Ahead of its annual convention, the International LGBTQ+ Travel Association announced Oregon-based First Nature Tours is the recipient of the 2024 Impact Award.
The award, created in collaboration with the TreadRight Foundation, recognizes a small business that demonstrates exceptional commitment to responsible tourism in three categories: environment, community and diversity & inclusion. First Nature Tours Founder Kieron Wilde said the recognition is an incredible honor.
“It underscores our commitment to responsible tourism and highlights the importance of fostering a more inclusive and sustainable travel industry,” Wilde said.
Coming from a background in ecology, Wilde started his company in 2013, intent on featuring the abundant greenery of the Pacific Northwest with the goal of leaving a destination better for the visit.
“We’ve been focusing on this trend in the industry called regenerative travel,” Wilde said. “It’s tourism as a force for good with highly curated experiences that partner with nonprofits to connect travelers with stewardship opportunities at their destination.”
First Nature Tours association with the LGBTQ community seeks to “help Pride events that are not your typical circuit parties.”
That strategy has produced a growing winter event in the mountains of central Oregon, waterfall tours in the Columbia River Gorge and winery tours through the Willamette Valley.
First Nature Tours will receive its award at the IGLTA Convention, Oct. 23-26 in Osaka, Japan. It’s the first convention in Asia for the organization, founded in 1983, that bills itself as the world’s leading network of LGBTQ+ welcoming tourism businesses.
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