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How to bring conservation messaging into wildlife-based tourism

The study introduces a toolbox of ideas for improving the conservation messaging of wildlife-based tourism operations, based on five principles: promote positive messaging, provide actionable information, engage tourists in research and practice, link experience with consumption choices and foster long-term interactions.

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Photo by david henrichs from Unsplash.com

The study states that failing to encourage tourists to do more on behalf of wildlife represents a missed opportunity for conservation.

“We argue that the combination of emotional engagement and knowledge-driven action provided by wildlife-based tours will pave the way for a new area of conservation-oriented tourism,” says Dr. Alvaro Fernández-Llamazares, the lead-author of the study from the University of Helsinki.

“Some years ago I took a whale-watching tour in Iceland, and it surprised me to see that while the guide provided very detailed information about the ecology, life cycle and foraging habits of whales, she did not mention any single time the huge conservation threats that these animals are facing. My colleagues had noticed similar patterns in other corners of the world. Concerned about this, we decided to thoroughly review the academic literature on wildlife-based tourism and examine to which extent was conservation messaging lacking in wildlife-based tours,” explains Dr. Fernández-Llamazares.

The authors carried out a comprehensive review of the academic literature on wildlife-based tourism, finding out that indeed conservation messaging is virtually absent from many mainstream wildlife-based tourism operations. Operators often fail to give information on wildlife conservation and opportunities for tourists to engage in conservation action.

Whale-watching tour in Húsavík (Iceland). Information on cetacean conservation and threats to the marine environment is argued to be limited in many whale-watching tours. Credit: Á. Fernández-Llamazares.

“There is increasing research evidence that wildlife-based tourism could help to transform the environmental knowledge, attitudes and behaviours of tourists through first-hand encounters with wildlife, complemented by effective conservation messaging,” says Dr. Fernández-Llamazares. “However, such conservation messaging is not always a priority for many wildlife-based tourism operators, who often fail to provide a well-designed environmental interpretation”.

Tools to engage tourists in wild-life conservation

The study documents new avenues that are broadening the potential of wildlife-based tourism, using alternative forms of communicating conservation-related messages. For example, empirical research shows that combining the emotional response of viewing wildlife with the educational benefits of a tailored interpretative programme provides tourism operators with numerous opportunities to cultivate the conservation potential of a tourism experience.

“I have experienced it myself: when you have the opportunity to see wildlife in situ, it creates a deep emotional connection between you and wildlife. However, as tourists we do not always have the tools to act beyond that experience, to transform the emotional bonds towards environmental stewardship,” says Aina Brias-Guinart, co-author of the study from the University of Helsinki. “For this reason, in this study, we thought of a set of principles that wildlife-based tourism operators could use to maximize the conservation potential of the tourist experience”.

The study introduces a toolbox of ideas for improving the conservation messaging of wildlife-based tourism operations, based on five principles: promote positive messaging, provide actionable information, engage tourists in research and practice, link experience with consumption choices and foster long-term interactions. These ideas focus on amplifying the emotional engagement among tourists participating in wildlife-based tours, and on empowering them to take purposeful conservation action.

Destinations

Looking for good Ilonggo food in Bacoor, Cavite

If you’ve tried batchoy the way many locals in Iloilo prepare it, hahanap-hanapin mo siya. And this is how Old Recipe, this non-pretentious restaurant in Bacoor, Cavite came to our attention.

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If you’ve tried batchoy the way many locals in Iloilo prepare it, hahanap-hanapin mo siya. And this is how this non-pretentious restaurant in Bacoor, Cavite came to our attention. Passing by some highway in the middle of the night, we came across Old Recipe, which boasts to sell “original” (open and close quotation) Ilonggo food, including batchoy.

@outragemag The #LGBT search for #Ilonggo ♬ original sound – Outrage Magazine

As FYI: This is supposedly an old resto, opening in 1988, though at first as Ilongga House. The name change happened in 2018, though the resto owned by Rufino Gallo must be doing something right since it now has a handful of branches.

The branch we went to was… nothing grand, even if it can seat around 80 pax. Old tables, old seats, and so on. You get the drift.

The staff was at least friendly; they even provided the info I sought for this quick review.

But the wait time was sobra. And to think we just ordered batchoy (the supreme sells for ₱198, and if you add extras, you pay ₱15 for an egg and ₱18 for chicharon or bawang), as well as pansit molo (₱168 for solo size). They have a sizable menu; this is one of those restos that has too much to choose from.

But to be extremely blunt, the food wasn’t great.

For the batchoy, you don’t get a lot of noodles and sahog. And it was too watery so that the batchoy taste was just not there. The pansit molo, at least, had okay broth; but the pork dumplings tasted like they just came out of the freezer.

This isn’t the Ilonggo resto I – personally – can see myself regularly going to. But I understand if others may like it, whether for after-inuman sabaw, or for those wanting to try Ilonggo offerings particularly if they live nearby. To each his or her own, sabi nga.

So off we go pa rin, as we look for more lafang venues.

OLD RECIPE is located at Greenfields Commercial Bldg., Mambog IV, Bacoor, Cavite.

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Destinations

Craving for smoked meat? We checked Jfred’s Smokehouse for you

Are you searching (or craving) for #smokedmeats? We head to #Cavite to see if the noise about Jfred’s Smokehouse is deserved.

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You see their ads often… these restaurants that offer smoked meats that are said to melt in your mouth with goodness. Sa visuals, maaakit ka, as they showcase slices of meat that remain juicy after being processed, and so yeah, maglalaway ka sa akala mo ay yummy.

This is how we discovered Jfred’s Smokehouse in Cavite.

After a visit, ano ang masasabi namin?

@outragemag Takam ka sa #smokedmeat? #LGBTQ food trip to Jfred’s Smokehouse @jfreds.smokehouse in #Bacoor, #Cavite ♬ original sound – Outrage Magazine

Una, the place is easy to find naman, as it’s not too far from malls. Note that this is in Bacoor; meaning, you’d need to allocate time to drive to the place, and extra cash for tolls if you take expressways.

Ikalawa, the actual venue is… okay kahit di full-blast ang aircon. Malinis ang lugar. May maayos na furniture. Proper ang cutlery. Di mausok, so you don’t leave smelling like you sat beside the grillery. And so on.

Ikatlo, attentive naman ang staff. Halimbawa, they can explain the items in the menu; and they’re readily available if you need stuff.

Now… let’s talk about the food.

  1. The Smoked Angus Beef (₱900) was noteworthy for being soft, yes. You won’t even need a knife na when you eat because this is what “melts in your mouth” is like for real. However, this tasted quite bland. So when chewing, you – instead – taste the not necessarily desirable meat fat. Also, for ₱900, you get a small serving.
  2. The Beef Ragu (₱380) was malaman, and was cheesy. But it was also quite sweet. And yes, maliit ang serving.
  3. The Caesar Salad (₱250) was sariwa, and was cheesy. But for ₱250, the serving was quite small din.
  4. The French Fries (₱150) was served warm. But eat fast because mabilis kumunat.

Jfred’s Smokehouse is not a bad place. So if looking for smoked meat while in the area, yep… add this to your list of venues.

And yet this place made us realize that smoked meat is an acquired taste. Hindi lahat makaka-appreciate nito. And so yeah, revisiting isn’t in our calendar pa. So we just search for more lafang venues.

Jfred’s Smokehouse is located at 4930 Molino Blvd., Niog III, Bacoor City, Province of Cavite. Contact them at 0999 929 7624.

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Dining Out

Heading to Cavite to try Som Thai Silang Bypass

We go to Silang to check Som Thai Silang Bypass.

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There’s this venue in Silang in Cavite that started referring to itself as “Little Bangkok”. And why not, when – in a compound – there are various Thai-related offerings, helmed by a Thai resto called Som Thai Silang Bypass.

We checked it, and… how was it for us?

@outragemag

Looking for #LGBTQ #thai #cheapeats in #Cavite? We checked Som Thai Silang Bypass to see if it's worth visiting

♬ original sound – outragemag

Una, this place is closer to Tagaytay than it is to Manila. So magbaon ng pasensiya at pera sa biyahe… considering that, yes, you have to allocate more time and monetary allocation for the gas and tolls just to check this place.

Ikalawa, the actual resto isn’t grand; it almost looks like a karinderya in the province. But then again, it reminds me of the micro and small entrepreneurs in rural parts of Thailand, where locals convert their houses into mini-restos for lunch and for dinner. Just don’t expect much when here.

Ikatlo, the service people were nice (e.g. they’d ask you if things are okay), but they were… slow (e.g. I had to approach the teller to pay the bill).

And lastly… the food; how was it for us?

  • The Som Tam (papaya salad, ₱120 for the solo serving) was – in a word – malansa (fishy). There are different ways to prepare this, with some adding shrimp paste (bagoóng alamáng) or dried shrimps (hibi). But the version of Som Thai Silang Bypass tasted like it used fermented fish (bagoóng isdâ) from Pampanga. Now… if you’re familiar with Pampanga’s bagoong, you’d know what I mean when I say malansa.
  • The Tom Yum seafood (₱291 for the solo serving) was, at least, malasa (tasty) and contained lots of seafood.
  • The Pad Thai chicken (₱249 for the solo serving) was… tasteless. This is sorta disappointing because when a Thai resto can’t make a proper Pad Thai, you start to have doubts re authenticity.
  • The Mango Duo (two pieces of half-cut fresh spring rolls + mango sticky rice + garlic mayo and peanut sauce, ₱265) is a cheaper way to get spring rolls and dessert. Nothing special here, but the mango slices used were really sweet.
  • The Chicken Satay ((with peanut sauce and vinegar, ₱210) was bland. We were anticipating red curry (or massaman curry) or at least peanutty taste, but neither was noted. Even the peanut sauce did not taste peanutty.
  • Be warned that the servings here are small – i.e. when they say “solo”, they’re serious in limiting you from sharing.
  • Be warned, too, that some Thai condiments – e.g. tamarind paste – aren’t available. “Ubos na,” we were told.

If there aren’t other Thai restos in the area, Som Thai Silang Bypass should suffice. But this is Silang, a municipality in the Province of Cavite that has too many restos to count. So yeah… you can try if you want, and considering its limitations. Otherwise, let’s just discover more lafang venues.

Som Thai Silang Bypass is located along Bypass Road, Aguinaldo Highway, Silang, Cavite.

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