Saving the Planet One Community at a Time

Serena Martineau, a marketing agent and talented photographer, shares how she—as an
individual—is making a difference in the world.

By Ashley Smart

SOUTH JORDAN, UT—We are all well aware of the deteriorating health of our planet, and we
know that, as the human race, we need to be doing our part to protect the Earth and its species. In
an interview with Serena Martineau, a new idea of how to travel while keeping the health and
safety of our planet in mind is explained.

What began as simple travels with her family, quickly blossomed into a desire to “explore
beyond the resort, and learn about the people and the culture,” Martineau said when asked about
how she knew that this is what she wanted to do with her life.

Traveling can be an incredible, life-changing experience and can lead to a passion that you did
not know you had.. A humanitarian trip to give fresh water to a community in Kadavu was that
life-changing experience for Serena. “I think that you can pour over books, and you can watch
documentaries, and see all the things… but until you actually are immersed in a culture and…
really live in it as if you were within the village, you don’t really get to experience that… That
changed my life.”

Opportunities to help communities less fortunate are more available than you may think.
Martineau shared insight into those forms of service that show that you may not be benefitting
that community as much as you believe you are. “There are many people that have great
intentions to… help [those in need]... Because we are so fortunate, we might think that
something is lacking or that there is poverty.… The truth is, sometimes the village or these
communities are actually thriving.” For example, when you go into a community and you decide
to provide shoes for an entire village, one thing that you may not realize is that there are
shoemakers whose living comes from making shoes for the local. “What happens is we put those
shoemakers out of business and there is this animosity.”

If you are looking to provide meaningful service, Martineau suggests to think ahead about if you
are “really going to be helping, how it is sustainable, and how will it impact the village.”

Not only will the way people travel impact the villages, but also the wildlife surrounding those
communities. That is where Ecotourism comes into play. Ecotourism makes it possible to travel
to those beautiful, lush, untouched countries without disturbing the wildlife, while still receiving
the luxuries that people desire during vacation. Martineau experienced this type of travel
first-hand while staying at Lapa Rios in Costa Rica. “It is luxury, but at the affect or cost of
nothing, in the sense that it didn't cost any of these animals a home and they’ve really preserved
the land.”

For people out there that are longing for the freedom and experience that travel brings, it is very
possible to do that while keeping the health and safety of our ever-changing planet in mind. “My
hope is that, along the way, we’ll be conscious about it. Instead of just going to some resort in
Mexico, we’ll go and choose our hotels with intentions, [making] sure that it’s a conscious hotel,
that it is an eco-friendly hotel, and that we will be aware of our carbon footprint.” Don’t be afraid
to go out there and see the world, just be sure that the outcomes of the choices you make are the
outcomes you want to provide for the communities you are in.

As Martineau has experienced, “It will be a small impact that we have—a very small
impact—but it’s the little things that make the big difference, when we all come collectively and
do it together.”