Best ethical destinations 2014
Each year, the California-based nonprofit Ethical Traveler researches and publishes a list of the 10 most ethical destinations in the developing world.
Each country is reviewed for its performance in the areas of human rights, social welfare and protection of the environment, as well as its appeal as a travel destination.
By Ethical Travel readers’ request, 2014 adds "Animal Welfare" to its rating system.
The list of 2014 winners, in alphabetical order (NOT ranked in order of merit) is as follows:
- Bahamas
- Barbados
- Cape Verde
- Chile
- Dominica
- Latvia
- Lithuania
- Mauritius
- Palau
- Uruguay
New for 2014:
The beautiful Bahamas is back, after implementing steps to reduce human trafficking and significantly expanding its national parks and marine protected areas. Chile — with its astonishing variety of landscapes and cultures — is also back on the list, thanks to increased gender equality scores, ambitious environmental initiatives, and a program to move logging workers into tourism. Dominica returns as well, courtesy of improved social welfare and a plan to become a carbon negative nation by 2020.
Falling off the list in 2014:
Costa Rica, which won in 2013, continues to be a major Western Hemisphere hub for child sex trafficking. The government also allowed persecution, intimidation and murder of activists working against the illegal shark finning and sea turtle trades. Ghana, also on last year’s list, failed to repeat due to active discrimination against same-sex couples. Samoa lost its spot this year due to unsustainable logging, failure to guarantee LGBT rights, and unimproved women’s rights. (Rape within marriage is still not considered a crime.)
To read the full eight-page report please visit http://ethicaltraveler.org/destinations .
About Ethical Traveler: An all-volunteer, non-profit project of the Earth Island Institute, Ethical Traveler’s mission is to use the power of tourism to protect human rights and the environment.
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