The Travel Foundation began working in Tobago in 2004, setting up and funding projects that demonstrate how tourism can have a positive impact on local people, culture and the environment. We ran several projects to tackle some of the issues in this area, including:
Tobago traditionally had a thriving agricultural economy, but is no longer self-sufficient in food. Much of the produce consumed by the tourism industry is imported from Trinidad, the wider Caribbean and the USA.
To tackle this problem we set up programmes to help local people earn a better living from farming, to encourage them to get more involved with agriculture and to foster links between the agriculture and tourism industries.
Our team in Tobago helped to run a Food and Travel webinar in March 2010, encouraging tourists to eat locally. You can listen to the webinar here.
Our projects in Tobago have covered both environmental and people and livelihoods issues.
At Mason Hall High School, Denicia and Peterkin have been learning all about bee keeping and acquiring the skills needed to manage a small apiary. The new skills learned offer greater hope for the future – on an island where youth unemployment is very high. Denicia dreams of being one of the first female bee keepers in Tobago!