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What is Équipeuple?

Équipeuple is a committed movement that has for goal to sensitize, to inform and to equip travelers about their direct impacts on the cultural communities they visited and to denounce the negatives effects of the tourism of masses. By responsible choices, individual and collective, during every journey, we hope to improve the quality of contacts between people in the goal to encourage the respect and the authenticity and to minimize negative impact on the local communities.

Why:

The tourism is in constant expansion and generates by him self, more than 500 billions of U.S dollars per year. There is more than 700 millions of tourists per year who travel around the world and the half, travel in the in the developing countries. Maturely, the tourism create and bring regional development, but these regions of the world, are extreme fragile and our presence can be often negative for the local communities. The tourists often visit the countries with their own criteria’s of standard, what obliges the companies to adapt their services to answer to the needs of the travelers without carrying attention to the repercussions on the local communities. Some multinationals are hired to construct hotels, to develop communication systems, to construct some airports. The needs of the local communities are in someway, put in second and all the money is spend for the big machine. In Cairo, a hotel uses in one year, the equivalence in electricity of what 4 000 residences need to live and a tourist uses 200 litres of water per day!

Our presence also generates cultural shocks in the local communities. Our behaviours, clothes and habits are often very different. In Thailand, I remember a conversation with a Muslim man. He was offended by the attitudes of the “Westerners s" that are present in this country, only for parties. Our presence in these places, bring the youth to adopt behaviours proscribed by their religions and we encourage them to adopt other attitudes (such as: to drink alcohol, have sex with everyone).

It is absolutely important to bet on a sustainable development facing the tourism to preserve our earth because it doesn't belong to us and that we must worry of it to preserve it for the next generations. The situation is urgent, in 2020, the tourism should triple and we risk of losing all our multicultural riches.

When we speak of sustainable development, several could think about the ecotourism as a good way to protect our environment. But what is ecotourism. Thousand of companies offer outdoor activities in Nepal, Vietnam, and China. But… what is the real impact of these organized groups witch offer days after days, activities in these isolated and fragile regions. (Erosion, garbage, expenses of the communities local facing the tourism). The traveler must be able to readjust his references schemes constantly and he should be able to evaluate his own comportment, day after days, than to maybe live some frustrations or incomprehension.

In 2001, the socialist state of Vietnam decided to emit a new regulation that imposes to the organizations, to charge to the tourisms, a supplement two times or three times more elevated than for the Vietnamese (transportation, hotels, foods..). This situation influences the local population directly. The common tourism visits Vietnam and takes 2 or 3 weeks of vacations to get a rest of his life. The situation imports a little, and he will accept to pay for the supplements because we are taking about a supplement of only .50 coins to 1 dollar. This nonchalance, reinforce the local discriminatory behaviours and create a distorted between the tourism and the local. They see us like a dollar on two feet’s, witch bargains with Monopoly money. In these countries, 1 dollar is an enormous amount for the local. We often tempted to pay a product a just price, but several times, they had laugh and they suggested us to leave the places in a disrespectful way. Several non committed tourisms would end up paying for the asked amount, but it is of our duty to do not accept these situations and to pay only a just price. It’s always better to investigate de market value before buying. Several could give reason that in those countries people are poor. According to me, if you are really poor as for example in Cambodia, if I offer them a good price, they will accept my money. If they doesn’t accept, it because they don’t need money or….Our behaviours were often extremist (we let the meal on the table and leave the places, we refuse a hotel late in the evening and ask for the hospitality in the community because the price of the room was ridiculous, we refuse to go to the restaurant and we prefer to buy our own food in the grocery store), but we are proud to not encourage a system that discriminates people of by our color and our wallet. I think people appreciate more yourself when you show than you care about your money! They know the value of they own money.

Finally, Équipeuple has been created in the goal to denounce these situations and problematic concerning the tourism of mass and to bring the tourisms to be engaged travellers for the future in order to protect our multicultural heritage for the next generations.

*Inspired of the text of Christine Richer; Sustainable development and tourism some fundamental questions

Get equipped to travel:

1. Inquire about the real price of the product

It can be just and suitable to inquire to the local community or to come with a local to the market and before buying any product try to have a ideal about the price.

2. Know the rate the devise

The rate of the devise is the report between the devise of your country and the devise of the visited country. For example, if one tempts to sell you a mango for 15 000 VD (dong) in Vietnam, you should be able to achieve that his trying to sell it to you at 1 U.S. dollar, what is absurd considers that you could buy it at the same price or cheaper in your country.

3. Do not give money to the street people

If you thing that those people really need your help, try to find out what are the real need of these person and be sure than the bases needs have been satisfied (clothes, foods..). It could be better just to offer a bol of rice or a piece of clothes. Besides, a beautiful smile or two minute talk could do the difference for a lonely and rejected person in the street.

4. Do not give any financial compensations to the visited families in the villages.

It is preferable to help the family financially while proposing to pay for some products for the preparation of the meals than, give an amount in the emptiness. Often, we feel bad to do not give money to the family that receive so generously. By giving money, but by doing it, you will break the act of generosity and when they will meet other travellers, they will expect to receive money. I believe that if the family gives you something, they make it with their heart. Don’t worry, they will offer you something according to what their can afford.
We rather suggest you to visit your embassy and ask them for small souvenirs (tights, pencils, stickers, balloons). When we visit the families, they are always really happy to receive these small memories.

6. Bargain before buying a product

Visit several boutiques before buying and don't be afraid to bargain with the storekeeper to find a just price. Don't be afraid to affirm yourself! Been a good in businessmen I mostly always well estimate.

7. Do not be afraid to hold your opinion

Do not be afraid to keep your opinion about the price to pay, nether if the local start to do a big show to impress you. They often tempt to make you feel you bad; in order than you will finally pay an extra price. Some will also change the price when come the time to pay. I thing this is really bad. Shows them, than you are in disagree with that and do not be afraid to leave neither if they already cook your plate.

8. Opt for the ecotourism

Leave the beaten track and make yourselves confidence! Use the bicycle as means of transportation and go meeting of the local communities to have a unique and spontaneous experience.

How to react

How should we react when we are invited in a family and than, the conversation starts turning around the money of our country. This situation makes us feel uncomfortable more than one time and it is important to have the tact to do not shock the other or to create false hope. People often discern us as rich people (like in a tv show) and often, this situation can bring them to denigrate their life. These conversations can put a cold between the individuals because; it is difficult to understand the situation of the other.

I believe that it is primordial to put the situations always in context. For example, the first question is always: what is the value of our money compared to their devise. To give answer to this question without putting in context, is giving a false representation of our situation. I always enjoy relating the costs of a plate in a restaurant Canada or the cost my apartment for one month. Every time, they just are so surprise how much is expensive in my country and how cheap there own country are.

Besides, I believe that it is necessary to bring them to understand that is not everybody that lives well in America. It is not because you live over there, that you gone became necessarily rich. A big part of the population is poor. I tempted to explain to those persons that several people were unhappy in my country because of the money. I try to explain a little bit the bad sides that it could bring to people.
If this person is not able to get a good job in is own country it is impossible for him to live well in my country. You need education! Besides, we are not necessarily richer than they are. Take China for example. In couple of years, it will become one of the biggest powers of the world. There are riches and poor’s in the west and in the East. The unique difference is the value of our money when we travel. Not easy to explain to a village people who don’t speak our language!