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At a tourism conference in Panama last week, I got chance to catch up with the Rainforest Alliance and hear about its latest news.

Federico Solano described a new scheme called Tour Operators Promoting Sustainability, or TOPS, for both local Latin American tourism companies and those sending customers from the UK and other countries.

After bringing together travel companies that have made a commitment to sustainable practices, the Alliance hopes to launch a group-wide marketing campaign, creating one of the world’s first networks of green-certified operators… Continue reading

I was interested in the story from Conservation International on scientists in Borneo discovering a teeny tiny new species of frog – the Microhyla nepenthicola is about the size of a pea and lives in pitcher plants which hold pools of water.

When I saw the photo, I thought surely this must be the smallest frog in the world?

Au contraire – it’s only the smallest species discovered in the OLD world .

They’ve found even… Continue reading

I went to Chelsea Flower Show for the first time last week and, considering how little I know about plants and flowers (see earlier failed attempts to cultivate herbs on my balcony), I thoroughly enjoyed it.

I was a guest of the Malaysia Tourist Board, which won Gold for its rainforest-inspired garden, designed by James Wong (off the Grow Your Own Drugs programme on TV).

The garden was really beautiful… Continue reading

I was interested to find out more about the Rainforest Alliance at WTM last week. I first heard about the organisation when I was out in Central America last month – it’s a not-for-profit organisation with three distinct arms, advising and campaigning on sustainable agriculture, forestry and tourism in rainforested areas around the world.

Its work in tourism ranges from training hotel staff on green technology, to helping them attain certificates of sustainability, to educating tourists on how they… Continue reading