![\"ValerieVanDePeer](\"https:\/\/naturetravellab.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/LR_ValerieVanDePeer-250-1024x683.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
<\/figure>\n\nHow did you get started with Wild about Earth?<\/h2>\n\n
For years, I had the privilege of designing luxury trips using private charters from lodge to lodge. It\u2019s a very comfortable way to travel, but more and more often I found myself missing an authentic connection with my destination and asking myself: What impact does our visit have on nature and the communities that live here? What am I taking from this place, and what am I actually giving back? Is this really balanced? <\/p>\n\n
I explored what sustainability can mean in the travel industry. Not just offsetting CO2, but also giving something back to our destinations in a sustainable way. No colonialism, no token donations. Instead, engaging in dialogue with the right partners, tracing the supply chain at the destination, and making it more sustainable. Asking where help is needed and responding to those needs. <\/p>\n\n
Can they really go together? Long-haul travel and sustainability? <\/strong><\/h2>\n\nIn the travel industry, sustainability is still too often seen as an impossibility, because people focus solely on the negative impact (CO2 emissions). For an optimist like me, long-haul<\/strong> travel is essential for enriching our minds, supplementing the limited school system, fostering tolerance, and fueling our boundless curiosity. <\/p>\n\nThat is why I see it as our responsibility\u2014in addition to reducing CO2 emissions (such as by traveling more slowly, less frequently, and for longer periods so that our flights are worthwhile)\u2014to travel in a way that has a positive impact on nature and local communities at our destinations.<\/p>\n\n\n![\"Long-haul](\"https:\/\/naturetravellab.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/31-Chiwong-1-1024x683.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
<\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\nHow do you combine sustainability with long-haul travel?<\/h2>\n\n
Travel remains the priority. However, from now on, I\u2019ll be working \u201cbehind the scenes\u201d to ensure the right sustainable choices are made, so that travelers can travel worry-free and without guilt. To that end, I choose partners who reduce their emissions while also providing local jobs, paying above-average wages, and investing in training for local employees who want to advance to management or ownership roles. Partners who serve locally sourced food and invest in basic needs (such as medical care and education for children in local communities). <\/p>\n\n
By traveling to less-visited places away from the crowds, your environmental impact at your destination is reduced, and you bring attention to communities that would otherwise be overlooked. This provides financial support (through local purchases, guides, etc.) and makes the destination attractive to local governments, encouraging them to provide basic necessities such as education and medical care. And by meeting the people there, you get to see what authenticity truly means. <\/p>\n\n\n![\"Morukuru](\"https:\/\/naturetravellab.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Morukuru-optie-3-8-682x1024.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
Photo credit: Morukuru Family<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n![\"Out](\"https:\/\/naturetravellab.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/3-768x1024.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
Photo credit: Morukuru Family<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\nThis is\u201cpassive contribution.\u201d<\/em> On the other hand, those who\u2019d like to go a step further can\u201cactively contribute\u201d\u2014that is, <\/em>roll up their sleeves and get to work while traveling, such as: <\/p>\n\n\n- I invite travelers to lend a hand on a sheep farm or help care for the sled dogs in Greenland. <\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Going on patrol with veterinarians during a safari in Africa and collecting DNA samples from an elephant under anesthesia. <\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Help tag turtles or sharks in the Indian Ocean.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- A hiking trip in the Indian Himalayas to deliver schoolbooks to remote villages and a course with wise Buddhist monks in South Korea.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
- Herding reindeer with the Sami in Norway or staying with a jazz musician in Soweto, South Africa.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n
![\"Visiting](\"https:\/\/naturetravellab.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/2-1024x641.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
Photo credit: Morukuru Family<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\nOr spend a few days living among a local community and drawing inspiration from the way of life on the other side of the world. For example, with a nomadic family in Mongolia, on an Inuit family\u2019s farm in Greenland, in an Andean community in Peru, or during a visit to a Kurdish family in Turkey. Or perhaps you\u2019d prefer to play soccer with a local youth team that keeps kids off the streets in Colombia or Brazil? <\/p>\n\n
And after all that activity with your travel group, you can retreat to the comfort of your own hotel room or private tented camp, complete with a bucket shower set up just for you.<\/p>\n\n
These are all valuable life lessons for us and our children\u2026The school of life<\/strong><\/p>\n\n![\"Long-haul](\"https:\/\/naturetravellab.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/1.-India-Ladahk-buddhism-1024x770.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
<\/figure>\n\nPhilanthropic Travel<\/h2>\n\n
By incorporating philanthropic experiences into your travels\u2014based on the needs of your destination\u2014you can help where the need is greatest. The word \u201cphilanthropy\u201d has a negative connotation these days. I want to restore this word to its former glory. After all, it simply means \u201clove for humanity, as in caring for others.\u201d <\/p>\n\n
You decide for yourself how big or small that contribution or experience is.<\/p>\n\n
Through Wild About Earth \ud83c\udf0f, I combine my love for exclusive travel and philanthropy to connect travelers with themselves, each other, and other cultures. In this way, I inspire the next generation to care for our planet. <\/p>\n\n
Exclusive, tailor-made trips that use travel to restore, renew, and revitalize places; integrating the needs of local communities and nature into our trips to leave behind resilient and thriving destinations after we depart.<\/p>\n\n
For those who travel with a concern for the world<\/em> of tomorrow and prefer authenticity<\/em> over superficiality, without sacrificing comfort. Unparalleled service and local support. For the traveler who understands that exceptional experiences<\/em> are worth the investment. <\/p>\n\nBe the change<\/em> you want to see in the world – <\/strong> Mahatma Gandhi<\/strong><\/h4>\n\nIn the meantime, I\u2019m traveling the world with my children, and I hope to inspire my children\u2014and all children around the world\u2014to take care of tomorrow\u2019s world by leading by example and taking them along on this journey (The School of Life).<\/p>\n\n
In the summer of 2023, as a single mom, I traveled through Mongolia for a month with my children (who were 5 and 6 at the time). There, we were inspired by the spiritual leaders (shamans) we met, lived as nomads in the remote Khangai Mountains, cheered on the horse races during the Nadaam Festival, and donated \u201ctoys on request\u201d to a summer camp for children in the Orkhon Valley. <\/p>\n\n
A similar trip to Colombia is planned for the summer of 2026. There, we\u2019ll play soccer with a youth team that aims to keep children off the streets and away from the drug trade. We\u2019ll learn how to throw a lasso from the cowboys of the Los Llanos marshlands and travel to hidden beaches on the Pacific Ocean, where we\u2019ll join forces with the conservation team fighting illegal fishing. <\/p>\n\n
That is why I see it as our responsibility\u2014in addition to reducing CO2 emissions (such as by traveling more slowly, less frequently, and for longer periods so that our flights are worthwhile)\u2014to travel in a way that has a positive impact on nature and local communities at our destinations.<\/p>\n\n Travel remains the priority. However, from now on, I\u2019ll be working \u201cbehind the scenes\u201d to ensure the right sustainable choices are made, so that travelers can travel worry-free and without guilt. To that end, I choose partners who reduce their emissions while also providing local jobs, paying above-average wages, and investing in training for local employees who want to advance to management or ownership roles. Partners who serve locally sourced food and invest in basic needs (such as medical care and education for children in local communities). <\/p>\n\n By traveling to less-visited places away from the crowds, your environmental impact at your destination is reduced, and you bring attention to communities that would otherwise be overlooked. This provides financial support (through local purchases, guides, etc.) and makes the destination attractive to local governments, encouraging them to provide basic necessities such as education and medical care. And by meeting the people there, you get to see what authenticity truly means. <\/p>\n\n This is\u201cpassive contribution.\u201d<\/em> On the other hand, those who\u2019d like to go a step further can\u201cactively contribute\u201d\u2014that is, <\/em>roll up their sleeves and get to work while traveling, such as: <\/p>\n\n Or spend a few days living among a local community and drawing inspiration from the way of life on the other side of the world. For example, with a nomadic family in Mongolia, on an Inuit family\u2019s farm in Greenland, in an Andean community in Peru, or during a visit to a Kurdish family in Turkey. Or perhaps you\u2019d prefer to play soccer with a local youth team that keeps kids off the streets in Colombia or Brazil? <\/p>\n\n And after all that activity with your travel group, you can retreat to the comfort of your own hotel room or private tented camp, complete with a bucket shower set up just for you.<\/p>\n\n These are all valuable life lessons for us and our children\u2026The school of life<\/strong><\/p>\n\n By incorporating philanthropic experiences into your travels\u2014based on the needs of your destination\u2014you can help where the need is greatest. The word \u201cphilanthropy\u201d has a negative connotation these days. I want to restore this word to its former glory. After all, it simply means \u201clove for humanity, as in caring for others.\u201d <\/p>\n\n You decide for yourself how big or small that contribution or experience is.<\/p>\n\n Through Wild About Earth \ud83c\udf0f, I combine my love for exclusive travel and philanthropy to connect travelers with themselves, each other, and other cultures. In this way, I inspire the next generation to care for our planet. <\/p>\n\n Exclusive, tailor-made trips that use travel to restore, renew, and revitalize places; integrating the needs of local communities and nature into our trips to leave behind resilient and thriving destinations after we depart.<\/p>\n\n For those who travel with a concern for the world<\/em> of tomorrow and prefer authenticity<\/em> over superficiality, without sacrificing comfort. Unparalleled service and local support. For the traveler who understands that exceptional experiences<\/em> are worth the investment. <\/p>\n\n In the meantime, I\u2019m traveling the world with my children, and I hope to inspire my children\u2014and all children around the world\u2014to take care of tomorrow\u2019s world by leading by example and taking them along on this journey (The School of Life).<\/p>\n\n In the summer of 2023, as a single mom, I traveled through Mongolia for a month with my children (who were 5 and 6 at the time). There, we were inspired by the spiritual leaders (shamans) we met, lived as nomads in the remote Khangai Mountains, cheered on the horse races during the Nadaam Festival, and donated \u201ctoys on request\u201d to a summer camp for children in the Orkhon Valley. <\/p>\n\n A similar trip to Colombia is planned for the summer of 2026. There, we\u2019ll play soccer with a youth team that aims to keep children off the streets and away from the drug trade. We\u2019ll learn how to throw a lasso from the cowboys of the Los Llanos marshlands and travel to hidden beaches on the Pacific Ocean, where we\u2019ll join forces with the conservation team fighting illegal fishing. <\/p>\n\n<\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\nHow do you combine sustainability with long-haul travel?<\/h2>\n\n
\n
<\/figure>\n\nPhilanthropic Travel<\/h2>\n\n
Be the change<\/em> you want to see in the world – <\/strong> Mahatma Gandhi<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n