Country: Senegal

Organization: H.E.L.P. Travel - Human Experience Linking Project

Year the initiative began: 2006

Project Website: www.helptravel.org/eng/home_eng.html

Positioning in the Mosaic of solutions:

• Main barrier addressed: Corporate monolithic approach to tourism
• Main insight addressed: Education through hands-on experience

Youtube upload:

What is the goal of your innovation?
Exploiting traveling as a means of understanding among different cultures, and consequently as a source of sustainability awareness.

How does your approach support or embody geotourism?
The core of our travel concept is the respect of all aspects concerning geotourism. We have limited the number of Guests to a maximum of 10 people, as to provide an authentic discovery, and to offer veritable contacts with local populations. Working with small groups, making them aware of environmental issues and norms, educating them on local traditions and beliefs; we aim to provide high quality services as to generate a higher perception of all matters related to geotourism. Furthermore, the key components of our trips are individual and specific Community Development Projects: that is to offer a unique opportunity for exquisite integration conditions, primary source for exchange and mutual comprehension of cultures and knowledge. Respecting our planet and mankind becomes then a clearly visible reality, and no longer mere rules to be followed inattentively.

Describe your approach in detial. How is it innovative?
Traveling to a foreign country, where a friend or a relative of yours awaits your arrival. Enjoying privileged conditions in terms of feeling, sightseeing and discovering, thanks to this special guide, ambassador of cultures: yours and the visited country's one. Add to these unique travel chances the fact of being the donor and primary initiator of a humanitarian action. A family or an entire village is waiting for you, from several weeks in advance, to complete an already-commenced project which awaits your arrival for its accomplishment. Last but not least, the parties and celebrations run in your honor will have such a degree of intensity that you will truly feel like having lived a unique Life experience. For once, not simply seen and heard, but instead felt, exchanged and understood. How is it innovative? Actually, tourism lost its true meaning along the way. We try to go back to the essential: to discover, to participate, to evolve.

What types of partnerships or professional developement would be most beneficial in spearding your innovation?
Our concept encompasses two main aspects: Tourism and Incentive to Local Development. Apart from media and advertising campaigns, which will certainly increase our popularity, the ideal partnership would be with: -An important company in the Tourism Industry who believes in the concept, giving us the means to create additional H.E.L.P. Travel units in many other developing countries. -A NGO recognizing in our innovation an effective method of conceiving tourism as a resource for educational and sustainability purposes.

In one sentence describe what kind of impact, change, or reform your approach is intended to achieve.
Offer an optimal form of geotourism that can truly contribute to the improvement of local communities’ sustainable development.

Describe the degree of success of your approach to date. Clearly define how you measure quantitative and qualitative impact in terms of how your approach contributes to the sustainability or enhancement of local culture, environment, heritage, or aesthetics? How does your approach minimize negative impacts?
2006: Constitution of the H.E.L.P. Travel Association in Senegal. Launch of the websites: www.helptravel.org, www.helpassociation.org. Constitution of H.E.L.P. Travel Association in France. 2007: Listing in several travel-related web resources and collaboration with international tour operators. Launch of Responsible Tourism and Fundamental Travel itineraries. Media coverage of our projects: magazines and newspapers articles, travel blogs, distribution and advertising of video footage. We attained: .Building of several wells and educational/rehearsal facilities. .Accomplished multiple Community Development Project. .Provided school gears and equipments. .Established deeper and trustworthy relationships with local communities. Eventually, witnessing traveler's reactions and appreciations going far beyond our expectations. Working with small groups reduces all negative impacts that mass tourism can generate: higher attention and care, for a deeper learning and awareness. Our tour leaders, fond of both cultures (visitors and visited ones), create the ideal filter to avoid all incomprehension, as to assure all requirements for an authentic cross-culturalism. The specific Projects accomplished by the Participants provoke deep emotionally moments in terms of respect and understanding, minimizing even more the possibility of negative impacts

How does your program promote traveler enthusiasm, satisfaction, and engagement with the locale?
Our itineraries are settled towards destinations unknown by classic tourism, and are operated within conditions of professionalism and guest dedication; that is an effective gateway for generating travelers' enthusiasm and awareness. The challenge of a personal Community Project to be accomplished creates an additional care and motivation within the participants. Travelers and local residents actively work together towards the same goal; the project fulfillment is a mutual success and achievement, for a partaking of joy and gratification.

In what ways are local residents actively involved in your innovation, including participation and community input? How has the community responded to or benefited from your approach?
We exclusively work with local people and guides, native from the lands visited. Who can be a better ambassador then a local resident, proud of his own culture and tradition? Local resources, as locally owned hotels, restaurants and services are used throughout all of our trips. As for our actions and projects, we strictly employ local workforce, at a good and fair wage. We firmly support local business to enhance our impact on the community: money spent on locally produced goods and needed services support both incomes and employment to the communities that we visit.

Describe how your innovation helps travelers and local residents better understand the value of the area's cultural and natural heritage, and educates them on local environmental issues. How do you motivate them to act responsibly in their future travel decisions?
The success of our innovation relies in the importance we give to the links between environment and populations, between travelers and local residents. It is not easy to arrive in a foreign country and understand immediately all of its codes and norms: we aim to be the intermediary agent whose goal is to allow a respectful discovery of the lands and their cultures. Environmental awareness is also a primary issue in our itineraries; Travelers are informed and taught about the essence of our existence: the respect of the Earth, a living being who nurtures us all.

Is your initiative financially and organizationally sustainable? If not, what is required to make it so? What is the potential demand for your innovation?
Our organization is a non-profit association whose main goal is to promote tourism-related sustainable activities, aiming to bring solidarity and aid to the populations visited by our itineraries. Conceived according to the ethic of a profound respect towards the environment and the populations, our trips are in deep tune with the Responsible Tourism and Sustainable Development norms and guidelines. Our 'Fundamental Travel' innovative concept embodies all aspects and principles of Geotourism, responding to the latest trends in terms of Sustainable Travel demands and objectives.

How is your initiative currently financed? If available, provide information on your finances and organization that could help others. Please list: Annual budget, annual revenue generated, size of part-time, full-time and volunteer staff.
H.E.L.P. Travel is primarily financed by travelers, who participate to our itineraries. Incomes from both kinds of trips we offer are invested as follows: -60% planning, full board, itinerary and logistic. -20% participation to the Association's costs. Then, specifically: -20% of our Voluntourism trips costs are invested into the specific project chosen by the participant. -20% of our Adventure&Discovery trips costs are invested into a Community-Based Development Projects Fund. The Association also works thanks to donors who contribute to our projects and assistance-actions. Annual Budget 2008 (prevision): E140.000, 00. As a non-profit organization, all of the final revenues are reinvested into a Community-Based Development Project Fund. (expected % of revenues: 10/15% of the total income). Part-time: 14 (workers, part-time guides, artists, scouts). Full-time: 10 (tour-leaders, guides, driver, maid,chef, mission manager, secretary)

What is your plan to expand your approach? Please indicate where/how you would like to grow or enhance your innovation, or have others do so.
-Enhance our research for additional itineraries and projects. -Increase our web visibility. -Participate to travel-related international fairs. -Host travel writers and reporters for acquiring multimedia coverage of our activities, and subsequently launch innovative advertising and promotional campaigns. -Amplify our network of partnerships with international tour operators.

What are the main barriers you encounter in managing, implementing, or replicating your innovation? What barriers keep your program from having greater impact?
We encounter two types of barriers in terms of expanding and replicating our innovation: 1)Finance: the Association and its projects had been initially funded by our own private means; The shortage of capitals limits the possibilities to rapidly expand and progress. 2)The difficulties in being accepted and recognized by the travel industry that largely formatted its products, and taught potential travelers to search for the same offer over and over. Travelers are nowadays accustomed to buy an already prepared travel package: our itineraries are primarily custom made, concerning dates and period of visit, and type of Community Project to be accomplished. It is then from the beginning that we have to work and change travelers' habits in terms of choosing and programming their vacations. These are though the steps to be taken in order to switch the concept of tourism from an economic and managerial side to a human-oriented aspect.

What is the origin of your innovation? Tell your story.
Originally from France, I have been living in Senegal since 1989: my working activities had always been in the Tourism and Commerce sectors. In 1997 the birth of my daughter Dianaba changed my life, diagnosed with severe autistic problems at the age of 3years old; abandoned by her mother incapable of standing her sight, she captured then all of my time, love and attention. I adapted my activities to her needs, and created an hygiene products supplying company in Dakar, specifically for hotels, hospitals and public communities. The encounter with Mr. D'Ottavio Luca, at first friend, then associate, gave an additional acceleration to my enterprise, which became the leader in its sector of activity in Senegal. The amelioration of Dianaba's conditions, and the presence of many other kids in her same conditions, encouraged me to create an Association for Parents of Autistic Children in Dakar. Our efforts gave birth to the funding and building of a PedoPsychiatry Center inside a Dakar' public hospital. Assisting people in need, and the mutual spiritual rewards coming out of it, inspired me to spread the chance of providing support and help: while receptioning friends and relatives, I started to propose them to reinvest a part of their travel budget into an Aid and Assistance action, to be accomplished during their time in Senegal: once back home, their most profound souvenirs where the moments spent while performing this action, leaving the sandy beaches and the river excursions to the ordinary side of a travel memory... I was prompted to repeat this approach with several other visitors and friends who were told about us. Considering the success and deep integration moments we managed to obtain, we decided then to give a public exposure to this innovative association of voyage, discovery, community participation and human exchanges. We sold then our activity in Dakar, and moved to the Casamance Region, the Southern Senegal Tropical Forest area. These lands are still preserved in terms of Fauna and Flora, and still nurture ancient and authentic traditions among its native ethnic groups. The H.E.L.P. Travel Association was born then: Dianaba's health conditions are improving day by day, she no longer needs any medical assistance, and she is definitely the inspirational muse of these projects of ours.

Please provide a personal bio. Note this may be used in Changemakers' marketing material.
Marc Cirilli was born in France, and he is currently the President and co-founder of the H.E.L.P. Travel Association, and the Vice-President of the ‘Keur Xaley’ Association, for Autistic Children' Parents in Senegal. Formerly manager of an import-export supplying enterprise in Dakar, he also has wide experiences in terms of hotel and restaurant managing, and products international marketing and selling. Firmly believes that tourism should be one of the main sources for exchange and comprehension among cultures and human beings.

Please write an overview of your project. This text will appear when people scroll over the icon for your entry on the Google map located on teh competition homepage.
H.E.L.P. Travel is a non-profit association whose main goal is to promote tourism-related sustainable activities, aiming to bring solidarity and aid to the populations visited by our itineraries. Our trips are the result of a unique blend of discovery, excursions and Community Development Projects: conceived according to the ethic of a profound respect towards the environment and the populations, constantly in deep tune with Responsible Tourism and Sustainable Development norms and guidelines. Our 'Fundamental Travel' innovative concept embodies all aspects and principles of Geotourism, responding to the latest trends in terms of Sustainable Travelers' expectations and objectives. Back to the origin, emphasizing the essential, Fundamental Tourism is constantly oriented towards environmental respect, cultural integrity, and economic equity in all of its activities. The main aspect of its feasibility is the incorporation of a specific and personal Community Project to the ethical travel concepts above-cited. These Aid and Assistance individual achievements will be undertaken by travelers to help a person or a community in the lands they are visiting and exploring. Conceived, prepared and developed by qualified professionals, our programs aim to optimize the cultural exchanges, provide an authentic and enlightening discovery travel, within profound integration conditions.

Contact Information
Mr Marc Cirilli
Co-Founder, President
H.E.L.P. Travel - Human Experience Linking Project
Route de Kandé, BP1456, Ziguinchor
infos@helpassociation.org