Let’s reinvent travel.


Leisure Lab is a think tank and media lab to promote sustainable tourism, or as we like to call it BREAK-EVEN TOURISM. In this LAB REPORTS section we publish news articles and create inspirational travel stories to help bring about positive change in the way we travel.


Community-based tourism: how your trip can make a positive impact on local people

Community-based tourism: how your trip can make a positive impact on local people

Community-based tourism can reap great rewards. Done well, it enables local organisations to protect precious habitats, preserve unique culture and empower grassroots employees, says Francisca Kellett from National Geographic.

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Meet [the] cultural leader keeping Costa Rica's endangered Bribri culture alive

Meet [the] cultural leader keeping Costa Rica's endangered Bribri culture alive

The Bribri leader explains how, in her village of Yorkin, just upriver from the Caribbean coast, she’s brought back the Bribri language from the brink of extinction, creating a sustainable tourism destination in the process, says Jamie Lafferty from National Geographic Traveller.

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How to Honor Indigenous Communities When You Travel

How to Honor Indigenous Communities When You Travel

Today, [in what we now call the United States,] there are 546 federally recognized tribes. Here’s how to engage respectfully and thoughtfully with Indigenous cultures […], says Iona Brannon from AFAR.

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Reviving Travel: [9] Stories of Innovation from Destinations and Tour Companies

Reviving Travel: [9] Stories of Innovation from Destinations and Tour Companies

Around the world, travel destinations and tour providers have been busy […] reinventing themselves. Through a mix of individual and corporate efforts, well-deserved attention is falling on the most important aspects of travel – those areas that are ultimately responsible for tourism's healthy future, says Kristin Henning from Travel Past 50.

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5 Tour Operators That Are Working Toward a More Sustainable Travel Future

5 Tour Operators That Are Working Toward a More Sustainable Travel Future

More and more tour operators provide their customers with authentic experiences […], allowing travelers to not only connect with people living in the places they visit but to better understand their daily lives and cultures, says Shane Nelson from TravelAge West. And perhaps more importantly, many of these encounters offer […] clients a chance to spend their vacation dollars on community-focused and sustainable tourism products.

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Hawai‘i Is Not Our Playground

Hawai‘i Is Not Our Playground

For years, Hawai‘i has been packaged as a picturesque paradise. A place where […] travelers could forget the worries of home. The problem? Hawai‘i’s land, history, and people are often ignored or trampled. Chris Colin from AFAR reports on the locals who are pushing back.

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The World’s Oldest Rainforest Was Just Handed Back to Its Indigenous Owners

The World’s Oldest Rainforest Was Just Handed Back to Its Indigenous Owners

The world’s oldest tropical rainforest has been given back to its traditional Indigenous owners in a historic deal with Australia’s Queensland state government, says Gavin Butler from VICE.

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Sustainable tourism – now is the time to change the way we travel

Sustainable tourism – now is the time to change the way we travel

The pandemic has altered how we think about tourism. Chris Haslam from The Times assesses the impact of our holidays on the environment, and knows the organisations and initiatives that will help you make informed choices

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Community development through tourism in Northeast-Uganda
Decolonizing Travel: Going Ethically to Under-Resourced Countries

Decolonizing Travel: Going Ethically to Under-Resourced Countries

Traveling is more at our reach than ever, and while we can all agree on the positive aspects of that, it also makes it necessary to place real thought onto our privileges and duties as travelers, says Mavi Parra from Passion Passport.

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Airbnb [and] UNESCO Partner [up] to Promote Cultural Tourism – Starting in Mexico

Airbnb [and] UNESCO Partner [up] to Promote Cultural Tourism – Starting in Mexico

According to Sustainable Brands, the initiative will promote destinations and experiences outside the traditional tourist circuit – engaging local tourist communities, integrating the creative and cultural sector into local tourism value chains, and contributing to the development of responsible tourism.

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