5 Ways To Be A More Sustainable Traveler
Alexa Erickson
Travel is one of the most sought-after pastimes around the world. To experience different terrains and cultures enhances you mentally, physically, and emotionally. And countless studies have exposed the benefits. But before you pack your bag and take off on a big jet plane, you should be aware of ecotourism.
The term ecotourism was originally defined by The International Ecotourism Society (TIES) in 1990 as "Responsible travel to natural areas that conserves the environment and improves the well-being of local people."
Traveling responsibly is necessary, and has become a pressing topic in the tourism industry as of late. In fact, the United Nations designated 2017 the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development as a means for raising global awareness about how responsible tourism can provide positive change.
Sustainable tourism is based on three specific pillars:
Appointing environmentally friendly practices — reduce, reuse, recycle
Protecting cultural and natural heritage — like saving endangered species, restoring historic buildings
Supplying real social and economic benefits for local communities — like supporting fair wages for employees
As a traveler, it doesn't take a lot to become more eco-friendly. Here are five ways you can easily become a more sustainable traveler while also sticking to the core principles of ecotourism:
Do your research!
While it would be nice to not have to do any pre-planning, the reality is you likely carve out a lot of time doing research on the coolest hotel or hole-in-the-wall restaurant, so why not do research on sustainable practices, too? Countries are known by certain experiences that tourists are enticed to try, like elephant rides in Thailand, and safaris in Africa. But beware: Elephant rides, for instance, are cruel and offer no benefit whatsoever to the continuously shrinking population of these endangered animals.
Put your purchases toward local goods.
You may be enticed to buy something with the lowest price tag, but remember that, while locally made crafts and souvenirs aren't always cheaper, doing so over opting for the imported items both supports needed jobs for the locals who make them, and honors cultural heritage.
Become a part of the "slow travel" trend.
Squeezing in as much as you can in one trip often requires a lot of travel. Rather than flying from one region or country to the next, choose fewer places, spending more time in each, and opting for the train over the plane to lower your carbon footprint.
Stick to marked trails.
The idea of getting off the beaten path sounds nice, but for the most part, marked trails ensure native flora is not harmed. Sticking to the marked trails protects wildlife.
Traveling means you don't have the comforts of home surrounding you at all times. You need to keep it simple! But that doesn't have to mean buying a plastic water bottle every time you're thirsty. Grab a reusable water bottle from home. You may also find yourself racking up tiny toiletries that go half unused between locations. Bring your own, using the same soap for the shower as you do for washing your hands at the sink, for instance. And don't let yourself accumulate countless brochures! Choose to return them, as well as maps, when you're finished.
Carmen Di Luccio
We are having a partial Lunar Eclipse in Capricorn which will occur July 16th in the West and early on the 17th in the Eastern part of the world. It will be visible in most countries except for Greenland, the Northern parts of Scandinavia, Eastern Russia, and the majority of North America other than small portions of the furthest Southern and Eastern parts of the continent.
However, even when an eclipse is not visible in your location, it still has astrological significance. They reflect changes and can sometimes be a bit of a wildcard. The energies of a Lunar Eclipse can begin a month prior and also influence the following 3 months. Prior to this we had a Solar Eclipse in Cancer on July 2nd, which also affects this period and the following 5-6 months.
As mentioned in previous articles, this series of Eclipses in the Cancer-Capricorn axis began when it transitioned in mid-2018 and will transition out in late 2020. Therefore, some of the themes mentioned in this article (and my previous one) are actually playing out over a 2-year period with different eclipses triggering it in different ways and areas of your personal astrology chart.
However, this specific eclipse season of Summer 2019 will probably be the most impactful of this series when we consider that the Solar Eclipse was 'Total' and near the North Node, while this Lunar Eclipse is aligned with Pluto and Saturn at the South Node.
Lunar Eclipse In Capricorn Conjunct Pluto and Saturn Near South Node
This is a South Node Lunar Eclipse, which means that the changes and developments that it reflects lean more towards something that needs to decrease. In some cases, it can even bring significant endings or some sort of release. This ultimately will help us with what the North Node is pointing towards, which is currently in Cancer. See my previous eclipse article here to learn more about that.
Capricorn is associated with structures, ambitions, career, strategy, business, and mastery. It strives for excellence and attaining goals, as it is symbolically represented by the Mountain Goat climbing to the peak. Capricorn energy can also be cold, too caught up in social status, overly conservative, serious, controlling, can seek power over others, and be excessively focused on work and/or materialism while creating an imbalance with personal life and emotional needs.
This Eclipse is in a close conjunction to Pluto with Saturn (the ruler of Capricorn) close by at the South Node. All of this emphasizes what was written above as Pluto is associated with purging, death, & transformation.
This can reflect the need to make changes around other Pluto themes as well. This planet is associated with fears, obsessions, compulsive behavior, shadows, dark drives, manipulation, desires, deeply repressed feelings, jealousy, the underworld, and destruction. It shares some themes with Capricorn such as power and control.
This is a period in which we need to reflect on which aspects of Capricorn (and perhaps Pluto) energy we need to reduce in order to help us evolve and move forward in other ways. The events and circumstances around this time may help to push this on us.
Saturn will be near the South Node over the next 3 months, which also emphasizes what has already been written. It makes its final conjunction with it in September and early October, which is when we can experience the next strong wave of this energy after this Eclipse period. For many people there will be some concluding factor at that time in relation to what is currently playing out in our lives.
Venus At North Node While Opposing Saturn/Pluto & Trine Neptune, Mercury Retrograde Reaching its Peak
Venus is currently in Cancer at the North Node while in opposition with Saturn at the South Node. We may feel a push/pull between our relationships, love, values, money and pleasures and at odds with responsibilities, limitations, work or restrictive behavior. However, some relationship developments that occur now and over the following weeks may be highly beneficial for our evolution even if it comes with, or is faced with, complications.
Venus is also in a trine with Neptune, which can help to soften any challenges or conflicts in our relationships. This energy will be strongest on July 18th. Compassion, empathy, oneness, and harmony are themes reflected by this. For some people it can be magical, romantic, or spiritually potent. It may also stimulate creativity and inspiration.
From July 20th-21st, Venus will then be opposing Pluto, which can be a bit challenging and trigger the themes of this eclipse. In relationships (friends or lovers), it can reflect power struggles, intensity and possessiveness, but it could also trigger deep feelings and passion. Issues around hidden matters may come up as well. This can also help us make needed changes in our values or relations. Complications with financial matters can manifest more easily at this time and would be good to be cautious around compulsive spending.
Around the same time as the Venus-Pluto energy mentioned above, Mercury (which is currently retrograde) will be returning to the Sun, which is known as the 'Inferior Conjunction'. This is the halfway point of Mercury Retrograde–a time in which we can have important insights.
It's good to pay attention to what the universe is trying to show you at that time. It can be a period in which new ideas, thoughts, or perspectives are seeded that may develop over the coming months. Depending on what you are doing, it can also amplify the potential complications that these retrogrades are known for, which may or may not be connected to the insights you are getting. You can read more about this Mercury Retrograde here.
What do you need to decrease or completely release from? What is getting in the way of emotional fulfillment? Do you need to find a new balance between different aspects of your life? Do you feel the need to let go of certain attachments, obsessions, or personal shadows? What aspects of your ambitions, duties, or structures are not serving you anymore?
These are just some examples of what to reflect on. It's good to pay attention to how you feel during this eclipse or even during the hours and days surrounding it. It is also possible that things going on at that time can be symbolic for you. Keep in mind that this energy is part of a process that will continue to play out over the coming 2.5 months, and we may experience concluding developments leading up to early Fall. Some of these themes can even extend into later next year, but probably in different ways due to how the upcoming eclipses interact with your personal astrology chart based on your exact birth time.
The partial eclipse will begin at 8:02pm and will peak at 9:31pm (Universal Time). The Full Moon will begin to wane after 9:38pm. You can click here to see when the peak is in your time zone.
I'm doing a Sale on Astrology Readings this month during the Eclipse and Mercury Retrograde Season. Get a reading specific to your birth time to help guide you navigate the astrological energies and to help you understand your potentials better. Sale ends July 31st but can be scheduled for later. More information here.
Follow me on INSTAGRAM, FACEBOOK, and YOUTUBE for more astrology related content.
In 2019 UFOs became mainstream. But this truth had already been known for many decades. Collective consciousness is ready now more than ever for contact, and you're being prepared for that.
Why is humanity so deeply interested in the UFO and ET subject. Sure, you might say there is an 'agenda' with ET disclosure, but is there more to this picture? Why has this subject become the most sought after information out there?
UFOs became mainstream in 2019, the next question is who's manning them? The mainstream media, and the agencies that direct them, have hidden the truth about UFOs for decades and they finally changed their story on that this year. Given we had known UFOs were real for many decades prior, and that we also have known ETs are involved in this whole phenomenon, are we really going to wait many more decades for the mainstream to admit ETs are real too? Or are we going to start listening to what independent media has been saying for decades?
Humanity is preparing for contact on a mass level. This is a blunt truth but one that is undeniable when you look at how interested and hungry the masses are for content related to this subject. Some of the most watched, read, and searched content on the internet, Netflix and YouTube all relate to ETs and UFOs. Sure, some might still be in the closet about it, but that's changing QUICK!
But why has this been a secret for so long? The truth is, the biggest secret behind why ET and UFO disclosure has been suppressed is something that isn't discussed all that much. We typically hear about things like technology suppression, specifically energy systems. How do these crafts get here? What propulsion systems do they use? These questions lead people towards the reality that the technologies of UFO craft ultimately would disrupt our fossil fuel energy oligarchy so much that it would also collapse our economies in some ways.
Of course, this would not be such a bad thing. Why? Because when you consider that this would mean having endless and 'free' energy, cost for goods would drop dramatically. Not just that but, when you begin to examine the ease in creating systems based around abundance, it becomes incredible to consider what is truly possible.
An endless supply of food grown locally, everywhere! Endless energy, installed everywhere! Cars and building facilities that do not create pollution. We could essentially live in a society built such that we do not need to be enslaved by money or debt because abundance would simply become a natural happening of a society built with abundant technology, that's harmonious, in place.
We can all see the value of such disclosures, and the reason why this would be covered but. But there is something even deeper.
The Biggest Secret
The question is, if we know these technologies exist, and they are being suppressed. And if we know that whistleblowers and people have already reverse engineered or built these things, and not all have been killed or threatened, what is the reason why these things are held back? Why do we still deny these realities en masse?
The truth is, it comes down to consciousness. We've been saying this since the inception of CE in 2009: solutions are there, but they won't come until humanity is ready. What does this ACTUALLY mean to be ready? It means growing up enough as a race, that we can actually be responsible for what it is we will have access to. Not just that, but to be able to say we have 'graduated' in a sense, to say we are beyond our old ways.
While that sounds like a loaded few sentences, and they are in a sense, all that is really being said here is, humanity has been stuck in a cycle of experience where we continually see everything, and everyone as separate from us. We are individuals, living out our identities and lives and we are simply here to survive. We believe the limiting ideas of what our reality is and should be and thus we create that reality consciously. Our collective belief about how our world should be is directly tied to what actually happens.
But there is this feeling deep within us at this time, and I know you feel it, where we are beginning to deeply question our ways. How we treat one another, our political systems, the elite manipulation and control that exists, the existential reality of who we are and how we are truly just consciousness, all connected. These deep questions are asking us to explore who we truly are and why we are truly here. And many of us are doing so. This is beginning to create instability and change in our system because the consciousness that holds up our old world, is beginning to crack, and a new one is emerging.
Contact: It's On Us
WE are preparing ourselves fro contact. This is not happening through someone else, it's a collective phenomenon that is simply the next stage of humanity's journey. As our consciousness continues to shift, through us truly doing our own questioning, changing our own patterns, habits, thoughts, and actions, we will begin to truly create the solutions necessary to create a world where we can thrive. And disclosure of technologies will come forth. It comes down to US having to do this work, not governments, not someone else coming to save us. It's about creating an entire populace with the mentality of truly being empowered and self-responsible, as opposed to needed governance and feeling helpless.
This is why the greatest reason why ET reality is so suppressed comes down to consciousness because with an introduction to ET life, comes an entire myriad of experience we have not been exposed to.
Our CETV platform is designed to help prepare us for the stages of the personal transformation that is occurring in people's lives. From information, to techniques, to how to guides, CETV is here as a tool to help us move through these confusing and yet expansive times. You can check out CETV here.
In the video below I explain what this means deeply, and how we can begin opening up the doors to mass contact with ET's.
Is The Q Narrative Providing False Hope? Catherine Austin Fitts Weighs In
It appears as though people are becoming too engaged with the Q narrative that it is blinding them from the truth of what Q truly represents.
Instead of viewing Q as right or wrong, what steps does it represent in our awakening process? Is the narrative truly creating a world where humanity thrives? Or is it perhaps only taking us a step forward, if at all?
When the Q narrative began popping up I didn't pay much attention to it. It was only about 1 year into it that I started to do my research and really dive in. What I saw was interesting, but it didn't necessarily get me feeling like we were suddenly all on the right track, and that everything was being taken care of – a sentiment shared by many in the community who follow Q. I'm going to get to my observations down below on a few more things.
Before we continue I want to be clear, I don't feel all who follow Q sit back and just watch the show. In fact, I think there is a good chunk of people who actively do other things to help change themselves and their world, but I do feel for the most part – people seem to think Trump and the gang have humanity's pure best interests at heart, and that they will save America and the world.
I don't agree, and haven't agreed, with this sentiment since day 1. I understand that just this article alone may bring up defensiveness and emotion in those who follow Q deeply, and all I can say to that is am I really saying anything crazy here? Or is it that some of us have become too loyal to a narrative that it's now clouding our judgement? Have we created a new 'political side' that we align with in the same way Dems and Reps align with their party?
One last thing before we go on, Q is certainly part of an awakening for some folks too, further illustrating that I'm not saying it's all bad or anything, nor am I here to discuss whether it's true or not, but that I'm neutral on the subject and instead wish to raise some reflections about it. Also remember, Q material could literally be written by anyone with knowledge of alternative media and 'conspiracy theories,' nothing said is that far outside the basic knowledge of understanding these fields.
Looking At Q Metaphysically
In early April I posted on my Instagram account the following:
I think researching, piecing things together and questioning things when it comes to Q is great, I see nothing wrong with that. But I do feel that a lot of people become very complacent and just sit back 'trusting' that Q and team have it all taken care of.. even when things don't quite go as planned.
I hear people in posts and videos say things like "I want Trump to be right. I want Q to be right.. I don't want to lose my faith cause there is nowhere else to go." etc.
This makes me wonder, are we acting from desperation? Do we really think this is the whole answer? Do those who follow this so deeply really think this is all we have to do? Just follow the posts and just sit back and watch… with POPCORN as is so often said.
The ones we have been waiting for are US.. each and every one of US.. no one is going to get this all done for us, we gotta do the work as a collective.
So sure, maybe there are things that are right going on within the Q drops, I'm not gonna take that away, but I think it's time we start really focusing on having some deeper conversations about where we want to go, how we can empower ourselves as individuals, change as individuals and ultimately make up a collective of empowered people.. instead of just trusting that others have it taken care of.
Remember, it's consciousness that creates this reality.. where is yours at? That's what will decide our future more than 'the plan.'
And if you're looking for deeper, more insightful and action-oriented conversations.. check out cetv.one we're flippin the script over there.⠀⠀⠀
This sentiment was a breath of fresh air for most as it appears many are growing a bit tired of the Q narrative only because every time something happens in the world through Trump that doesn't seem good for humanity, the community continues to spin it so that it becomes good.. and herein lies the blind spots that are being created from choosing sides.
Catherine Austin Fitts Weighs In
When we choose sides we add a lens to our perception, that lens then clouds seeing the totality of what is playing out. I was recently having a conversation about this with my good buddy and filmmaker Michael Mazzola, which you can check out here, he proceeded to tell me about something Catherine Austin Fitts, former Commissioner at the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, recently said that totally summed up my position as well:
Here's what she said:
"In the Red Button Problem, everybody wants their check and they want to pretend that they are good. So it's very important that politicians come up with this story of 'good'. The story of "I'm good," doesn't have to make sense, but it has to be good enough so that I can just take my check and feel good and not have to do anything. It's a way of being free to stay on my couch and do the things that I love instead of being bothered with the responsibility of being a citizen."
So Q is the new story of, "I am good," because, "I can just trust the plan, and these covert operators are going to get their thing done." So I've been nice because I know some very intelligent, capable people who buy this whole thing hook, line, and sinker. It has been really frustrating for you and me. I took FASAB 56 to these Q believers, and they said, "You need to trust the plan."
The reason why I have not gotten on full board with Q is simple: Q could be something written by ANY truther out there that knows a bit about how our world works. Even after all my research, I don't see anything that suggests we're seeing a highly conscious world being created, thus, there is room for further discussions.
Sure, it is helping to wake people up to some extent, but so do many other actions that happen in our world. I'm not against the Q narrative by any means, I simply feel it's important to bring things back to us as individuals. Even is Trump and Q are in fact working together, is all you see happening truly good for humanity? That's simply the question to keep in our minds.
If we're going to truly make change, we must not just wait for others to do it, and we must also question the true path others are suggesting they are taking. For example, can you truly say within yourself that Trump has illustrated he and his alliance are going to create a world where you are truly free? Or is it more so that he might shake up some of the deep state, but there will still be a ton of work to do before humanity truly thrives?
I highlight the piece above because I do feel it's obvious that Trump is shaking things up, and that's important to note.
But what about things like pushing 5G? Why is this not questioned in deep detail?
Ultimately my take Q has been the same since pretty well the beginning. We are not necessarily seeing a human alliance take over the Deep State. We are seeing a deep state alliance take over the Deep State. Meaning, one faction of the DS has split and is going against another. One has a slightly less dystopian view for humanity. I summed this up in a video here.
Things are happening in stages, steps forward are sometimes slow and bit by bit. But it appears as though some of those who follow Q and who align with Trump too heavily, in a religious like sense, are developing blind spots and putting too much faith in having these people save the world.. where might that lead if Trump doesn't create that world? Does he even resonate as someone that will?
I'm inspired to help us out of the one side vs another narrative and simply see things for what they are so we can keep fluidly evolving vs. jumping from one box to the next.
I urge you to check out my deeper explanation of Trump and Q through the 5G unfoldment in this video analysis, it truly helps to lay a deeper framework and understanding of what is taking place here.
Bottom line is, this is all a step into further questioning and beginning to break down the old world, but by no means is this the full picture and we must remember that.