{"id":19397,"date":"2020-04-15T10:32:18","date_gmt":"2020-04-15T09:32:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/?p=19397"},"modified":"2020-04-15T10:32:22","modified_gmt":"2020-04-15T09:32:22","slug":"paradise-lost-found-earth-month","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/paradise-lost-found-earth-month\/","title":{"rendered":"Paradise lost and found &#8211; reflections on Earth Month"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><em><strong>By Shannon Guihan,<\/strong> <strong>Chief TreadRight &amp; Sustainability Officer<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This year, Earth Month arrives with particular poignancy. As The Travel Corporation celebrates its first 100 years, we also mark the fiftieth anniversary of the first Earth Day \u2013 April 22, 1970 \u2013 which was the seed that grew into Earth Month. Now, in 2020, Earth Month comes in the midst of a world-wide pandemic, bringing much of life \u2013 and virtually all travel \u2013 to a standstill. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"647\" src=\"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/2020\/04\/simon-migaj-Yui5vfKHuzs-unsplash-1024x647.jpg\" alt=\"man sitting on pier by lake\" class=\"wp-image-19402\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/simon-migaj-Yui5vfKHuzs-unsplash-1024x647.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/simon-migaj-Yui5vfKHuzs-unsplash-330x208.jpg 330w, https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/simon-migaj-Yui5vfKHuzs-unsplash.jpg 1400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Difficult\nas this is for all of us, it offers an opportunity to reflect on our\nrelationship to this planet we all call home. This is especially true for those\nof us who have the great fortune to travel. If ever there was a time for a\nreset, this is it. With plans suddenly put on hold, it is a time to step back\nand ask ourselves some important questions. <em>Why<\/em>\ndo we travel? <em>What<\/em> responsibilities\ncome with our journeys? <em>How <\/em>do we\nwant our travel to impact the planet we discover, the people we meet, and the\nwildlife we see?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p>While this pandemic is new territory for everyone, for those of us at TreadRight, these questions are not new. They are what led to TreadRight&#8217;s founding a dozen years ago, what drives us to do the work we do each day. For me, personally, these are questions that have shaped my career.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>I am not\nexaggerating when I tell you I grew up in Paradise &#8211; just outside of St.\nJohn&#8217;s, Newfoundland, an island off the east coast of Canada. For me, as a\nchild, the name of the town fit \u2013 from my front door I could run through empty fields\nand make it to Topsail beach to maybe spot a seal or two. Depending upon the\ntime of year, every direction led to skiing, hiking, or paddling. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Back\nthen, the economy of Newfoundland &amp; Labrador was largely based on the fishing\nindustry, particularly cod. That all changed in the summer of 1992, when years\nof overfishing by multi-national interests had reduced the northern cod\npopulation to near zero. The Canadian government banned the practice of cod\nfishing and, overnight, the industry was near collapse. By the time I was 16, the\ntourism industry was kicking off quickly, and I soon found myself working as a sea\nkayak guide along the island&#8217;s rugged southern shore, with jagged cliffs above,\nswarms of jellyfish below, and, nearby, pods of fin, and minke, and humpback\nwhales that returned to the Grand Banks each summer to feed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Incredible\na backyard as it was, what I saw in Newfoundland&#8217;s growing tourism industry\nleft me perplexed. The same boats that once fished for cod now arrived full of tourists,\nchasing whales and interrupting their feeding. It seemed that \u201cfisheries\u201d had\nbeen replaced by \u201ctourism,\u201d and guided by much the same attitude: Make money\nquickly, but turn a blind eye to protection. In the process of visiting Paradise,\ntourists were trampling it. While not the intention, it was often the result. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It\nseemed to me there must be a <em>right<\/em> way to discover natural beauty \u2013 and\nthis was not it. Seeking to understand, I went to university where I studied Outdoor\nRecreation and Environmental Education, then on to graduate school for a\nMasters Degree in Tourism and Environmental Management, writing my thesis on\n\u201cCodes of Conduct for Marine Ecotourism.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Anxious to put my newfound understanding into practice, I joined the operations team of a niche tour operator, which allowed me to put sustainable practices into place. We worked hard, did most of the right things, and thrived. And yet, when I looked at the big picture, our impact was limited. We were one of many such well-intentioned small operators, each working in our own space \u2013 while the damage being done by tourism around the world was vast, and growing. From there I launched and built a tourism consultancy, where I was able to work with destinations worldwide to address the way in which they develop, sell and market their regions. And yet the projects I was working on were again, small, and I was eager to focus on sustainability at scale. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"680\" src=\"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/2020\/04\/david-marcu-78A265wPiO4-unsplash-1024x680.jpg\" alt=\"man standing on rock\" class=\"wp-image-19399\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/david-marcu-78A265wPiO4-unsplash-1024x680.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/david-marcu-78A265wPiO4-unsplash-330x219.jpg 330w, https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/david-marcu-78A265wPiO4-unsplash-360x240.jpg 360w, https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/david-marcu-78A265wPiO4-unsplash.jpg 1400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>During\nthis time TTC was a consulting client of mine, and as it came time for me to\nmove beyond consulting, it was also clear that TTC wanted someone to take\nTreadRight and sustainability to the next level, looking to appoint their first\nChief Sustainability Officer. I was intrigued, although in any other scenario\nwould have been more than a little wary. I knew full well that the C in TTC\nstood for \u201ccorporation,\u201d and I&#8217;m a cynic when it comes to what corporations say\nand do in terms of sustainability &#8211; I&#8217;ve never wanted to play a part in\ncorporate greenwashing. However, having worked alongside Brett Tollman and his\nteam of executives for several years, I had seen the depth and sincerity of\ntheir commitment. We had worked closely on issues such as plastics in the\ntravel industry, the impact of overtourism and support for micro enterprises.\nThe passion they brought to the work had grown steadily more intense and\nfocused, coming down to three words: <strong>Make Travel Matter<\/strong>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I took the job. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I&#8217;ve\nspoken of two P&#8217;s so far \u2013 the <em>Power<\/em> a large organization has to have impact\nat scale, and the <em>Passion<\/em> I saw from the teams at TTC. But there is a\nthird P that is most important \u2013 <em>Partnership<\/em>. In order for travel to\ntruly have a positive impact, we need coordinated efforts at every level, with all\nof us realizing that our efforts are part of the bigger picture. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We began by identifying the three critical areas in which travel has the greatest potential for impact: <em>Planet<\/em>, <em>People<\/em>, and <em>Wildlife<\/em>. With these as the three pillars of TreadRight, we looked to see who was doing the best work in each realm. This has led to us partnering with over fifty-five projects around the world, and a new, soon to be released company-wide strategy aligned with the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.treadright.org\/sdgs\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\">United Nations Sustainable Development Goals<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As you now take time to consider your future travels, I invite you to share in the inspiration I find each day from the people and communities with whom we partner, like Rosamira, Executive Director of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.treadright.org\/projects\/proyecto-titi\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\">Proyecto Tit\u00ed<\/a>, which protects the critically endangered cotton top tamarin in Colombia. Through <a href=\"https:\/\/www.treadright.org\/projects\/wildlife-sos-india\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\">WildlifeSOS<\/a> in Jaipur, India, you will meet the truly impassioned people working to inform tourists and prevent the cruel practice of riding elephants. And nowhere will you find more impressive visionaries than Sam Judd and Camden Howitt, co-founders of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.treadright.org\/projects\/sustainable-coastlines\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\">Sustainable Coastlines<\/a> in New Zealand. Last month &#8211; before travel was suspended, which now feels like a very long time ago \u2013 I spent an inspiring afternoon alongside other TTC volunteers, collecting and categorizing trash found on a New Zealand beach in the name of citizen science. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In her <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/ttc.com\/the-secret-ingredient-thoughts-on-international-womens-day-by-bea-tollman\/\" target=\"_blank\">blog posting last month for International Women&#8217;s Day<\/a>, Bea Tollman wrote that supporting women and girls is essential, and many of our projects do just that. When you travel to Perugia, Italy, you&#8217;ll meet Marta at <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.treadright.org\/projects\/laboratorio-giuditta-brozzetti\/\" target=\"_blank\">Laboratorio Giuditta Bronzzetti<\/a>. When I was introduced to her, she was working in a crumbling church with a hole in its roof, as the very last in a lineage of hand frame weavers carrying on traditions dating back to the Renaissance. TreadRight partnered with her to restore the church&#8217;s roof and develop her gift shop, where she now trains the next generation of weavers. You&#8217;ll find a similar story in Peru, where <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.treadright.org\/projects\/cctc\/\" target=\"_blank\">Centro de Textiles Traditionales del Cusco<\/a> preserves 10,000-year-old Andean traditions while providing training and employment to women. And, at thirteen locations throughout rural Laos, you will find women and girls learning traditional techniques through <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.treadright.org\/projects\/ock-pop-tok-village-weavers\/\" target=\"_blank\">Ock Pop Tock&#8217;s Village Weavers Project<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1000\" height=\"1000\" src=\"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/2020\/04\/Join-Trafalgar-Make-a-Difference-With-Us-in-Jordan.jpg\" alt=\"Marta from weaving centre\" class=\"wp-image-19400\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Join-Trafalgar-Make-a-Difference-With-Us-in-Jordan.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Join-Trafalgar-Make-a-Difference-With-Us-in-Jordan-330x330.jpg 330w, https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/Join-Trafalgar-Make-a-Difference-With-Us-in-Jordan-125x125.jpg 125w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>For now, I invite you to learn about all these incredible partnerships and more at <a href=\"http:\/\/treadright.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\">TreadRight.org<\/a>. When the time comes to travel again, you will have the chance to visit and support many of our partners around the world, through the amazing itineraries offered by TTC&#8217;s brands. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Some of TreadRight&#8217;s most important partnerships are with our ambassadors, who serve as our storytellers \u2013 and story listeners \u2013 around the world. <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.treadright.org\/ambassadors\/celine-cousteau\/\" target=\"_blank\">C\u00e9line Cousteau<\/a>, granddaughter of Jacques Cousteau and an accomplished activist, filmmaker, and explorer in her own right, serves as our planet ambassador \u2013 check out her beautiful video telling of the story of <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.treadright.org\/people\/\" target=\"_blank\">Iraq Al Amir Women&#8217;s Cooperative<\/a> in Jordan. <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.treadright.org\/ambassadors\/sarain-fox\/\" target=\"_blank\">Sarain Fox<\/a>, our people ambassador, is a First Nations activist and artist, helping preserve Canada&#8217;s indigenous culture through <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.treadright.org\/projects\/manitobah-mukluks-storyboot-school\/\" target=\"_blank\">Manitoba Mukluk&#8217;s Storyboot School<\/a>. Check out her <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.treadright.org\/videos\/\" target=\"_blank\">tips on how we make our travel matter<\/a>. This year TreadRight welcomed <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.treadright.org\/ambassadors\/ami-vitale\/\" target=\"_blank\">Ami Vitale<\/a> as our first wildlife ambassador. An award-winning National Geographic photographer, she specializes in telling the stories behind the headlines. When travel resumes, she will be sharing stories from some of our projects in southern Africa, including those welcoming <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.redcarnationhotels.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">Red Carnation<\/a> visitors to <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bushmanskloof.co.za\/\" target=\"_blank\">Bushman&#8217;s Kloof Wilderness Reserve &amp; Wellness Retreat<\/a>, South Africa, and Botswana&#8217;s soon to open <a rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\" href=\"https:\/\/www.xigera.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">Xigera Safari Lodge<\/a> \u2013 which, by the way will be nearly 100% solar powered. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"699\" src=\"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/2020\/04\/view-of-elephant-in-water-247431-1024x699.jpg\" alt=\"elephant in wild\" class=\"wp-image-19401\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/view-of-elephant-in-water-247431-1024x699.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/view-of-elephant-in-water-247431-330x225.jpg 330w, https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/view-of-elephant-in-water-247431.jpg 1400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>These are but a few of the places <em>where<\/em> we work, and I&#8217;ve told you <em>why<\/em> we do what we do \u2013 to <strong>Make Travel Matter<\/strong>. As TTC&#8217;s Chief Sustainability Officer, I also focus on <em>how<\/em> we put this into practice on a daily basis, ensuring that the positive impact of your travel begins long before your journey, through the practices of each of <a href=\"https:\/\/ttc.com\/brands\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\">TTC&#8217;s 42 brands<\/a>. We are <a href=\"https:\/\/www.treadright.org\/projects\/plastics-elimination\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\">eliminating all unnecessary single-use plastics<\/a> from our offices, in our hotels and on all of our trips. Each TTC traveler is encouraged to bring their own reusable water bottle on their trip and to receive documents electronically, and when you choose to do so, we plant a tree through our <a href=\"https:\/\/www.treadright.org\/projects\/e-documents-initiative\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\">E-Documents Initiative<\/a>. This year, we will be planting in Australia, helping the recovery from the terrible bush fires there. TTC&#8217;s Toronto office \u2013 where I work \u2013 is powered by geothermal power, and a good number of our offices around the world have had solar panels installed. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As you can tell, when it comes to ensuring travel has a positive impact, there are a <em>lot<\/em> of moving parts \u2013 and a long way to go. But, as they say, Paradise was not built in a day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I&#8217;d like to end with our most important partnership: You, our travelers. In addition to the visits you will be able to make with TTC&#8217;s companies to see and support these projects, a portion of every dollar you spend with every TTC company funds this work. And, please read and sign on to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.treadright.org\/pledge\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\">our travel pledge<\/a> \u2013 which upholds the simple, key tenets of TreadRight and TTC \u2013 to help protect and preserve our planet, our people and their communities, and the wildlife of our beautiful fragile planet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Just as I began this post with questions, I&#8217;ll end\nwith one more, for you. The time to travel will come again \u2013 hopefully, soon. When\nit does, how will <em>you<\/em> make travel matter?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Sincerely,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Shannon Guihan<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Shannon Guihan, Chief TreadRight &amp; Sustainability Officer This year, Earth Month arrives with particular poignancy. As The Travel Corporation celebrates its first 100 years, we also mark the fiftieth anniversary of the first Earth Day \u2013 April 22, 1970 \u2013 which was the seed that grew into Earth Month. Now, in 2020, Earth Month [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":42,"featured_media":19403,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[4906],"tags":[26,27,351,6013],"class_list":["post-19397","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sustainability","tag-earth-day","tag-earth-month","tag-treadright-foundation","tag-ttc-100"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.4 (Yoast SEO v27.5) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Paradise lost and found - reflections on Earth Month<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Now, in 2020, Earth Month comes in the midst of a world-wide pandemic, bringing much of life \u2013 and virtually all travel \u2013 to a standstill.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/paradise-lost-found-earth-month\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Paradise lost and found - reflections on Earth Month\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Now, in 2020, Earth Month comes in the midst of a world-wide pandemic, bringing much of life \u2013 and virtually all travel \u2013 to a standstill.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/paradise-lost-found-earth-month\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Real Word\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2020-04-15T09:32:18+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2020-04-15T09:32:22+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/luke-ellis-craven-knk0vDW0GME-unsplash-1.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1400\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"933\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Ginny Smith\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:title\" content=\"Paradise lost and found - reflections on Earth Month\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:description\" content=\"Now, in 2020, Earth Month comes in the midst of a world-wide pandemic, bringing much of life \u2013 and virtually all travel \u2013 to a standstill.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Ginny Smith\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Estimated reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"9 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/paradise-lost-found-earth-month\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/paradise-lost-found-earth-month\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Ginny Smith\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/2e8d203f790587b4311e5713a7ab07ab\"},\"headline\":\"Paradise lost and found &#8211; reflections on Earth Month\",\"datePublished\":\"2020-04-15T09:32:18+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2020-04-15T09:32:22+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/paradise-lost-found-earth-month\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":1855,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/paradise-lost-found-earth-month\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2020\\\/04\\\/luke-ellis-craven-knk0vDW0GME-unsplash-1.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"earth day\",\"earth month\",\"TreadRight Foundation\",\"TTC 100\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Sustainability\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/paradise-lost-found-earth-month\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/paradise-lost-found-earth-month\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/paradise-lost-found-earth-month\\\/\",\"name\":\"Paradise lost and found - reflections on Earth Month\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/paradise-lost-found-earth-month\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/paradise-lost-found-earth-month\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2020\\\/04\\\/luke-ellis-craven-knk0vDW0GME-unsplash-1.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2020-04-15T09:32:18+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2020-04-15T09:32:22+00:00\",\"description\":\"Now, in 2020, Earth Month comes in the midst of a world-wide pandemic, bringing much of life \u2013 and virtually all travel \u2013 to a standstill.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/paradise-lost-found-earth-month\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/paradise-lost-found-earth-month\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/paradise-lost-found-earth-month\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2020\\\/04\\\/luke-ellis-craven-knk0vDW0GME-unsplash-1.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2020\\\/04\\\/luke-ellis-craven-knk0vDW0GME-unsplash-1.jpg\",\"width\":1400,\"height\":933,\"caption\":\"girl standing on hill\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/paradise-lost-found-earth-month\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Paradise lost and found &#8211; reflections on Earth Month\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/\",\"name\":\"Real Word\",\"description\":\"Travel articles, insights and stories from Trafalgar\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Real Word\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2022\\\/04\\\/TT_RealWorld_Opt01-horizontal-Black.svg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2022\\\/04\\\/TT_RealWorld_Opt01-horizontal-Black.svg\",\"width\":643,\"height\":83,\"caption\":\"Real Word\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/2e8d203f790587b4311e5713a7ab07ab\",\"name\":\"Ginny Smith\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/\\\/2024\\\/05\\\/ginny-smith_avatar-500x500.jpg\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/\\\/2024\\\/05\\\/ginny-smith_avatar-500x500.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/\\\/2024\\\/05\\\/ginny-smith_avatar-500x500.jpg\",\"caption\":\"Ginny Smith\"},\"description\":\"Ginny is a writer, editor and Trafalgar's Digital Engagement Director with 14+ years of experience working across some of the world's leading travel and entertainment brands.\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.linkedin.com\\\/in\\\/ginny-smith-42834b26\\\/\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.trafalgar.com\\\/real-word\\\/author\\\/ginny-smith\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Paradise lost and found - reflections on Earth Month","description":"Now, in 2020, Earth Month comes in the midst of a world-wide pandemic, bringing much of life \u2013 and virtually all travel \u2013 to a standstill.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/paradise-lost-found-earth-month\/","og_locale":"en_GB","og_type":"article","og_title":"Paradise lost and found - reflections on Earth Month","og_description":"Now, in 2020, Earth Month comes in the midst of a world-wide pandemic, bringing much of life \u2013 and virtually all travel \u2013 to a standstill.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/paradise-lost-found-earth-month\/","og_site_name":"Real Word","article_published_time":"2020-04-15T09:32:18+00:00","article_modified_time":"2020-04-15T09:32:22+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1400,"height":933,"url":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/luke-ellis-craven-knk0vDW0GME-unsplash-1.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Ginny Smith","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_title":"Paradise lost and found - reflections on Earth Month","twitter_description":"Now, in 2020, Earth Month comes in the midst of a world-wide pandemic, bringing much of life \u2013 and virtually all travel \u2013 to a standstill.","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Ginny Smith","Estimated reading time":"9 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/paradise-lost-found-earth-month\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/paradise-lost-found-earth-month\/"},"author":{"name":"Ginny Smith","@id":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/#\/schema\/person\/2e8d203f790587b4311e5713a7ab07ab"},"headline":"Paradise lost and found &#8211; reflections on Earth Month","datePublished":"2020-04-15T09:32:18+00:00","dateModified":"2020-04-15T09:32:22+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/paradise-lost-found-earth-month\/"},"wordCount":1855,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/paradise-lost-found-earth-month\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/luke-ellis-craven-knk0vDW0GME-unsplash-1.jpg","keywords":["earth day","earth month","TreadRight Foundation","TTC 100"],"articleSection":["Sustainability"],"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/paradise-lost-found-earth-month\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/paradise-lost-found-earth-month\/","url":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/paradise-lost-found-earth-month\/","name":"Paradise lost and found - reflections on Earth Month","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/paradise-lost-found-earth-month\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/paradise-lost-found-earth-month\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/luke-ellis-craven-knk0vDW0GME-unsplash-1.jpg","datePublished":"2020-04-15T09:32:18+00:00","dateModified":"2020-04-15T09:32:22+00:00","description":"Now, in 2020, Earth Month comes in the midst of a world-wide pandemic, bringing much of life \u2013 and virtually all travel \u2013 to a standstill.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/paradise-lost-found-earth-month\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/paradise-lost-found-earth-month\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/paradise-lost-found-earth-month\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/luke-ellis-craven-knk0vDW0GME-unsplash-1.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/luke-ellis-craven-knk0vDW0GME-unsplash-1.jpg","width":1400,"height":933,"caption":"girl standing on hill"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/paradise-lost-found-earth-month\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Paradise lost and found &#8211; reflections on Earth Month"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/","name":"Real Word","description":"Travel articles, insights and stories from Trafalgar","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-GB"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/#organization","name":"Real Word","url":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/TT_RealWorld_Opt01-horizontal-Black.svg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/TT_RealWorld_Opt01-horizontal-Black.svg","width":643,"height":83,"caption":"Real Word"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/#\/schema\/person\/2e8d203f790587b4311e5713a7ab07ab","name":"Ginny Smith","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/2024\/05\/ginny-smith_avatar-500x500.jpg","url":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/2024\/05\/ginny-smith_avatar-500x500.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/2024\/05\/ginny-smith_avatar-500x500.jpg","caption":"Ginny Smith"},"description":"Ginny is a writer, editor and Trafalgar's Digital Engagement Director with 14+ years of experience working across some of the world's leading travel and entertainment brands.","sameAs":["https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/ginny-smith-42834b26\/"],"url":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/author\/ginny-smith\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19397","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/42"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19397"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19397\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19403"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19397"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19397"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.trafalgar.com\/real-word\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19397"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}