Little sign of sustainability work in Thailand

Locals doing what they can to contribute to a more sustainable lifestyle. 

So, our trip has begun. We left Stockholm on Saturday last week and then spent two days in Bangkok before heading over to the island Koh Chang and the extremely remote Island View Resort on the south east side. Personally, I wouldn’t call it a resort, but it’s a great start to our trip away from the hectic life in Bangkok. Haven’t seen much of sustainability yet; a little sad, I think. But I wanted to share some photos of everyday sustainability that I’ve noticed so far.

I saw a documentary on the Discovery Channel, or something like that, talking about how to save world hunger and the development towards 10 billion people on the planet. One of the solutions they brought up was insects and bugs as one of the more reliable sources of food given the enormous amounts of them. They certainly don’t have an issue with eating roaches and similar in Bangkok; this inviting buffé was sold by a local street vendor. Maybe we need to change our habits in the western world before other resources run out? I can’t imagine that the production of insects for food would be anywhere near live stocks’ environmental impact.

The resort we ended up staying at on Koh Chang turned out to be surprisingly aware of their part in the global environment. This note was the first that met us in our room. And unlike many of the bigger chains, they really did live accordingly to this. All rooms and areas of the hotel that were empty had the lights turned off, just like the note said. And sheets — what is the point in having them changed on a daily basis really? I never do this at home, so why here? Saves energy, detergent, the dishwasher, fabric, man hours, fewer pollutants, etc. Also, the small community that we live in seems to live on a very basic level with no real amenities, but they still find the time and will to recycle plastic containers. However, we have seen a lot of trash in the waters around, which is sad given the damage it causes the local wild life. Not sure if this is caused by tourists or the locals.