Honoring Mother Earth Through Cultural Experience and Regenerative Travel

Call her Mother Earth, Pachamama, or Gaia, we connect to this living ecosystem we call our home in a myriad of ways, both as individuals and through cultural practices. With Earth Day upon us, Global Family Travels has highlighted some of the cultural traditions featured in our Learn, Serve & Immerse travel experiences, to help regenerate and honor this wonderous planet that sustains us.

Using a regenerative approach to develop our unique travel experiences, Global Family Travels aims to uplift communities and to foster destination stewardship in support of environmental and social justice causes. This regenerative approach means putting the destination at the heart of our trips, encouraging all of us to be good stewards, thereby consciously helping to build a more ecological, and equitable world. Here are a few that we hope will inspire you on this Earth Day!

Bali: Tri Hita Karana

Tri Hita Karana is the central philosophy of Balinese life, and helps preserve the balance, compatibility and the harmony of life on Mother Earth through “three sources of good.” These sources are a harmony between people, harmony with nature, and harmony with a higher power. The philosophy is visible in many facets of Balinese life—for instance, the ceremonies performed by farmers to bless their rice fields and water sources.

Global Family Travels’ immersive trips to Bali are infused with Tri Hita Karana, so travelers understand firsthand how the Balinese balance between spirit, nature, and community.

Global Classroom and Live Below Water in Bali

With a focus on key United Nations Sustainable Development Goals to learn about the negative effects of plastics on Life Below Water, this Bali Global Classroom Adventure offers opportunities for global citizens to understand the island's looming water crisis, while exploring the island's magical culture and beauty. We interact with Balinese non-profit organizations who tackle this critical global issue, learning what they are doing to help bring forth sustainable solutions to revitalize life below water.

Regenerative Wellness Retreat in Bali to Honor of the Seven Chakras

Wellness and spirituality are at the cornerstone of Balinese culture. Our 10-day Balinese regenerative retreat will spark mental clarity and creative healing through cultural immersion and mindfulness practices related to the 7-Chakras. This ultimate Bali wellness program is filled with Tri Hita Karana elements, helping travelers connecting to yourself, community, service and immersion, in a unique and focused way to give travelers the opportunity to embrace their experience, dive deep, support communities and celebrate the unique and traditional Balinese approach to wellness, health and human prosperity.

Iceland: Mythology and Climate Change

Icelandic mythology sheds light on how Icelanders believe in elves, trolls and hidden people, and the people's connection to their natural environment. The beautiful land of fire and ice is a stunning country, known for its snow-peaked landscape and volcanoes, but the country is also an emerging leader in climate activism. And, certainly, the effect of our changing climate is particularly stark in Iceland.

On Global Family Travels’ nine-day transformative journey to Inspire Climate Action, with an expert guide by your side, you will bear witness to the island’s geothermal and volcanic activity, breathtaking scenic views, wildlife, and culture, and learn how climate change has affected the country. You will actively see and encounter how climate conditions have inspired global activism, and you will learn firsthand what the country is doing to help mitigate climate change and raise awareness on this critical issue from a travel and earth-first perspective.

Peru: Cultural Traditions to Honor Pachamama

In Incan mythology ‘Pachamama’ is the revered mother earth and is seen as the ultimate feminine soul of nature, or the fertility goddess The word Pacha is known to be translated into various words such as the universe, world, or earth, while Mama translates to Mother. It is the Pachamama who gives farmers their crops of potatoes, corn, and Coca leaves, among other things.

Global Family Travels two regenerative immersive experiences to Peru give travelers the opportunity to learn about these ancient Andean traditions that highlights these concepts of earth, culture, spirit, and nature, while supporting Peruvian communities:

On our 10–day journey to Peru through the Lens of Chalay, we visit sacred sites and learn about the art of food cultivation. Through this program, you will see how food and culture are both inextricably linked to the food bearing process, from crop to plate, and how food is both celebrated, worshiped, and vital to the regeneration and growth of the communities who rely upon it. This trip highlights the sacredness of food and culture, as connective tools to celebrate earth.

Peru: A Regenerative Journey for Mother Earth, Sacred Traditions and Divine Feminine Energy

Indigenous wisdom has long been an interwoven component of sustainability and environmental action. Leaning from knowledge passed down to us will give us the keys to help protect our planet for the next generation. With this insight in mind, Global Family Travels has curated a regenerative voyage that awakens the cardinal senses, to help you learn how to heal our earth and empower women in Peru.

Photo Credit: Awamaki

By engaging with rural Andean women who are deeply connected to Pachamama through their work, you will understand their stories and their sacred traditions for helping to protect and preserve the beautiful Pacha Mama.

Washington State : Honoring Indigenous Wisdom

The beautiful Pacific Northwest is home to vibrant biodiversity and wildlife, making it an important place to protect and preserve. Like indigenous peoples everywhere, the Coast Salish natives of the Puget Sound in Washington State have a special relationship with Mother Earth, particularly their connection to sea life and salmon, which are culturally and spiritually important to them. These relationships guide indigenous peoples to practice reverence, humility and reciprocity for all living things.

On our unique regenerative wellness trip to the Greater Seattle area, through visits to the Suquamish tribal heritage areas, you will understand how indigenous culture and the environment have shaped the history, foundation, and bedrock of the region. This enriching program provides travelers to engage with local non-profit partners and diverse Seattle communities, learning about local social and environmental issues while taking in the beautiful natural backdrop of the unrivaled pacific northwest greenery. While connecting with the raw nature, you will also better understand how personal wellness, happiness and morale is embedded in the natural landscape and indigenous ways of beautiful Washington State.

Zimbabwe: Conservation & Ancestral Spirits

The Shona people in Zimbabwe / Zambia believe that when people die, their ancestral spirits return and they are thought to often take the physical forms of wild animals. In the Zambezi Society it is also known that some of the forest patches are protected by ancestral spirits which are said to inhabit them, and would seek revenge on those who carry out unauthorized tree cutting.

Rated as one of the "8 Outstanding Conservation Safaris Around The World," Global Family Travels' family-friendly safari in in Zimbabwe offers ample opportunities to participate in conservation and educational projects with our local partners! You will also discover the extraordinary wildlife thriving in the Hwange and Zambezi National Parks, by participate on several awe inspiring and thrilling game drives and walking safaris.

Regenerate and honor our wonderous planet through Individual and Cultural Traditions

These unique cultural practices across the globe that we have shared remind us of the remarkable gifts that nature provides and how we are connected to them in honoring our abundant, generous Earth. We hope that these traditions and regenerative adventures will inspire travelers to derive greater understanding from these cultural lessons; and to contemplate how we interact with the natural environment in destinations we visit.