Travel for good.

EcoEndurance is as much about adventure as it is about transforming the world.

As a writer for the United Nations Equator Initiative, I have been studying and reporting on sustainable development for years. At times, it can feel overwhelming– how could anything we do ever tip the scales of the crises facing our planet and global communities? Amid this chaos, I’ve seen small-scale actors taking charge of real change in their communities and making lasting progress. This brings me hope.

EcoEndurance is rooted in this hope. As a movement, it exists because small-scale action adds up. Through EcoEndurance Ecuador, trail runners and hikers can support the very people in Ecuador reclaiming nature as the cornerstone to a sustainable future and taking part in building lasting systems of change.

When traveling with a small-scale project like EcoEndurance, you can trust and see our priorities: visiting local community initiatives, supporting local vendors, and exploring important ecosystems and ways to protect them. From the high mountains to the lowlands, we find happiness moving through nature, appreciating its beauty and offering gratitude to those who have found ways to live in harmony with it rather than destroy it.

This experience has been especially true in EcoEndurance’s interactions with the Sapara community of Ecuador. As one of 14 Indigenous nationalities in Ecuador, they support local actions and take part in many larger networks leading the nation, region, and globe in returning to balance with nature. Sumak Kawsay or ‘the good life’ for example remains a transforming value of Indigenous Peoples in the Amazon and calls for humans to treat all life, including living animals and plants, as vital to authentic community and good living.

The confederation of Indigenous Peoples of Ecuador, united by Sumak Kawsay, led the country to be the first in the world to adopt legal, constitutional rights for nature. In another initiative, Pueblo Originario Kichwa de Sarayaku developed the Living Forest Declaration, with the the mission of making legal claim to the territorial rights and the rights of nature for all the Native Peoples of the world.

Across the globe, Indigenous and local communities manage more than 50% of our global landmass, protecting 80% of our remaining biodiversity despite making up just 5% of our population.

The powerful connection between local communities and conservation means that visiting appropriate tourism projects within such communities can make a difference to communities and ecosystems. This support has become even more important in the face of growing economic, environmental, and social challenges. Supporting these groups matters.

EcoEndurance leverages tourism as a powerful tool not only for the environment but for all three pillars of sustainable international development: environmental, economic, and social.

We do this through prioritizing ecotourism, community-based tourism, and community-conservation, supporting local vendors and guides, and operating in a small-scale capacity that allows for human connection. Here’s how we define some of these concepts:

Ecotourism is a mode of responsible travel to natural areas to learn about and appreciate nature. It often contributes to conservation efforts and supports the well-being of local organizations or local individuals managing natural resources.
Community-based tourism involves visiting projects led and managed by Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLCs). Communities control the management of these tourism experiences and reap the benefits of it to strengthen their self-governance, economic alternatives, environmental initiatives, and livelihoods.
Community-based (or community-managed) conservation is the management and protection of natural resources and biodiversity by, for, and with local communities. CCA as a movement is a response to exclusionary conservation projects, which have historically forced communities off of heritage or ancestral lands.
Community forestry involves communities or community members who actively engaging in the stewardship and management of forests for their livelihoods. Community forestry often involves alternative livelihood activities such as permaculture, agroforestry and the sustainable harvesting of timber and non-timber forest products.

What about carbon footprint?

When we want to embark on a larger journey within the confines of typical time limits, we must fly. EcoEndurance is exploring ways to reduce this footprint, because we believe in the transformational experience of cross-cultural travel and understand the positive impact we discussed above. We love the carbon credit work of Grupo Ecológico Sierra Gorda, for example.

When we travel for good, we have the opportunity to become co-stewards of our planet.

The possibilities for growth, support, and advocacy are endless. In this way, our travel experiences no doubt have the power to transform our own perspectives and hearts but also the communities, lands, and waters of this mother earth. Even more as we realize the places we visit matter and the people who manage those places matter, we become more conscious travelers, and we are led to some seriously unique places!

Let’s travel together!

Usher in the new year with EcoEndurance, Jan 2nd to the 10th!

If you’re reading this blog post (and you’ve made it this far!), I’m taking that as a cue that EcoEndurance is speaking your language. Our trip on Jan 2nd is a grassroots 9-day experience of trail running and community-based travel in the diverse ecosystems and communities of Ecuador from the Andes to the Amazon.

Will you join us as we explore Ecuador by trail this January? Claim one of 3 spots remaining!

Our initial application takes less than 2 minutes. Why not apply?

Are you curious about the community-based initiatives we visit in Ecuador? Subscribe to our newsletter for features coming soon!