New photography book on Sundarbans on sale now
Posted on 13. Nov, 2009 by Mikey Leung in Best of Bangladesh, Responsible Travel, Sundarbans
Elisabeth Fahrni Mansur & Rubaiyat Mansur are normally a modest pair. But if you ask them anything about the Sundarbans, that quickly changes. When it comes to promoting cetacean conservation, under the banner of the Bangladesh Cetacean Diversity Project, you’ll quickly find they are staunch advocates of the whales and dolphins of Bangladesh.
Celebrate Earth Day 2009 cleaning up the beaches with SAFE
Posted on 07. Apr, 2009 by Mikey Leung in Events, Responsible Travel
Volunteers from different organization will be participating in this year’s beach and underwater Cleanup as part of an earth day activity.
Do you know where your shrimp comes from?
Posted on 23. Dec, 2008 by Mikey Leung in Food, Responsible Travel, Sundarbans
If not, maybe you should find out. “White Gold”, as Swedish NGO the Swallows NGO has termed shrimp from Bangladesh, is one of the nation’s most environmentally threatening products.
This is because the shrimp farms require saline water. In a bid to increase production for the lucrative product, producers have forcibly taken land from poor villagers, [...]
Guide Tours offers Dolphin and Whale Watching tours in the Bay of Bengal
Posted on 11. Dec, 2008 by Mikey Leung in Best of Bangladesh, Events, Free Travel Tips, Responsible Travel
~courtesy Guide Tours~
50 Kilometers offshore of Dubla Island (Sundarban Reserve Forest), there is an underwater canyon where the depth increases drastically from only 10 meters to over 500meters – the Swatch-of-No-Ground. The change in depth is clearly visible on the surface, dramatically marked by a contrasting color change. The amazing fish abundance supports [...]
Ideas Manzil: Bangladesh’s first heritage accommodation property
Posted on 19. Nov, 2008 by Mikey Leung in Photography, Responsible Travel
~story and photos by Mikey Leung~
Barry Ison likes to get things done.
“So what?” you might say. But Ison’s choice of where to get things done might strike you as confusing, perhaps even crazy. The notion of creating new hospitality businesses in Bangladesh, one of the world’s least-travelled, disaster-prone countries might elicit such a response. [...]
Non-profit Christmas handicrafts on sale at Folk International
Posted on 21. Oct, 2008 by Mikey Leung in Responsible Travel
A special message from non-profit handicrafts organisation in Gulshan:
“Greetings from Folk International. Thanks for giving us the opportunity to inform you that as per tradition, Folk International has started its CHRISTMAS SEASON from 1 Oct 2008.
Our Christmas products are already on display, including hand crafted Christmas decorations, table runners, table cloths, cushion cover, Christmas greeting [...]
Good Morning Guesthouse brings disadvantaged youth into the hospitality trade
Posted on 19. Oct, 2008 by Mikey Leung in Editorials, Responsible Travel
~story by Mikey Leung~
After visiting similar hospitality projects in Cambodia and China, I’m pleased to share what I believe is the first organisation I know of that explicityly brings disadvantaged youth into Bangladesh’s hospitality trade.
The Good Morning Guesthouse is now open in Banani, at Apt B5. Hse 5, Rd 10/A, Block H. Reservations can be [...]
"Shushuk Mela" – Introducing Whales and Dolphins of Bangladesh
Posted on 08. Oct, 2008 by Mikey Leung in Events, Free Travel Tips, Responsible Travel
~guest post by Elisabeth Farhni Mansur~
Click image for large size preview.
We are proud to announce the first-ever ‘Shushuk Mela’, an interactive exhibition ‘introducing the Whales & Dolphins of Bangladesh’ at the Bangladesh Shishu Academy, Dhaka, from 9th to 12th October 2008. It is open to all every day from 9.30 am to 8.30 pm.
The exhibition, [...]
Indigenous Women in Bangladesh — exhibition by Bangladeshi photographer Mahmud
Posted on 06. Aug, 2008 by bmeggitt in Chittagong Hill Tracts, Events, Photography, Responsible Travel
Click here for the full size flyer.
Over 50 different indigenous societies live in Bangladesh, scattered around country. Among them, their female members are perhaps some of the people most excluded from the rest of society, in terms of education, health care and government resources. Mahmud, of MAP Photo Agency, has photographed these populations for the [...]
Responsible Business Bangladesh steps up its game
Posted on 13. Jun, 2008 by Mikey Leung in Responsible Travel
RBBA, or “Responsible Business Bangladesh,” is a new initiative of Florence Calvet, a French national who has an excellent sense of duty to the people she employs and about the kind of business she wants to create.
In her own words:
What is behind the idea of RBBA and Chez Flo. It’s what I call Responsible [...]
Intrepid Travel comes to Bangladesh
Posted on 11. May, 2008 by Mikey Leung in Events, Free Travel Tips, Responsible Travel
~story by Mikey Leung~
Award-winning Australian tour operator Intrepid Travel is coming to Bangladesh (click here to see the new itinerary).
This is big news, considering that Intrepid is one of the world’s leading Responsible Travel (RT) operators, having won the ‘Best Overall Tour Operator’ award from the UK’s Responsible Tourism awards in 2006.
Some words from [...]
"The Dhaka Project" seeks volunteers, funding, resources
Posted on 08. May, 2008 by Mikey Leung in Responsible Travel
~story by Mikey Leung~
The Dhaka Project is one of those special projects that inspires hope, creates real change and works with some of the most disadvantaged children Bangladesh has to offer.
When Emirates flight attendant Maria Conceicao visited a slum near Zia International Airport, she decided she would change the future of the children she found [...]
Nazimgarh Resort: A taste of Bengali luxury
Posted on 02. Mar, 2008 by Mikey Leung in Best of Bangladesh, Responsible Travel
~story by Mikey Leung~
There are some rare moments as a guidebook writer that I am given a chance to enjoy the peace and serenity offered to me by the natural beauty of Bangladesh, and I try to seek out these experiences whenever possible.
One of these rare moments came as I sat on the terrace [...]
Tiger collaring under controversy in Bangladesh
Posted on 01. Mar, 2008 by Mikey Leung in Editorials, Responsible Travel, Sundarbans
Some recent controversy has arisen over the work of the Sundarbans Tiger Project, a conservation project based in the Bangladesh side of the Sundarbans.
The issue mainly stems over whether the project is doing good by learning the habits of the majestic animal, or contributing to its demise. Its opponents argue that the drug used in [...]
Refugees need education materials at Cox's Bazaar
Posted on 21. Feb, 2008 by Mikey Leung in Best of Bangladesh, Responsible Travel
While the beach at Cox’s Bazaar becomes more and more crowded with people this tourist season, very few know visitors know that there is a refugee camp not far from Bangladesh’s much-heralded beach paradise.
And the people at this camp need help. World Food Programme Volunteer Lindy Hogan writes:
As most of you know, I work [...]
Relief Tourism in the Sundarbans — the ethics of DIY relief work
Posted on 20. Jan, 2008 by Mikey Leung in Responsible Travel
(Jan 20 – DHAKA) What do you do when a devastating cyclone strikes the area that you’re about to visit?
If your name is Michael Mangano, you raise funds from your friends and family and bring money for the relief goods with your own two hands. That’s exactly what the Boston graduate student did in [...]
