Thursday, August 15, 2024 In 2024, passenger demand is anticipated to surpass pre-Covid levels, intensifying tensions between mass-market companies, local communities, and collapsing ecosystems. According to Regina Domingo, a leading voice in sustainable tourism, the era of careless travel must come to an end. Domingo, who leads the Nakawe Project, doesn’t shy away from discussing the detrimental effects of this summer’s tourism on various destinations.
Despite her business’s reliance on tourism, she emphasizes the stark differences between types of visitors, locations, and companies. Her organization collaborates with communities in Baja California, Mexico, to help them recognize and preserve natural resources, shifting away from the extractive practices often linked to mass tourism, and toward sustainable livelihoods. Domingo also runs Baja Adventures, a regenerative travel company that specializes in non-invasive wildlife encounters, community engagement, and authentic cultural experiences.
With over 40 years of experience, Domingo has witnessed the collapse of entire ecosystems, fueling her determination to use her conservation background to mitigate the environmental and climatic impacts of tourism—an issue that has surged in importance post-pandemic. The temporary pause during lockdowns offered a brief glimpse of nature’s recovery, but this has been replaced by skyrocketing passenger demand. In the UK, 86.
2 million overseas trips were made last year, up from 7.