Jake's Weekly Flow #35

Weekly Flow #35 - September 2nd, 2023

Dear, Roamer
 
Welcome to my weekly flow of news, events, insightful perspectives, and impactful stories aimed at creating positive change in your life and the lives you touch, at home and on the road.
 
My curious mind, intuitive soul, and big heart, along with some personal connections and crushes on extraordinary humans have put me in a position to receive an abundance of practical information, exciting innovation, and profound wisdom, usually travel-related, that has flowed to me, and now, on to you. Before you scan, take a breath, tune in, open up to the flow, and find your glow.

  • Kicked off a new video series called “Travel and the Search for Meaning” this week! This series is all about sharing how our transformative education programs help tourism and hospitality professionals intentionally design and guide for traveler transformation. The pathway to transformation goes through connection and meaning and travel is such a natural place for us all to ponder life’s big questions and search for meaning. Making a habit of reflecting and meaning making is what lights the path to new ways of being and engaging the world. Here’s a link to our first video, unedited and raw, but it’s not about perfection, it’s about purpose, right? Thank you, TTC Accredited Transformer, Sheri Bluestein for being brave enough to be my first guest, you shined brightly! Our next 3-day Intensive Course is on the 20th of September. Access video w/ Zoom Passcode: Aq^z+6Bh 

  • So proud of how Sherrye Wyatt and the community of Whidbey and Camano Islands are embodying and implementing the life affirming practices and principles that they absorbed in our yearlong Destination Regeneration Program. Whidbey and Camano Islands Are Taking a Residents-First Approach with Their Regenerative Tourism Model by Laura Olds. And, their Eat Local Month initiative was also just highlighted in Nat Geo as the best places to travel this September!

  • Burning Man is unfolding this week in the Nevada desert. I celebrate all that it stands for and I look forward to going for my 50th birthday! “Started in 1986 and guided by the values expressed by the 10 Principles, Burning Man is a global ecosystem of artists, makers, and community organizers who co-create art, events, and local initiatives around the world. Most recognizably, tens of thousands of Burners gather annually to build Black Rock City, a participative temporary metropolis in the Nevada desert.” 

  • Must listen … a few mesmerizing minutes of a piano and strings in the desert of Jordan!

  • And a video short from Rainn Wilson, who is very clearly a brother from another mother. A little about his Sacred Pilgrims initiative” I talk at great length about the need to find sacredness, holiness, and the divine in our daily lives. For me, it’s easy when I am out in the wilds and majesty of nature. It’s finding that space, that presence in my ordinary home and work life, that is a challenge. How do you find power and beauty and the holy in the anxiety, toil, and mundanity of one’s dailiness?”

  • On a personal note, I’ve got amazing parents, but as the years pass, our relationship is a little complicated and at times, challenging. She shared this read with me and I felt that it would likely be well received by a few of you. Untangling Enmeshed Boundaries with Grown Children by Jane Adams Ph.D.

  • Article of the week! Why Does Anyone Risk Their Lives for Adventure Travel?  - by Lavanya Sunkara - “Despite all the risks, humans keep trying to get to the deepest reaches of the ocean and the peaks of the highest mountains, while treading on others and Mother Nature.”

  • Some inspiring yet troubling data … Good news is that more people are getting outside and connecting with nature, but at the same time, the frequency of which people are heading out is down. Outdoor Recreation Inspires New-Age Adventure Lodging by Ryan Deer

Lastly, I’m heading off on a Pilgrimage on the Camino de Santiago and could not be more excited. Watched “The Way” the other night.  I’ve been preparing emotionally, spiritually, and physically for the journey, an intentional effort to amplify its impact on my life, set intentions and start my inward search for meaning and purpose. I logged 22 miles this last weekend just walking through the neighborhoods I call home, I love looking at these places with fresh eyes, but boy my legs sore, and my senses are sharpening, my soul is stirring as I approach this long walk filled with long conversations. 
 
In these local walks, I’m reminded that travel is all about depth over distance, reflection and meaning making, and finally, transformation, be it a small t or a BIG T, that’s up to you.

My walking partner

Keep walking,

Jake Haupert 
Co-Founder & CEO
Transformational Travel Council
www.transformational.travel | LinkedIn

P.S. We invite you to support our vision for a more ethical and impactful tourism! We appreciate the generous support of our fellow changemakers! Please consider making a one-time or recurring donation to the Transformational Travel Institute!

Paulina Tracz-Dulog