In addition to direct support from the Greater Sundarbans DMMO, visitors to the region, and the USAID Ecotourism Activity implemented by the Bangladesh Ecotourism and Conservation Alliance, there is an opportunity to raise additional funds for community benefits such as improved education, water, sanitation, and health services. This will be done through voluntary donations from guests coming to the region (for instance, guests can be given the option of donating extra to supply a water filter or plant a mangrove with a local women’s cooperative) or else through international donation platforms such as Global Giving.
The Alliance is currently raising funds for the following community benefits, utilizing tourism as a catalyst to enhance the long-term resilience of communities and ecosystems:
Build an EcoVillage to Save Our Mangrove Forest
(Please go to this link to donate to this project)
This project will create an EcoVillage Network with the communities that steward the largest remaining mangrove forest on Earth: the Sundarbans Reserve Forest in Bangladesh. The Sundarbans EcoVillages will use the power of tourism to tackle poverty, promote gender equality, provide safe drinking water, and regenerate ecosystems-ensuring tourism helps nature and people thrive together.
Challenge
The Sundarbans Reserved Forest is the largest mangrove forest on Earth and the last home of the Bengal tiger in Bangladesh. Millions of people are dependent upon forest resources without sustainable incomes. More than 200,000 visitors come to the Sundarbans every year but with nowhere to stay, they don’t benefit local villages. The resulting poverty is the main barrier to community development and conservation, and NGO BEDS has been working with communities for over a decade to address these critical issues.
Solution
This project will target more than 1,000 households to incorporate them into the tourism economy, providing tourism and hospitality skill training for key families, constructing EcoCottages for homestay experiences, and supporting women artisans. The EcoVillage, and its visitors, will directly support safe drinking water, clean cookstoves, solar energy, education, and mangrove restoration. As tourism grows, so do its contributions to local well-being, conservation, and community development.
Long-Term Impact
The fastest-growing trend in tourism is experiential travel, and visitors increasingly seek destinations that offer authenticity, learning opportunities, traditional culture, and reconnecting with nature. An EcoVillage will not only be a positive experience for visitors; it will address the needs of local people, enhancing the long-term resilience of the communities that steward one of the most important ecosystems on Earth and are most exposed to future climate change impacts.
You can also donate to the following causes:
- Water desalination services for communities
- Women’s artisan networks and guide training
- Mangrove restoration
- Integrated mangrove aquaculture for food security
- Health and sanitation services
If you are interested in investing or donating to these projects, whether you are an individual or corporation, please get in touch today at [email protected]
