Responsible Tourism in Wayanad, India "The Bamboo Village"!

I use the Ethical Travel Guide and travels to the Bamboo Village in Wayanad!

I opened my Ethical Guide book and found KABANI- the other direction. The description of the organization was short but powerful, I wanted to know more. In the guidebook I found their web address and I sent a letter to them asking them about their community based tourism initiative and whether or not there would be space for me and my partner to visit. I had the most welcoming letter sent back explaining their project and telling me how the resources from tourism were allocated to the community:

“Greetings from KABANI ! Thank you very much for your query and the interest you have shown to our tour program. Our community tourism programme - Bamboo Village is happening in Wayanad.We have good and decent home stays with farmers (mostly bath attached).Where guests can stay with farmer families (they can communicate in a relatively good English).Experience village life, agriculture, small trekking to villages, taste our food (delicious!), to know tradition, meet the people etc.

We are charging Indian Rupees 2,000 (approximately 28 sterling pound) for a couple a day. Which includes food. We are also providing taxi’s and other services locally at a minimal costs (We have set of service providers and they are part of the project).So they are charging minimal charges.

We have a good benefit sharing mechanism as follows: 50 % of the money you are paying will directly go to home stay (you are paying to them directly).20 % will go to training programme, Research and development etc. Rest of the 30 % will go to village development activities like bamboo craft training, organic farming training, facilitation of other village development programme etc.So whenever you are visiting us you are also part of development programme.Here we are taking tourism as a supplementary income for the communities” (Private correspondation)

THAT SOUNDED FANTASTIC!!! But who are Kabani?

“Kabani is a nonprofit initiative of a group of people who love their land and want others to love it too. KABANI is concerned about the impacts of tourism and development on people’s livelihood and environment. Our prime objectives are sustainable socio–economic development of local communities and conservation of natural resources that provides the basic of community livelihood. Named after the Kabani River, one of the rivers in Kerala flowing in the ‘other direction’ than most of the rivers in Kerala, We are trying to facilitate an ‘other direction’ in the present form of tourism We attempt to question the present models of tourism development which is not inclusive and investment intensive.

The genesis defines the outcome: We are carrying out research, advocacy, campaigns, networking and training activities to endorse sustainability in the context of tourism and development. We facilitate community tourism initiatives, which find their basis in the local population, focusing on the socio-economic security and sustainability of the place. These programmes are community initiatives focusing on sustainable socio-economic development of villages and the conservation of natural resources. We are working mainly in Kerala and Tamil Nadu, but also in other places where people can benefit from our ideas and experiences.” http://www.kabani.org/

What is the Bamboo Village in Thrikkaipetta, Wayanad?

“Thrikkaipetta is a small village in Wayanad district, Kerala. It hosts a chain of activities linked to bamboo. For about 200 families, bamboo and other related activities are sources of livelihood. The village has a rich biodiversity and a predominant agrarian background. Various farm and non-farm activities are currently being practiced here. URAVU (Indigenous Science and Technology Study Centre), a local voluntary initiative working on bamboo and sustainable village development together with KABANI integrated these activities into a common programme: "The Bamboo Village", with the objective of sustainable development of the village. Tourism has been brought in as one component of the "Bamboo Village" in tune with other larger development priorities of the villagers. The tourism and related income is seen as a supportive income or supplementary income for the community.

Tour MASC- an experience to the villages It had not been many long years that the village people of Wayanad have started seeing few cross border people enjoying the green hills, climate and valleys which they are proud of. The surprise on the faces and the followed through gazes not only avers them new to the process but also proves them more a host than a businessman. The farmer communities of Wayanad organize a Tour Programme called Tour MASC which gives their guests a very participative and mutually beneficial experience. This programme unveil each and every aspect of the host area in a balanced ratio

The T in Tour MASC stands for Traditions, M for Meet the people, A for Agriculture, S for Sky symbolizing the nature and C for the Crafts. The model has been designed in different lengths but in equal ratios. The package and its components may be picked as per your interest. But we strongly recommend a package involving the whole five components. The time schedule for each component may also differ on your convenience but strictly within the limits of the optimized time partition developed by us for each component.” http://www.kabani.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=58&It...

Coming up I will write about my own experiences in the Bamboo Village!

Next I will write all about my own experiences in the Bamboo Village! The only thing I can say now is that: if you are planning to visit, stay for a minimum of three days, I had little time and I saw a lot, but there is so much to experience in this village and its surroundings and so many friendly people to get to know that even a week would feel little!!! I loved it.