CHOOSE HONDURAS' IDEA: Additional income streams for birding guides in Honduras through virtual tours
We are interested in partners that can help with distribution and marketing of the virtual tours to increase sales and viewers.
+ What is your name?
Isis Castro
+ Where are you located?
Honduras
+ In one sentence, tell us about your idea.
We want to launch a series of Virtual Tours (guided birding, nature walks, and cultural sites) that people can purchase and enjoy from anywhere in the world.
+ My ideal collaborative partner or partners would be...?
We are interested in partners that can help with distribution and marketing of the virtual tours to increase sales and viewers.
+ What is it about your idea that makes you feel good?
The Virtual Tour series provides income to local guides, reducing seasonality as people can purchase and view the tours at anytime (avoiding high/low season like in an in-person trip), creates awareness for conservation of natural spaces and provides participants from around the world an insight into a different culture, country, and natural environment.
+ What makes your idea innovative? Why has no one ever done it before?
As the shutdowns and travel restrictions caused by the Covid 19 pandemic brought the travel industry to a complete halt, we looked for alternatives that fit the sustainable tourism framework: provide maximum positive economic impact in the host communities and limited environmental impact. The virtual tours are a great alternative, although never a substitute, to in-person travel. They allow the participants to enjoy international birding from the comfort of home, at their own pace and in their own time.
+ Who will benefit the most from your idea?
Local tour guides and other tourism service providers across Honduras. The production of our virtual tours is 100% a Honduran effort with multiple local service providers and entrepreneurs involved in the process. Isis Castro, our general manager, and local birding guides Older Rodriguez and Olbin Bejarano did all the video recording on location, and worked on the script. The raw footage, all filmed on location, was edited and final cut produced by Honduras Stock, a media company based in the capital city of Tegucigalpa. Background ambient music was composed by a producer based in the coastal city of La Ceiba.
+ Ideally, when would you launch this idea?
I've already launched my idea
+ Indicate which UN goals your idea relates to?
Decent Work and Economic Growth; Life on Land; Responsible Consumption and Production; Partnerships to achieve the Goal
+ At Sigmund, we are interested in ideas at the intersection of People, Planet, and Profit. How does your idea relate to these three categories?
In our opinion virtual tours provide many of the tangible benefits associated with sustainable tourism including reduced economic leakage, local employment income is generated for local birding guides with reduced seasonality as the virtual tours are available year-round, and zero emissions as the participants don’t travel physically to the destination
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