La Isla Foundation Becomes Member of Grassroots Journeys - Community Based Tourism in Nicaragua
La Isla Foundation is not only a NGO/NPO created to facilitate finding the cause of a Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) epidemic affecting sugarcane workers in Chichigalpa, Nicaragua. BUT we also offer Community Based Tourism.
We are now proudly part of Grassroots Journeys and our new page on their site can be found here.
What La Isla Foundation offers:
We offer trips to visit the La Isla community, cultural & historical trips in and around Leon, and educational, adventure tours around the occidental Nicaragua providing insights into eco-friendly habitations and farming while experiencing volcanoes, cloud forests, and the Pacific coastline.
We also offer a Spanish School, home stays, and the opportunity for students to complete field studies and volunteers to work in 13 different positions.
What is Community Based Tourism?
Community based tourism (CBT) has existed in some form or another for a long time, but it is receiving increasing attention as many travellers attempt to become more ethical and responsible. In development circles, it is often heralded as an attractive alternative economic income generator, which can supplement a community’s traditional activities. However, others are sceptical, viewing it as a potential destructive force which can cause the degeneration of traditional ways of life and the materialisation of culture, or in poorly administered cases, the ‘prostitution’ of culture.
Who is Grassroots Journeys?
- Grassroots Journeys features communities, small companies entirely owned by communities, non-profit organisations that support CBT, as well as responsible travel companies which work with CBT.
- All initiatives must directly benefit communities, either through the distribution of income to stakeholders, or through the establishment of development trusts or funds, with money spent on development projects throughout the community.
- All initiatives should demonstrate an active or future plan for operating in a sustainable and environmentally friendly manner.
