Ethical Wildlife Tourism With Kristen Diederich

Zero To Travel Podcast

Jason Moore

Society & Culture, Business, Entrepreneurship, Places & Travel

4.6 • 866 Ratings

🗓️ 19 December 2023

⏱️ 67 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Encountering animals on our travels is one of the most life-changing experiences we can have, but how can we do it in a more ethical and responsible way? Kristen Diederich is with me today to talk about ethical wildlife tourism and how to be more informed when choosing our animal experiences. Kristen is the founder of Compassionate Travels, which focuses on crafting ethical, wildlife-centric adventures for responsible, values-driven travelers. As an animal rights advocate and well-traveled adventurer, she has first-hand experience on the scale of animal suffering in the tourism industry and the challenges of finding experiences that don’t contribute to it. Kristen and I discuss the complex issues around common experiences like elephant riding, taking photos, feeding and touching, and even cultural experiences like dog sledding. She shares the concept of “welfare washing” and why even some of the most seemingly ethical sanctuaries or rescues are still causing harm. You’ll learn how to identify truly ethical sanctuaries and tour operators and gain an understanding of the broader impact of mass tourism on animal welfare. How have your thoughts changed on animal tourism? I’d love to hear what you took away from this episode and hope you’ll share by sending me an audio message. Premium Passport: Want access to the private Zero To Travel podcast feed, a monthly bonus episode (decided on by YOU), exclusive content, direct access to me to answer your questions, and more? Click here to try Premium Passport for only $1. Tune In To Learn: What it was like writing her thesis on wildlife tourism while on the ground in Sri Lanka How she found her way to this work and the difference between conservationists and animal rights activists The common types of animal exploitation and the complicated issues around for-profit and cultural/historical use Why terms like “sanctuary” and “rescue” can be misleading How to identify ethical sanctuaries and tour operators Why we need to consider the bigger picture when choosing to partake in animal tourism Why farm visits and using domesticated animals for tourism can be a problem What she enjoys about solo travel and advice for new digital nomads And so much more Resources: Join Zero To Travel Premium Passport Subscribe to our FREE newsletter Today's Sponsors - Airbnb, Land Rover Learn more about Compassionate Travels Follow on Instagram and Facebook HappyCow vegan food app Kristen's List of Certifications and Organizations You Can Trust: Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries Pan African Sanctuary Alliance (for primate facilities) World Animal Protection’s list of companies that have taken a wildlife-friendly pledge World Animal Protection’s list of elephant-friendly facilities World Cetacean Alliance (for ethical whale and dolphin watching) Wildlife Heritage Areas Born Free Wildlife SOS (India) Sheldrick Wildlife Trust (Kenya) WildAid Want More? Ethical Animal Travel w/ Melisa Beveridge Ethical Travel, Life In Mozambique and Ocean Love w/ Francesca Trotman Living in Ecuador, Indigenous Communities, Rainforest Conservation, and Cultural Experiences With Photographer Mark Fox Thanks To Our Sponsors Sometimes, it just makes more sense. Book your next group stay with Airbnb! You’re up for any challenge that comes your way, and the Land Rover Defender 110 is too. Learn more at landroverusa.com/defender. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	Here's the easiest way to pack light for any length trip and to avoid baggage fees forever.
0:06.0	Invest in high quality clothing that you love, that looks good, and that is made out of the right
0:11.0	material.
0:11.8	That's exactly what they do over at Unbound Marino.
0:14.9	They make high quality stylish clothing and it's made out of my all-time favorite material,
0:19.6	marino wool.
0:20.4	It never wrinkles, never gets smelly, it dries fast, and it regulates out of my all-time favorite material, Marino wool. It never wrinkles, never
0:21.3	gets smelly, it dries fast, and it regulates your temperature in all seasons. You need to see
0:26.5	what they have over there. Check out Unbound Marino. You go to zero to travel.com slash unbound
0:31.8	and use the discount code Travel 10 to get 10% off. That's Travel and the number 10 to get 10% off as a new customer.
0:41.4	Thanks to Unbound Marino for supporting today's show. Today's episode is brought to you by
0:46.1	Aerolo. This is used by over 10 million travelers, so you're going to want to listen to what I
0:50.3	have to say. This is the ESIM solution that you need. You can go onto their app for
0:56.9	free and find an ESIM from 200 plus countries and regions so you can be connected anywhere in the
1:03.7	world the second you land. You can even set it up before you arrive. No more huge roaming bills
1:08.9	after the trip. No more looking for phone service or free
1:11.8	Wi-Fi. Get it all on this free app. You can go to the link in the show notes and use the promo code
1:17.6	ZTT for $3 off. That's ZTT. Thank you to Aerolo for supporting today's show. It's animals being
1:25.0	taken out of their natural habitats and being forced to do something that they're not doing voluntarily.
1:31.1	They're not living in natural environments.
1:34.3	They're not living in natural social groups.
1:37.0	They often don't have appropriate diet, maybe not access to proper medical care.
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Jason Moore, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Jason Moore and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.