Maple Leaf Adventures
"When this beautiful coastal world sustains us, it's only smart to
sustain it, too," says Kevin Smith, a long-time environmental and
recreation advocate for the BC coast and the owner of Maple Leaf
Adventures. "That's why I volunteered five years to negotiate the Great
Bear agreement. It's why Maple Leaf has protocol agreements with First
Nations, supplies the ship from coastal communities, hires local crew
and naturalists, and donates to Sierra Club. And you know what? These
local connections create a rich, authentic experience for our guests."
Smith's list of self-less giving for the environment is long and varied.
The long time marine park ranger has devoted much of his free time to
protecting BC's coast, independently and as the owner of a company
offering wilderness sailing tours from the Gulf Islands to Alaska. His
efforts since the early 1990s in the boardroom and on board his
100-year-old schooner, the Maple Leaf, have helped create awareness and
pressure to make the Great Bear Rainforest a reality. Maple Leaf
Adventures created awareness by giving away trips to the Rainforest to
environmental groups, writers and photographers that were worth hundreds
of thousands of dollars, and Smith sat on the board for more than five
years that eventually finalized the deal to create the 4.4 million acre
park.
"Forest management in the past has been terrible for wilderness
tourism," Smith says. "We used think all we needed to do was make the
forest look pretty from the window of a cruise ship. However, those of
us at Maple Leaf Adventures and other tourism organizations knew there
was a deeper meaning to wilderness tourism. Our guests are intelligent
and curious. They want to see the wildlife. They want to get out in the
rainforest and understand it up close. They want to see an intact spirit
bear habitat. We fought for that."
This was not Maple Leaf's first conservation effort. The company
spearheaded the Code of Conduct for the Gwaii Haanas Tour Operators
Association, as well as co-founded the organization. This Code
of Conduct is still regarded around the world as a model for sustainable
tourism. And Smith helped develop and promote the Commercial Bear
Viewing Association, an industry group that regulates and trains bear
viewing guides in B.C.
All his efforts fit with the company's philosophy of being an
"all-rounder" in terms of sustainable business practices. "We don't wait
for regulators to force us to act," Smith says. "We design our trips
from the ground up to minimize environmental impacts."
"People who travel with us don't want to just see the world, they want
to immerse themselves in it and be a part of it," says Maureen Gordon,
Maple Leaf's marketing manager and part time deck hand. "We experience
the entire environment on our trips, not just the viewscapes."
"It's our choice to promote healthy and sustainable places to live," she
continues. "We think in the big picture."
Website: www.MapleLeafAdventures.com
Photos © Kevin J. Smith / Maple Leaf Adventures
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