Sustainable travel is about supporting people and infrastructure long after you’ve departed. It’s about the Triple Bottom Line: environmental, economic, and socio-cultural sustainability. Economic sustainability is about building linkages, keeping the money local, and revitalising the economy.

Working for a non-profit organisation that uses tourism as an economic platform to create and sustain jobs in rural Africa, I was exposed to the positive effects of responsible tourism. It’s tourism that maximises economic, social and environmental benefits and minimises impact and cost. The long-term effects of visiting an area are the backbone of responsible travel.

Based on the riverine landscape, people and birds, the Kavango Open Africa Experience Route allows travellers to venture off the beaten track to explore one of Namibia's most pristine destinations.

Trade is what makes entrepreneurs, what drives the wheels of society, what creates jobs, and gives people a purpose in life. If the market existed, more jobs could be created, standards would improve, and rural areas would thrive on the influx of travellers.