about six inches long, out of the stream with his bare hands. From that moment on, I did everything I could to emulate Kiri. Kiri had a habit of carrying photos around with him inside his t-shirt, “close to the heart.” One was of his parents. Another was of a tank. After he showed me the photos, I asked my parents for some photos to put inside my t-shirt.
Through Kiri, I got to know other kids and families in the Cambodian refugee community in our town. Although I wouldn’t have been able to explain it quite this way at the time, I began to fall in love with people and things that were different from those I knew. I began to wonder about life in places far away from home. I began to dream about seeing the world.
So, many years later, when Chinese was introduced as a language option at my high school (a rare opportunity at a public high school in 1991), I jumped at the opportunity. I loved languages, but even more so, I loved the idea of being able to communicate with people whose lives and cultures were profoundly different from mine. Eventually, in the spring of my junior year in college, I landed in China’s Yunnan Province—a place that felt to me like a wonderland: more than 30 different ethnic groups, biodiversity with ecosystems ranging from snowy mountains higher than any I’d ever seen to dense tropical rainforests, a long list of religious traditions, foods as familiar as fried potatoes and as unfamiliar as roasted cicadas. I was in paradise.
The culmination of my semester was a month-long “independent project.” Working with my program advisor, I set out to follow the Mekong River along its entire path through Yunnan, from the Tibetan region of Kham in the northwestern corner of the province, downstream and south through ethnically Hui, Lisu, Pumi, Yi, Naxi, Bai, Wa, Dai (and the list goes on) areas to Xishuangbanna, bordering Myanmar and Laos. Carrying letters of introduction that I hoped would allow me to enter many counties then closed to foreign travelers, and cartons of cigarettes needed to win over skeptical local officials, I set out with the goal of covering as much of the route as I could by foot—a goal I soon realized was totally unrealistic given the distance I had to cover and the month I had available.
Walking is still my favorite mode of transport. It’s the only way to move from one place to another slowly enough to really see things. It’s also the only way to move that leaves you with no choice but to stop and talk with people along the way. I discovered quickly how friendly, hospitable, and curious the people of rural Yunnan were, often stopping to offer me rides, and inviting me into their homes for meals. In the Meili Snow Mountains of northwestern Yunnan, a family pulled me into their shack near the road to offer me a small piece of fried fat and a plastic cup of orange soda—the most luxurious things they had to offer. In another town, I asked a girl on the street how to get to the post office. She looked at the items I wanted to mail back to my advisor’s home in Kunming and told me I’d need to have a container to mail them in. She then brought me back to her family’s home for lunch, found an empty grain sack, and carefully packed all of my things in it. I repeated all of the ways I knew to say “thank you” as she stitched up the sack and walked with me to the post office.
When we arrived, she helped me navigate the maze of counters, fees, forms, and surly officers with red stamps that run the engine of the world’s oldest bureaucracy. Again and again, I was stunned by the level of hospitality and generosity I was shown.
WHICH BRINGS ME BACK TO THE BEGINNING OF THIS STORY...
As I arrived in a small town, at the end of a long day’s walk with no money, not even enough for a meal, and no place to stay. As I stood there on the steps of the bank, a man walked over to me.
“Hello, can I help you with something?” he asked, “Are you lost?” Startled out of my own thoughts of how foolish I’d been, I explained I was looking for a bank.
“This is the only bank around. It’s closed now.”
“Too bad,” I said, then, thinking of another priority, “Can you recommend any very cheap places to eat nearby?”
The stranger asked me more questions and I eventually began to explain my predicament, but before I had even finished, he opened his wallet and pulled out 100 kuai—at the time equal to about twelve US dollars, and more than enough for a room and a meal. He insisted I take the money.
“Chinese people are hospitable,” he said, “and you are our guest from another country. I know you would help me if I were a visitor to your country.”
I wondered if that last part was true. I hoped so. I wasn’t sure. Unfortunately, I didn’t think too many foreign young men in small towns in the US were approached by strangers offering assistance and cash.
Then, the stranger spoke a Chinese phrase that was, by then, starting to become familiar to me.
“It’s what I should do,” he said.
I was tired, stress had been building, and I was choked up as he handed me the 100 kuai bill. I asked him to write down his address and promised (though he said it wasn’t necessary) to send him the money he’d given me once I could get to a bank. I thanked him profusely. I imagined how much better things might be for people everywhere if we all did what we should do.
WHAT’S THE MORAL OF THIS STORY?
I suppose the obvious answer might be: plan in advance and be prepared.
Yawn. You’ve heard that before.
If I hadn’t set out to “walk the Mekong in a month” (I mean, come on, really, kid?) I might not have been gifted the realization of my own incompetence and lack of knowledge, or the truth of my reliance on others. I never would have met that stranger who showed me such pure generosity, or been faced with the uncomfortable question: Would this ever happen where I’m from?
If I hadn’t overshot in what I thought I could do, I wouldn’t have felt what I did in the moment that stranger said, “It’s what I should do.” And that’s a moment that I have always remembered. I remembered it through what turned into eleven years of living in China, and a lifetime of involvement with China and with Chinese people. I remember it, sometimes, when I send groups of students to the high mountains and deep river valleys of Yunnan Province, and to live with homestay families in villages just a short distance away from that small town and the steps of its only bank (no doubt, there are many banks and ATMs there by now!). These days, it’s my job to help those students and their instructors prepare, and plan, and manage budgets, and risk, and logistics. But it’s my wish that they’ll truly challenge themselves, and that sometimes things will go wrong, and that when things do go wrong, they may learn something powerful and unexpected.
AND WITH THAT IN MIND...
I want to turn this story back in a circle. It has been many, many years since I lost touch with my friend Kiri. My family moved away from that town in New England when I was seven years old. As I wrote out this story, I had the inclination to do something that wasn’t an option back then: I Googled Kiri. Kiri is not his real name. His real name is unique enough that on my first search, to my astonishment, I found a news story about him. It turns out life got complicated for Kiri as he got older and he became involved in criminal activities. His actions weren’t violent, but drug-related crimes led to years in jail. As a result of changing policies and more hostile attitudes towards immigration in the US, Kiri was deported.
After growing up, marrying, and having children in this country, he was sent back to the country from which he had originally fled as a refugee.
I felt tears come to my eyes as I read about Kiri being separated from his children in the US, and sent back to a place where he had no living family members, a place now as unfamiliar to him as the US had been when he first arrived.
Because of what I learned, the process of writing this story down took a different turn for me. Since I learned about Kiri’s deportation, I’ve been trying to get more information, and to contact Kiri, trying to find out if there’s anything I can do to help. In short, I’m trying to return some of the favors the world has granted me and to figure out what I should do.
JODY SEGAR is China Programs Director at Where There Be Dragons. He wants readers to know that he did get around to mailing that stranger’s money back, plus extra. (PHOTOS: Northwestern Yunnan, 1996)
Ps. Want Dragons blog updates sent directly to your inbox? One email a week. Nothing markety. Unsubscribe any time. Subscribe to Dragons Blog and stay connected to the community. ❤️
[post_title] => When Things Go Wrong - An Essay by Jody Segar, Dragons China Program Director
[post_excerpt] => "Twenty-two years ago I walked into a small town in southwestern China near dusk and realized I was in trouble..."
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When Things Go Wrong – An Essay by Jody Segar, Dragons China Program Director
Posted On
08/15/19
Author
Jody Segar, Dragons China Program Director
Description
"Twenty-two years ago I walked into a small town in southwestern China near dusk and realized I was in trouble..." Read MoreWP_Post Object
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[post_content] => We hope you enjoy this featured yak written by Fernanda Zorrilla, a student on the Mekong Semester:
For a short period of time I worked as an assistant teacher in a Montessori school, the same school that I went to as a child. I was working with kindergarten kids, children from four to six years old. Everyday was a little adventure, somehow they managed to fill every hour with drama, tears, and fights, and then quickly switch to laughter, games, and a lot of love.
I really believe I learned more from them that they did from me. One day, the teacher made a circle with the students and placed a pencil in the middle. Then she simply asked, “What is this?”
They all answered the logical way and said it was a pencil, then kept silent. The teacher asked again, “What else is this?” The 5 year old students where thinking, some where questioning what she meant, and some others started to get distracted with whatever they found.
Suddenly a boy said, “It is also wood!” Then another added that it also has yellow paint. And so on, and so forth, with all the materials and elements of the pencil. Another kid screamed (he even stood up from his chair), that pencil needs a tree because it’s wood, and that tree needs water to grow.
One clever kid concluded: This pencil is everything.
With little help from the teacher, the children where able to imagine the trees that needed to be cut down by a lumberjack, who needed food to be strong, so therefore someone had to grow the food and transport it to a supermarket so the lumberjack could buy it and eat it to cut the trees and make the wood to have a pencil. They imagined more and more. They had no limits, they started to question each other on what else needed to exist for that pencil to be there. Their imagination went so far that they ended up talking about planets. One clever kid concluded: This pencil is everything.
Watching 5 year olds explore and understand the concept of oneness left me in complete awe. Most people may not think about this in their entire life, and others (including me) tend to forget easily. This past month has constantly reminded me of this exercise, watching those kids understand something so complex, and yet so simple.
My time here has made me see this more clearly and closer than ever. It has also made me realize how frightening this idea is, especially since we act like individuals that are not integrated. When in reality, it is inevitable that everything is connected, and everything to be one. But it is beautiful too, being here in this little piece of land surrounded by water, that same water that marks the border between Laos and Thailand, that same water that feeds millions and kills some others, the water we pollute and then consume. The Mekong River is one, but it is not been treated as that.
how would we treat a pencil if every time we used it we saw the entire world participating on its existence?
So then I wonder, how would we treat a pencil if every time we used it we saw the entire world participating on its existence? How would we treat our rivers and resources? How would we treat each other and ourselves? I really don’t know the answer to this, but I’m a challenging myself to be more conscious, and right here and right now is the perfect time to practice. To be aware of this beautifully fragile concept of oneness. And I think to myself that if kindergarten children where able to do it, I must be capable too.
You can read more from the Mekong participants on the program Yak Board.
[post_title] => What is a pencil? - Featured Student Reflection from the Mekong Semester
[post_excerpt] => "For a short period of time I worked as an assistant teacher in a Montessori school, the same school that I went to as a child. I was working with kindergarten kids, children from four to six years old. Everyday was a little adventure, somehow they managed to fill every hour with drama, tears, and fights, and then quickly switch to laughter, games, and a lot of love."
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What is a pencil? – Featured Student Reflection from the Mekong Semester
Posted On
04/03/19
Author
Fernanda Zorrilla
Description
"For a short period of time I worked as an assistant teacher in a Montessori school, the same school that I went to as a child. I was working with… Read MoreWP_Post Object
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[post_date] => 2019-02-21 12:08:17
[post_date_gmt] => 2019-02-21 19:08:17
[post_content] => We love to see research supporting the same conclusions our alumni students and parents have come to. If you're debating the pros and cons of a Gap Year, we highly recommend this article by Psychology Today.
Here's an excerpt: 
"Universities are starting to understand the benefits of the gap year and making deferrals easier, even offering their own gap year service experiences. Tufts and Princeton offer tuition-free international service programs. Florida State University, University of North Carolina, and Duke are offering scholarships to make gap years available to students of diverse backgrounds.
“Why should we live with such hurry ….?” Henry David Thoreau wrote in 1846. This is a question we can ask ourselves today in our fast-paced society. The gap year may be a solution for some students to grow socially and emotionally, to gain maturity, or to get a stronger financial footing, so they can achieve success in the college years."
Read the full article, Is a Gap Year Good for Your Child's Mental Health and GPA? on Psychology Today.
[post_title] => Featured Article by Psychology Today: Is a Gap Year Good for Your Child's Mental Health and GPA?
[post_excerpt] => We love to see research supporting the same conclusions our alumni students and parents have come to. If you're debating the pros and cons of a Gap Year, we highly recommend this article by Psychology Today...
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Featured Article by Psychology Today: Is a Gap Year Good for Your Child’s Mental Health and GPA?
Posted On
02/21/19
Author
Dragons HQ
