Episode 7: Considering Politics, Human Rights and Inequity When You Travel
Sunrise over the stupas of Bagan, Myanmar, a country whose government has perpetrated multiple persecutions of the Rohingya people. Photo by Kathryn Romeyn.
What is our responsibility as travelers to follow politics, current events, and human rights issues in a destination we’re interested in visiting? And should we be avoiding places where we believe the government carries out unethical policies? How should we feel about a country with a prosperous, peaceful and healthy population, but where there are not free elections? Or a nation that actively promotes sustainable tourism and development, but doesn’t have a free, independent press? Of course, nowhere is totally innocent, and these are questions we should be asking ourselves at home, too.
Travel invites us to explore faraway cultures and environments, yes. But it also invites us to look inside ourselves and examine our personal values. This episode is about just that. As travel writers, we’ve grappled with many questions over the years, ethical questions surrounding events in places like Myanmar, Hong Kong, the Philippines, the Middle East, East Africa, and more. But the personal connections we made and rich experiences we’ve had in some of these destinations have often outweighed the negatives.
Myanmar is just one destination that brings up important ethical questions for travelers because of human rights injustices. Photo by Kathryn Romeyn.
First we speak with Dr. Anu Taranath, a teaching professor on issues of diversity, racial equality and social change at the University of Washington. Dr. Anu consults with educational institutions, government agencies, non-profits, and businesses on these matters, and recently wrote an award-winning book called Beyond Guilt Trips: Mindful Travel in an Unequal World, which made Oprah Magazine’s “26 Best Travel Books of All Time” list. With Dr. Anu, we discuss honing our “traveling lens” at home and some useful questions to ask when uncomfortable situations arise.
Author and teaching professor Dr. Anu Taranath in Senegal.
We also call up Simon Lynch, director of sales for Luxury Travel Group, the parent company of Scott Dunn, a conscientious bespoke tour operator that Kathryn has traveled with several times. Simon fills us in on the ways he’s noticing clients become more ethically focused in their travel choices—led by, who else, their kids! He also shares Scott Dunn’s efforts to work with locally owned and operated businesses in each of their destinations to ensure tourism dollars directly benefit communities.
Armed with their suggestions and prompts, we hope listeners will feel more prepared—and inspired—than ever to thoughtfully tackle that next trip.