AdventureHoney is a for-profit social enterprise, currently in private beta.

One of the great challenges for any social enterprise is: how do you effectively communicate the social benefit? It’s not as simple as it sounds. You want to be upfront and bold about how buying from you will in some small way make the world a better place. However, push too hard and you risk turning people off. Nobody likes the preaching, do-gooder type…that ‘aint cool and that ‘aint us!

This is our challenge. To all the travellers of the world, here is our opportunity:

Can travel change the world?

By 2020 1.6 billion people will be travelling the world spending $US10 trillion annually. That’s 10% of global GDP.

When we travel and push outside our comfort zone we learn about ourselves.  We also learn about other people from exotic cultures and places – peeling back our differences in the process. As Bruce Poon, founder of Gap Adventures says: “travel is perhaps the greatest bridge for peace on Earth.”

With all these people travelling the world, opening their minds and wallets, perhaps travel could somehow be leveraged to tackle problems such as extreme poverty…

The Movement:

You can be the change you want to see in the world – simply by traveling.

AdventureHoney helps you fulfil your wildest travel dreams by connecting you to local operators who offer kick-arse things to do. It just so happens that when you, for example trek into a mountain village on the Thai/Burmese border, you simultaneously play your part in leaving the local people in better shape than when you arrived.

How is this possible?

When you the traveller buy an experience on AdventureHoney, 25% of proceeds from the sale are invested into the local Changemaker Program. The program’s purpose: identify, mentor, and potentially fund local changemakers – entrepreneurs with social business ideas.

Success for AdventureHoney looks like millions of travellers experiencing the fruits of life AND many thousands of changemakers who’ve lifted not only themselves out of extreme poverty, but entire communities.

The Times They Are a Changin!

Something exciting is happening. People are waking up. They’re saying: “I may be one person, but I can make a difference.”

And capitalism is responding. In spite of its imperfections, capitalism is the most efficient, most powerful mechanism for generating wealth and affecting change in history.

The key point is this: it’s a consumer driven system, we the consumer have the power to say whether that change is positive or negative. Pointing the finger at government or “greedy, soulless” businesses is futile.

By voting with our wallets, we the consumer force businesses and entrepreneurs to respond and create businesses that allow us to be the change we want to see in the world.

How are your purchasing decisions influenced by the social/environmental impact of the business you are dealing with?