tui tuesdays. the best of days / photo by Ben Keene

The tribe I met this month…

Super yacht engineer Paul and medic Becca met on Vorovoro during the first week of the the project in 2006. They returned this month as if they’d never left, slept in a hammock by the high tide, and took part in village duties and fixed Poasa’s wind turbine.

Home cinema installer Ian was on his round the world ticket when Vorovoro got in the way. He stopped for a week, then two, became a chief, and helped the tribe & Tui Mali fix their antenna’s.

US study abroad students Jason, Amy & Ashley were taking a couple of weeks away from their studies in Australia when they came to the island. Ashley laughed a lot, Amy fell in the pig pen and Jason told everyone Vorovoro was his new favourite place in the world.

Qualified diving instructor, Dan and TEFL teacher, Steff plan to return and use their skills to volunteer in the nearby village of Ligau Levu soon.

Fred was a peace corp volunteer in Fiji in 1981 – when he married a local Indian lady. He returns every decade to explore a different part of the country. After spending time on Vorovoro he plans to settle permanently with his extended family in Fiji.

Mirel, when explaining to Tui Mali that he was from Israel, was asked by the chief if he flew helicopters. ‘No, logistics’ was the answer – followed by huge laughter all round the grog matt. Must be something in the water…

School-leaver Jade’s two weeks on Vorovoro turned into two months during which time she would draw crowds from the local villages as she sang ‘Isa Lewa’ in perfect harmony with island voices.

Camilla a software marketeer from Norway, Stacey an admin manager from the UK, Simon who talked a lot of rugby with the boys & Kim who mended the hammocks and Jim a Save the Children worker and his son Joe from Australia were some of the other tribe members I was fortunate to meet on this visit. Like many of them, I didn’t want to leave.

all the island ladies... / Photo by Ben Keene

The tribe I re-connected with…

More permanently you might recall – Poasa, Francis and extended family, boat captains Api & Jone, Kitchen queens Kini, Wati, & Skipper, & the team Fiji core – Nemani (who managed to collect over 100 plastic bottles spewed up by Labasa river in 45 minutes for an eco-scavanger hunt), Liavi (talanoa teller and garden nurturer with love for sale), a chap we call Pupu Epeli who lead brilliant workshops on island medicines and coconut jewelry making, & our current ‘wavu’ Ropate charging the four peaks and forever setting up and packing down grog sessions on the beach, in the bure, or under the stars…

Tui Mali – Vorovoro’s father figure, landowner, host extraordinaire and chief was as good as form as I’ve seen him in the last few years; the band from Ligau Levu village always seemed to turn up when the tanoa was full; the recent cup winning Mali Sharks who if you close your eyes sound more like a gaggle of teenage girls than a rugby team helped clear Tanoa Park; the women’s groups of Mali who make crafts for the visiting tribe members; the primary school who we were able to donate $600 this month from Kaz’s ongoing Zaishu project; and our friends from Govinda’s internet in Labasa who delivered the ultimate indian take out to the beach last Sunday.

Perhaps the biggest shock of the month for me was seeing a man getting off the boat at sunset on sevusevu day in the shape of Ratu Tevita. Having travelled from Nadi especially to see us all it was fantastic to welcome Te back with a large bilo of grog and a meke he had taught us.

Then there is the Cahill clan from Indiana who have been with us for a year now and lead the project so brilliantly: Mama Jenny’s good omens, Papa Jimmy’s ‘dam truth‘, Lucas’s beach pad, Bethany’s bright island fashion & little Ollie’s dominant fishing are some of the reasons that make this blond-haired-five-some an all round inspiration to many that meet them.

The tribe I need now…

For this life and community, our ‘bul’oqo’ – it’s positive local and global impact as well as the laughter and adventure – to continue and grow in Fiji we need support and new partnerships. Economically it’s been a tough year. So we are now looking to you more than ever to send yourselves, your friends, families, student groups, social networks and companies to our shared island home in the sunshine for adventure, inspiration and changemaking. Do it!

And for the first time there is now also the opportunity to play an even bigger part in the project. Ulai and I have some exciting options to become partners in Tribewanted Fiji for the next 10 years. So if the idea of Vorovoro connects with you – contact me today.

Vina’a va’alevu. Talo!

pics from island time in June

The John Obey Community / Photo by Ben Keene

I’m not sure who had asked the question but it stuck in the back of my mind.

Finding Vorovoro has changed a lot of things. And I know I’m not the only one who feels that.

But finding another Vorovoro wasn’t a priority on that perfect day in September. Our job was to build Vorovoro and we committed ourselves to a minimum of three years.

It worked. Not easily, but it did work.  The project is ongoing and, although some months are slower – even in Fiji – than others, it’s a way of life now. Hopefully for a long time yet.  Claire’s recent Vorovoro Blog sums up why it was worth it.

But how did I go from an island in Fiji to a beach in Sierra Leone?

As we celebrated our three year birthday on Vorovoro last year I finally started to look seriously where we might go next. It wasn’t for lack of offers.

I’ve kept a special file in my inbox marked Tribewanted II. It’s where I procrastinate.

People still find it difficult to describe what Tribewanted is. I do too. Here’s where I think we’re at: “Our mission is to build and sustain cross-cultural communities in beautiful places that benefit locals and visitors; inspiring positive change within and far beyond the village.”

So with this clearly in mind I clicked through the ‘Tribewanted II’ file …Sierra Leone wasn’t there. But soon I was.

Last year a good friend invited me to visit his football academy and school in Ghana. There he told me about a similar project he was managing in Sierra Leone. I made the short journey with him to Freetown and quickly fell for this chaotic, charming, beautiful country.

Later in the year I was introduced to an Italian living in New York who worked in Sierra Leone. I know, I know. But this is how these things work. Filippo Bozotti made a film called Bling – blood diamonds and hip-hop – and had been fundraising and supporting mircrofinance, education and computer literacy through the Shine on Sierra Leone foundation. Filippo was keen to bring a new kind of tourist to Sierra Leone and was looking for the right model.

A natural partnership formed and in Janaury this year Filippo, myself and a local partner – Dr.Michel Sho Sawyer – met in Freetown to see what might be possible.

Three months later we had secured a long-term agreement for a few acres of land at my favourite beach – John Obey – on the awesome Freetown peninsula and a burgeoning relationship with the local community.

Right now – as we share this opportunity for the first time with our members and beyond – I’m as excited as I was when we first found Vorovoro.

Four years later, ‘where we went next’ has finally arrived.

Tribewanted Sierra Leone / Photo by Ben Keene

Tribewanted Sierra Leone has formed a partnership with the government, landowners and the local John Obey community in Sierra Leone to create an eco village community over the coming years to support sustainable development in the area.

For the visiting tribe members it will be a unique opportunity to experience a peaceful, beautiful and vibrant country seeking a new beginning a decade after being ravaged by civil war.

Tribewanted Sierra Leone is a local organisation and its non profit partner, Shine On Sierra Leone, has been working in the region successfully for five years, sponsoring 6 schools and computer centres around the country as well as providing microfinance to over 5,700 women across the country.

Tribe members will have the opportunity of joining in with the development of the new village alongside the local team and community. The project will be pioneering a new building technique called ‘Superadobe” developed at Cal Earth , a technique that uses only local earth and material.

All profits generated from Tribewanted Sierra Leone will be re-invested in the local John Obey community, in education and microfinance through Shine On Sierra Leone.

Tribe members will be able to book their visit to John Obey online at a cost of $450 / £295 a week. This will cover their stay, all meals and a contribution to the community development. Members will need to cover flight costs and local transport, from airport by boat, to the beach.

A maximum of 30 tribe members will spend a minimum of 1 week at a time living alongside a local team and the community immersed in the day to day running and development of the village. The project will run from October to June annually, closing for the rainy season.

Founder of Tribewanted, Ben Keene:

“When you take part in the project you’re not sacrificing your hard earnt time-out for an intense volunteer programme nor are you replacing a much-needed beach holiday. You can sunbath, build, swim, cook, canoe up river, trek, fish, play beach football, share skills, teach, drum round bonfires, and eat great seafood. You’re living alongside a local community whilst connecting with a global network of like-minded people.

We want people from all walks of life with all kinds of skills and interests to join the tribe; from gap year students, career breakers and adventurous travellers to those with specific building, design and environmental skills to help develop the community. Tribewanted Sierra Leone is your chance to play a part in kick-starting the right kind of tourism in a country that needs it. It will be an amazing adventure, so don’t miss this opportunity to be one of the pioneering visitors.”

Filippo Bozotti, Tribewanted Sierra Leone’s founding partner said,

“I’ve been visiting and working in Sierra Leone for five years. It’s not only one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever been to, it is also one of the most relaxed. The negative perception of the country is very different to the reality. It’s an addictive place – tourists don’t often come to Salone, as the locals call it, but we are looking to change that.”

Basic development will begin in September with a small team and the local community. In October the tribes ‘first footers’ will arrive and the project will officially begin.

This evolving cross-cultural community will tell the story of a new beginning on a beach in a beautiful and peaceful country, aiming to challenge the perspective of Sierra Leone as dangerous destination.

Tribewanted Sierra Leone Overview

• Six hour flight from London or Brussels approx £550 / $850 rtn
• Local transfer from airport direct to the beach £65 / $100 rtn
• 7 nights / all meals / donation to village development £295 / $450
• Project open October-June annually during the dry season
• Partners: Shine on Sierra Leone, Cal Earth, Sea Bright Solar

are we geotourists? / Photo by Ben Keene

Jonathan Tourtellot is a classic product of this infamous society I’m sitting in: wise, whimsical and, despite a head cold, full of wonder for the world – he is the stereotypical adventurous professor leading an ambassadorial training session deep inside the arteries of natgeoHQ, Washington DC.

And the subject of his images of Norweigan fjords and Costa del Concrete? Geotourism. Coined and defined by Tourtellot as:

“tourism that sustains or enhances the geographical character of the place, such as its culture, environment, heritage, and the well-being of its residents.”

In other words, tourism that doesn’t have a negative impact on a destination, and beyond this adds value to the place and it’s people, making it pay to protect it.

But what about eco-tourism, sustainable-tourism, responsible-tourism, heritage-tourism, or even tribal-tourism I hear you cry?

Why another?

Why now?

Well, because the ‘geo’ – of place – includes all of the above and more. Geotourism is all inclusive. But unlike the packaged tourism of before – this new form specifically describes practise that does not degenerate a place or it’s people, and often in fact does the opposite.

So where is all this geotourism happening?

Well, in a lot of places already. The reason I attended this conference was because I was fortunate to be asked to help judge on last year’s geotourism changemakers competition. 611 entries from 81 countries. The top ten made it to Washington and three were voted for online as being outstanding.

The winners included ‘Nature Air’ , Costa Rica’s and the world first ‘carbon neutral airline’, reaffirming some of my lost faith int he benefits of carbon offsetting when it is local; ‘PEPY Ride’ in Cambodia giving people rural bike riding adventures whilst simultaneously engaging them about development in the country rather than throwing them unguarded to volunteer in orphanages that haven’t asked for their help; and ‘Wikiloc’ an online tool for anyone to log a trail or trek they know and love online – think wikipedia for trails. Very cool.

Tribewanted and Geotourism?

I took part in a panel session at the conference and was able to share some of the Tribewanted story. Amongst the audience there seemed to be a strong interest in our version of geotourism in Fiji and also how to develop a toolkit to turn each tourist/ tribe member into a changemaker on their return home.

We discussed that perhaps an exciting legacy for geotourism projects might be giving their visitors the opportunity to take their inspiring experience back into their lives. This is something we’ve always been keen to try and do on Vorovoro – connect island life with city life. I hope our new Tribewanted credits model which we’ll start testing soon will incentivise our members do this even more.

And you’ll be interested to hear that next year’s geotourism competition is focusing on: ‘Places on the edge – saving coastal destinations’

So when you next travel, take the geo-tourist test by simply asking:

“Are we sustaining or enhancing the character of this place?”

If the answer is yes, then maybe the future of travel just arrived.

Just for the benefit of those who don’t listen to BBC Radio 1 breakfast show, Chris Moyles is the loud, arrogant, large and opinion dividing presenter (on whether he’s actually a nice bloke) of the show. Over the last few months he and some of his A-list celebrity mates have been preparing to climb Africa’s highest mountain (almost 6000m) as part of a fund raiser for comic relief. So last week along with such luminaries as Cheryl Cole, Ronan Keating and Garry Barlow he set off to climb it whilst sending regular reports back to the BBC so we could follow their progress.

Coming back down to earth

Listening to their reports this week really reminded me what I love about climbing. As Moyles reported back to the BBC over the week the tone of his voice noticeably changed as they got higher and life became harder. He started out as a typical swaggering, cocky loudmouth but by the end you could hear a real sense of humility and modesty in his voice. Climbing mountains is a real challenge both physically and mentally (much more so that people who have never done it often realise) and by the end of the week the enormity of what he’d set himself was very clear. It was incredible to hear him sounding so honest and humble for a change about how challenging it all was, it almost made him likeable.

Inspiring & relective

This sense of a man really pushing himself and the sense of perspective that he was gaining was amazing to follow. What continues to attract so many people to climbing is the unique sense of perspective that it gives you. Suddenly from being potentially quite an ‘important’ person in your own environment you’re taken completely outside that into this vast and mighty, uncontrollable expanse. You suddenly find yourself feeling very small and insignificant surrounded by this immense beautiful wilderness. And that is what is so refreshing about the experience. It’s almost impossible to come away from such an experience without some real and deep life reflections on where you are in the world and where you going.

To top it off, Moyles and his group raised a staggering £1.4 million for Comic Relief as a result. Regardless what you think of him, that is quite something and deserves genuine congratulations.

This summer we too will be taking to the mountains. Tribewanted has organised 3 separate expedition dates where we will be taking a small group through their paces in the stunning Ancash area of Northern Peru before attempting a double summit on Pisco (5752 m’s) and Yanapaccha (5400 m’s).

Further Information:

• Tribewanted: The Andina Diaries – Mountain Guide Profile
• Tribewanted: The Andina Diaries – Cooking in the Andes
• Tribewanted: The Andina Diaries – Pastoruri Glacier
• Tribewanted: Climbing In The Andes

Departure Dates:

• Sat 27th June to Thursday 16th July 2009
• Sat 18th July to Thursday 6th August 2009
• Sat 15th August to Thursday 3rd September 2009

As part of your payment to Tribewanted you will receive a years membership to Survival who campaign for indigenous tribal rights across the developing world. On top of this a small donation of this of the amount will go to the charity called Puentes which aims to provide the street children of Peru with a safe and happy childhood which was set up by a amazing friend of mine who’s life was tragically cut short in Ecuador last year.

If you would like any more information regarding Tribewanted Andina then please don’t hesitate to drop me a line at giles@tribewanted.com

Photo by Amy Briden

Bula! to all those fellow cake eaters out there. Time to get your chef hats on and your whisks whipping.

Banana Cake (China Keke)

Serves 20+.  This cake is perfect if you have a few squishy bananas and they need using up!

Ingredients:

• 2 cups sugar
• 4 table spoons butter
• 4 eggs
• 5 cups of self raising flour (If you only have plain flour, use that with 5 teaspoons of baking powder)
• 1 ½ cups of milk or coconut milk
• 4 bananas (Picked from your very own banana tree!)

Method:
Beat the sugar and butter together until soft. Then beat in the eggs, one at a time until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture is fluffy. Next add the flour, little by little to make a very soft dough.
Mash the bananas and stir these into the mixture. Then add the milk and mix all together. Grease the cake tray and then pour in the goo…and of course, to make washing up easier, you must lick the bowl!
Pre-heat the oven to a moderate heat. Bake for 45 minutes…and to bring more essence to the cake, add tasty icing for that mouth watering bite!

Easy Icing

Ingredients:

• 7 tablespoons of Icing Sugar
• 3 tablespoons Butter

Method:

Mix together!  When the cake is baked and smelling delicious, leave to cool. Then spread the icing sugar thickly (very important) all over the cake! Scrummy!

“Myself, I decorate with hundreds and thousands and to make it colourful, I decorate with flowers and banana leaves, you know the ones. Yes, it’s like that!”

- Head Chef, Vale ni Kuro

Take to the mountains / Photo by Giles Dawnay

Trips to Peru are often associated with plans to trek the Inca Trail from nearby Cuzco, climaxing with sunrise over the ancient Inca city of Machu Picchu.  Since the Peruvian Government sensibly imposed restrictions in 2005 on the number of walkers, the trail has been limited to 500-a-day including porters. As a result the route has become increasingly difficult to experience without long-term planning, and predictably a range of alternative routes have had to deal with the overflow, many of which now require similar restrictions.

It is no great surprise that Tribewanted takes its responsibilities to nature and local communities seriously once again as it has on Vorovoro in Fiji by using its influence to lead an ever expanding online ‘tribe’ on a journey into the quieter northern reaches of Peru, far from the Cuzco stampede.

The first of the Tribewanted Challenges will be a 20-day program of rock and ice climbing ending in a double summit attempt of Pisco (5752m) and Yanapaccha (5460m).

“In the summer of 2009 Tribewanted will be offering you the chance to visit the majestic Cordillera Blanca in Northern Peru and challenge and engage yourself with it’s stunning snow-capped scenery and its fascinating indigenous Q’echua culture.”

The expeditions will be led by Tribewanted: Vorovoro Project Director Giles Dawnay (Jale) who worked in the region with Madventurer between 2003 to 2005. During his time there Jale developed his passion for the mountains and used his spare time to develop ice climbing skills and make various attempts on some of the 6000m+ mountains. The trip will be based in Huaraz 420km north of Lima.

It was in the nearby Cordillera Huayhuash that events detailed in the book Touching the Void by Joe Simpson took place in 1985.

Price for Tribewanted: Andina is £1500
Group size: 8 spaces
Initial Deposit: £250

Departure Dates:

• Sat 27th June to Thursday 16th July 2009
• Sat 18th July to Thursday 6th August 2009
• Sat 15th August to Thursday 3rd September 2009

Home to Tribewanted - Vorovoro island, Fiji

It felt weird, wrong almost, as the taxi swung down the freeway and  onto the fabled strip in the desert.

A different kind of social experiment has been built here, on the back of the dream of a giant, larger than life, playground. And in amongst the fake plastic trees, cascading casino’s, Roman edifices and Elton John shops I wondered how I had come to this place? How would the story of a community on a Fijian island fit in here?

I was here because a ‘cyberinfluence’ conference for the federal government of the United States of America wanted to know about the tribe. They wanted to hear our story. And I thought this would be a good way to share it. So I went, to tell of a group of people connected by a place, a place where we build with our hands, and eat from the sea, and where the currency is a kava root.

They smiled, laughed, clapped and questioned. Endless questions. How did the on-line and on-island communities relate? Did I believe in the prophecy Tevita made to Tui Mali about the world coming to Vorovoro? How could I live on an island with no electricity?

Next up at the podium was a lecture on ‘law on the internet’, followed by ‘gaming: where next?’ I wandered out onto the shiny streets, won at black jack, gasped at cirque de soleil, and watched the energetic spending of millions of dollars. I found a small piece of grass, laid down, closed my eyes, and imagined I was back on Vorovoro.

Vorovoro gives us perspective on the world we’ve left behind. Vegas gave me perspective on the life I’d left on Vorovoro. I know where I’d rather be.

Kava Ceremony on Vorovoro

I woke up early and got in the smallest plane ever, to fly to Labasa.

This little 8 seater was a really cool ride and the scenery was amazing. I was met at the airport by Dan (the island Activities Manager) and a girl called Lucy who had just spent a month on Vorovoro and seemed really upset to leave. We bought some provisions in town and set out on a boat for the remote island of Vorovoro. In fact it wasn’t that remote, but it also wasn’t on any maps that I checked. The boat ride took about 45 minutes, and I was getting more and more excited all the way. When we pulled into the village beach it looked awesome – I wasn’t really sure what to expect but was very impressed with what had been achieved in just 2 months. In fact I was impressed overall with the whole setup. I’d originally thought it would just be a bunch of backpackers building a couple of crappy huts, but the guys have poured a lot of money into building well engineered structures. All of the building work was carried out using local craftsmen to make sure that all money generated by the project stays in the local community. I thought it would just be foreigners on the island, but in reality there is a small local village next to the one being built. It was very refreshing, and with only a few other people on the island when I got there it felt like I was joining a small family for a week. Everyone seemed cool, not the hippies I had been fearing, just like minded travellers looking for something different.

As my week progressed I got more into the lifestyle, visiting local villages and meeting real Fijians. We attended a few “grog” sessions as well, where a root called cava is pounded with water to make a drink, supposedly if you drink enough it can give you a mild high but I couldn’t handle sitting around cross legged long enough for the effects to take place. I did tons of work around the place, myself and Kimbo (a helper on the island) spent ages hacking a path through the island with machetes to a proposed jetty site, and the whole island helped to build a large chicken coup (or pen). Thursday involved running through the forest at high speeds trying to catch wild chickens which proved to be amusing. We went to the local school which was cool, the kids were incredibly eager to learn about us and our culture, remaining so optimistic despite the obvious poverty they were surrrounded with. I also went on a run around the island, and for an early morning fish where I caught a 4kg Barracuda for dinner.

I had such an amazing time on Vorovoro that I decided to skip the west coast of America which was next on my itinerary, and do another week on the island. Basically I figured that LA and San Francisco will be around forever, this opportunity might not. Also there was a film crew on the island making a documentary for BBC2 so it gave me a better chance of getting my 10 seconds of fame…so that’s that. I would really recommend for any of you guys to head out.

My second week of Tribewanted was just as good as the first, and I have to admit it was quite sad leaving. We went back to the school where I showed some of the kids a few more rugby skills, did tons more work, had a really good night on the bounty rum, and drank gallons of kava. In the end I made some solid friends who I’m definately going to keep in touch with, and the send off I received on the morning I left was quite special. I don’t want to sound too emotional so I’ll leave it at that.