In 2015, CONAF – the Chilean agency entrusted to manage Torres del Paine National Park – asked ConservationVIP® about the viability of converting a horse trail in the park into a hiking trail. A new trail would relieve severe overcrowding on a section of the hiking trail known as “the W”. We responded that it…
I have traveled to San Jose, Costa Rica many times to support a children’s home, but I wanted to see more of the country. I found ConservationVIP’s Costa Rican volunteer trip a way to “Travel with Purpose,” expand my interest, and to be a great opportunity to experience and serve those in remote communities. The…
Vacation [def]: An extended period of leisure and recreation, especially when spent away from home or traveling. You can probably picture the perfect vacation lying on a warm sunny beach gazing at the turquoise blue water watching dolphins frolicking in the ocean waves. You’re relaxed and peaceful without a care in the world. For me…
My first impression was the variegated greens of the trees…and the thought that this is what the forest looked like in Roman times. And just beyond the treetops, in the distance, I could see the barren hilltops. And that’s when it hit me. Here we were doing our bit to help bring the lush Caledonian…
A Human Waste Problem! Probably not the first thought that came to your mind, right? Seriously, we hikers love remote wilderness areas. But our love has an impact. At Torres del Paine National Park in Patagonia, more than 150,000 visitors make an impact each year. For more than ten years, ConservationVIP® volunteers have been repairing…
What kind of person would spend more than ten years volunteering thousands of hours for an environmental nonprofit, without drawing attention to himself and his contributions? We have such a person in our organization, and I decided this is the right time to call him out. Behind his back some people have called him John…