Travel Devil – Guilt-free Sustainable Travel for Adventure Seekers

Can we take selfies with monkeys? Can I feed apes? Why are macaques aggressive towards humans? Can I eat primates? In this episode of Travel Devil, we're exposing the wildlife exploitation in southeast Asia's tourism culture - with Connie Needham.

While Vietnam and Southeast Asia is a backpacker’s paradise, it’s also home to more and more wildlife exploitation marketed as “once-in-a-lifetime experiences.” Today we focus on primates: monkeys and apes. Researcher Connie shares her insights on street-level exploitation of monkeys on chains for tourist photos and how travelers can make more ethical choices. Join us as we discuss the impact of these activities and how to travel with compassion.

How to contact Connie:
https://www.instagram.com/connie.needham
https://www.projectwild.uk

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In this episode of Travel Devil, I sit down with Victor Figèra from La Route du Soja to discuss his incredible long-distance train journey from Paris to Taiwan with his partner Léa. Victor shares how his childhood shaped his passion for sustainable travel and how they navigated a route that emits five times less CO2 than flying. We dive into their most memorable experiences—crossing breathtaking landscapes in China and Kyrgyzstan, a heartwarming arrival in Hong Kong, and culinary adventures in Taiwan. Victor also opens up about the challenges they faced, including illness in China and navigating central Asia as vegetarians. Tune in to hear the highs and lows of their epic two-month journey and how they managed to finance their trip through sponsorships.

How to contact Victor:
https://www.instagram.com/la_route_du_soja/
FREE carbon footprint calculator:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1uMGQMJHwxp5gdQp4jyE__QP5BQZLcZWifyBgMB_TK5U/edit?usp=drivesdk

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Today's episode is all about beach cleanups, sharing the story of the coastal and marine management expert and founder Daniel Angelis, who got started during the refugee crisis. Daniel shares his journey of how the refugee boats impacted his home island Lesbos in Greece, and how they dealt with the trash. 

He's opening up about leading ocean cleanups and tackling plastic pollution along some of the world’s most beautiful yet fragile coastlines. In Lesbos, environmental conservation met humanitarian aid as more than one refugee boat arrived on the shores. His efforts transformed coastal cleanups into missions of social responsibility, providing listeners with a unique look at how travel, environmental action, and human compassion intersect.

In this episode, you’ll hear about:

• Coastal trash due to the refugee crisis on Lesbos: What happened to the stranded refugee boats, how to recycle all the ocean waste after this humanitarian crisis
• Microplastic and beach cleanup efforts: The growing issue of plastic pollution on coastlines and how it affects marine life.
• Coastal cleanup do's and don'ts: What to keep in mind before going on a beach cleanup, what to avoid
• Ocean cleanup: How to clean the ocean with a team of free divers and ships, how to manage waste found in the ocean
• "One Beach at a Time" NGO: Daniel’s mission and how his organization combines ocean conservation with social responsibility.

Whether you’re passionate about ocean cleanup, curious about the intersection of travel and sustainability, or interested in the refugee crisis, this episode offers powerful stories and insights that will inspire you to make a difference.

Connect with Angelis;
onebeachatatime.org
instagram.com/angelis.daniel

Where is your trash traveling (plastic tracker)?
theoceancleanup.com/plastic-tracker

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How can we visit Portugal in a more sustainable way? Today's guest is the portages Marta Domingues, a founder of eco-projects and a biodiversity activist.

Marta explains the problems she faces on a daily basis living in Portugal. Over tourism caused her not to visit Lisbon anymore, taking the bus can take a long time, visiting beautiful beaches with her kids became a 3-hour-queue experience by car... But all of those negatives make room for positive solutions.

How can we do eco travel in Portugal? Take the bicycle, visit locals, support communities, find small businesses to do your activities.. Marta shares very valuable information on how to find these activities and inspires you thanks to a great amount of examples.

You'll get inspired, listen to stories and get lots of useful tips!

TOPICS DISCUSSED:

• Background of Marta Domingues
• Public transport in Portugal
• Portuguese intercity busses vs trains
• Impact of over tourism on housing prices in Portugal
• How to find sustainable travel alternatives
• How to find great activities via Facebook, TripAdvisor and Google Maps
• What's the impact of expats on Portugal
• ...

Connect with Marta?
Instagram: @florestadaslebres

Complaints / Suggestions about Portugal:
visitportugal.com/en/contact
livroamarelo.gov.pt/en/

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Many tourists prefer fun facts and experiences over the heavy truths of wildlife conservation, leading to a tourism model that often neglects the needs of the animals and the environment. 

What are green flags and red flags of wildlife safaris? Where is a volunteer's money actually going? ...

Margarita Samsonova, an unconventional GREENfluencer and the founder of Behind The Greens media, explains the big differences between fancy safaris and real conservation efforts. She shares how luxury safaris often care more about tourists than animals, leading to poor treatment of wildlife. Margarita's love for animals and nature pushes her to support eco-friendly travel and reveal the true impact of these trips on the environment and local people.

We discuss the importance of transparency in where your money goes and the red flags to watch out for, such as companies promoting selfies with animals or overemphasizing the "big five" sightings. Learn about the green flags that indicate a positive impact, like eco-friendly practices and community involvement.

You'll get inspired, listen to stories about wildlife conservation camps, stories of beautiful interactions and of bad examples of safaris, laugh and get chills. 

TOPICS DISCUSSED:

• Greenfluencing and its role in promoting eco-friendly travel
• Differentiating between wildlife experiences and safaris
• The impact of safari tourism on wildlife and ecosystems
• Challenges faced by local communities and wildlife due to safari tourism
• The difficulty in balancing conservation efforts with the desire for entertainment and profit.
• The impact of social media on travel and environmental awareness
• The importance of authenticity and transparency in travel content creation
• The challenges of balancing tourism with wildlife conservation
• Criteria for choosing responsible and ethical wildlife tourism experiences.
• How different types of tourism (safaris, conservation parks) operate and generate revenue.
• The illegal trade of wildlife parts and its devastating effects on animal populations.
• The rise of voluntourism and its impact on wildlife tourism.
• The impact of the covid pandemic on travel trends
• The importance of research and education in responsible tourism
• The concept of the "Big Five" and its implications
• The role of local communities in wildlife conservation

Connect with Margarita Samsonova?
Instagram: @margreen_s
Website: www.behindthegreens.co

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Bikepacking or work 'n holiday? Mix both to get workpacking. This week's guest decided to leave his office and make it mobile. Gunnar Fehlau started working from his e-cargobike, as he calls it "workpacking". 

Gunnar shares tips on how to start your own bicycle touring workpack journey and explains how his start wasn't the best. Our host Clara Francken talks with him about the difficulties he faced and the solutions he found. How Gunnar arranged his one-year trip from idea to the start to the power to continue. Which insights did he learn? What advice can he give us? Find all of that out in this episode.

Want to connect with Gunnar Fehlau, the ultimate workpacker? 👇
- https://workpacking.de
- https://www.instagram.com/velopreneur/

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Responsible travel means that we need to be aware of our impact. And to say that this conversation is a wake up call, is an understatement. Today's guest Praneetha Monipi explains all the do's and don'ts when touching nature. The goal is to keep the biodiversity alive. 

What is the real impact of our seashell collection? Why is rock-stacking not a good idea? What's the impact of tourism on local wildlife and communities? Host Clara Francken asks all of this and more to learn from her guest, a biologist and wildlife conservationist. 

Links:
https://www.instagram.com/planeta_praneetha
https://www.linkedin.com/in/praneetha-monipi
https://cites.org/eng

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In the 1950s, Klaus' parents left Germany on a ship, aiming for a better life in Canada. In this episode, our host Clara Francken talks to Klaus about his travel dreams. Klaus wishes to travel back to Germany and sail back to his roots.
Why does he want to travel on a freighter ship? Why did his parents migrate to Canada? What is the impact of sailing aboard a cargo ship?

Check out possible cargo ship voyages: cptnzeppos.com/en/alle-reizen/
The video Klaus is talking about (Cargo Ship Travel | Everything You Need To Know): youtube.com/watch?v=vJIZgIryJes

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1500km of cycling around the Dutch border & crossing to neighbor countries hundreds of times. Bicycle touring around your own country while following strict rules. Vincent Wever cycled around his homecountry The Netherlands. His rules? 
1. stay as close to the border as possible
2. don't do the same route twice

The borders of Holland touch both Belgium and Germany. But they also cross houses, stores, gardens, rivers and more. What inspired Vincent to travel around The Netherlands? What did he learn about crossing boarders? What are the differences between The Netherlands and Belgium? And more... coming up in this episode!

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Luxembourg, the world's richest country, made public transport free. Today we're talking about Luxembourg and its buses, tramway and train system - with Luxembourgish guest Joé Voncken. The Luxembourgish railway system is called the SNL (Société Nationale des Chemins de Fer Luxembourgeois). Free transportation is great for the environment, very practical and reduces the amount of traffic.

How did free transportation affect Luxembourg? Is it also free to take the train between Luxembourg and neighbor countries such as Belgium, France and Germany? Is there still a first class and a second class? What are the best places to visit in Luxembourg?
This, and more coming up in this episode!

Get in contact with Joé: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jo%C3%A9-voncken-b8843014b/

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