Baikal Sustainable Tourism
One of the activities of Lake Baikal Foundation is to promote sustainable tourism in the Baikal natural area. Referring to the best practices of ecotourism in Russia and in the world, taking into account the results of a joint project with Russian Travel Geek in 2018 – the first scientific expedition on the account of brown bears on lake Baikal with the participation of tourists, — the Foundation launches the Baikal Sustainable Tourism Initiative.
Operational goal of the project:
Verification of existing ecological routes and development of scientific expedition routes together with specially protected natural territories.
Strategic goals of the project:
- creating a culture of conscious travel to the natural environment;
- creation of a grant for scientific activities in protected areas and other environmental projects through contributions from socially responsible tourists;
- preservation of the unique ecosystem of the Baikal region.
Currently, together with the specially protected areas of the Baikal region, we are working on creating a route map that meets the principles of sustainable tourism. We strive to tell you about the available opportunities for traveling to Baikal, which combine immersion not only in the beauty of its surroundings, but also in the depth of knowledge that it can give about the surrounding world, unique flora and fauna. Our main criterion is sustainability and minimum anthropogenic load. With the successful symbiosis of the Foundation’s efforts, protected areas and tourists to strengthen the position of responsible tourism in the Baikal natural area, we will also be able to contribute to the development of social entrepreneurship for residents of the surrounding areas, train new guides and make travel around the beautiful region informative and safe. Finally, we will also be able to achieve sustainable financing of research projects in the protected areas: the project does not involve making a profit, all contributions to participate in expeditions from the Foundation and the protected areas are returned in the form of grant programs to the territory. The description of the first scientific expedition routes, jointly developed with the scientific departments of the protected areas, is already provided at the link.
If you are interested in participating in the project, you are ready to act as a partner, an expert, or already go on an expedition as a tourist, send us an e-mail: help@baikalfoundation.ru.