ViaVia Tours, Indonesia – Most Inspiring Tour Operator

[dropcap]T[/dropcap]his post congratulates ViaVia Tours for being recognized as a 2013 Wild Asia Responsible Tourism Awards Winner. This award recognizes the tour operator that excels in all of the above categories by taking into consideration all the key principles of responsible tourism (maximum positive impacts to the local community and minimum negative impacts to the environment) and awards innovation for this most inspiring responsible tourism business of the year.

ViaVia tours are as varied as Jogjakarta is populated and they all offer something unique. Adventure, gastronomy and culture. ViaVia in Jogja offers art space to young local artists and is also often the venue of concerts, Friday night Jazz, performance art, film festivals and debates. Parts of the ViaVia profits go to support educational, social and cultural projects in and around Jogjakarta.

Our favourite things about them!

• Excellent community development, resource efficiency for such a small project.
• Internal and external impact assessment.
• Strong in the “influence and inspire” area.
•  Supporting local artists.
• Inspirational commitment to supporting marginalised groups (e.g. HIV).
• Plan to improve energy efficiency.
• An active company achieving good results and customer numbers.

Inspiring Management

• Guest information on sustainable tourism: website, peronsal communication, guided walks, welcome briefing, brochures, books.
• Internal and external environmental and social impact assessments.
• Staff dedicated to following Indonesian law.
• New guides go through a weeklong training, specialising in cross cultural communication.
• All staff have job descriptions where their roles are outlined, with performance appraisals identify capacity building needs.
• Some staff have participated in Sustainable Tourism training with international specialist. All core guides received a Training of Trainers by specialist.
• The Manager has her Graduate and Post Graduate Degrees in funded by ViaVia.
• Gives preference to smaller accommodation suppliers, each is visited and partnership built on shared RT principles.
• Participated in local and national panel discussions on sustainable tourism.
• Work with partners, provide partners opportunity to visit, join trainings and tours to learn.
• Provide informal consultancy to local travel agencies who are interested in “copying” concepts.
• Host free annual training (approx. 20 people) on cross cultural communication and guiding skills; workshops on social enterprises for students.
• Facilitated training on sustainable tourism for tourism students of several universities in Jogjakarta (UNY, UPN, and others).
• 2008 external sustainability assessment (Exchange Belgium) and regular interns assess.

Community Engagement and Development

• Guides develop personal relationships with villages and seek feedback. Annual meeting to discuss plans and feedback.
• Organise street festival to engage neighbourhood and other businesses.
• Work with ILO and other organizations to provide trainings to local communities on tourism, e.g. establishing homestays.
• Provide humanitarian assistance e.g. emergency relief after 2006 Jogjakarta Earthquake and 2010 Mt. Merapi Erruption; fundraising after the 2006 Nias Earthquake; Awareness raising and fund raising during World Refugee Day in 2004.
• Constructed 26 houses after 2006 Earthquake.
• Waste management and environmental training to schools in villages they work with.
• Supported a community library in Sukamade Village which they visit on Overland tour.
• Financially and non financially supported the Jogjakarta Mural Project Sama-Sama You Are Welcome in 2003.
• Provide venue spaces for charitable events.
• Fund the university education of 5 women (4 staff, 1 non-staff).
• Funded a life saving surgical operation in Belgium for one of staff.
• Fair Trade Shop, which provides opportunities for economically disadvantaged people, (e.g. street children, HIV sufferers).
• Provides regular safe venue for meetings of Narcotics Anonymous, and other marginal groups.
• 100% local staff and 100% local management.
• Many staff have progressed from low skilled jobs to management within the business.
• Staff paid living wage, health insurance, maternity leave, holidays.
• Has a restaurant, which also uses as much local and organic ingredients by small local producers as possible. No-MSG, No-Palm Oil.
• In tours visit home industries, guests to buy locally.
• Child sexual exploitation policy signed by all staff and made available to guests.
• Promote women in the work place and equality, but some challenges due to culture.

Cultural Preservation

• Customers told about acceptable dress in brochure and pre-tour briefing.
• Supports one of the last surviving Javanese ‘Ketoprak’ Theatre Groups.
• After the 2010 Mt. Merapi Eruption held public meeting with fundraising about the damage caused by the ash, and the future risks to local temple complexes, with key note speaker (British archaeologist Tony Tack).
• Contribute tourist fees to heritage sites.
• Promote maintaining local access to heritage sites (e.g. Borobudur).
• Provide opportunity for young local artists every few weeks to decorate Via Via or exhibit and they take a lower than average commission (30%).
• Offer Bahasa language courses and Batik courses.

Resource Efficiency

• Promote sustainably sourced products.
• No plastic bag policy, refillable water bottles,
• Furniture made from recycled materials e.g. old boat.
• In the office use LED lighting, taps checked for leaks.
• Trees 4 Tours carbon offset scheme.
• Local school take old paper for recycling.
• Composting.

Protection of Natural Areas and Wildlife Conservation

• Maximise public transport on tours.
• Trees 4 Tours™ concept supports local farmers with tree planting per tour in a vehicle.
• Staff trained on species and library provided.
• Contribute tourist fees to protected areas for e.g. turtle conservation.
• Discuss environmental and conservation issues on tours.