I have an urgent mission for all Green Girls: to find the greenest or most life-changing holiday you can.

With the economic climate not looking too sunny, it’s easy to spend hours online browsing idyllic holidays that will let you get away from it all.

But don’t think for a moment that lack of funds makes this daydreaming a waste of your (or your employer’s!) time. Oh no. With the deadline for nominations for the 2009 Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Awards looming, now is the chance to put all that in-depth research into action

The Awards are organized by online travel agent, responsibletravel.com and they’d love your tip-offs of tour operators, hoteliers and destinations around the world that are doing their bit to help people and the planet.

Don’t worry, they don’t expect you to be responsible travel experts, just give them the name and a couple of lines to say why you think the hotel / lodge / tour operator / destination is eco-friendly and/or giving something back to the local community and the Responsible Tourism Awards judging panel will dig deeper (read more about the judging process).

Win a holiday of a lifetime

You can make as many nominations as you want and if it turns out you’ve nominated a winner (winners are announced in November), you could be in with a chance to win a holiday of a lifetime for you and a friend.

2008 Award winners Gamewatchers Safaris & Porini Camps are offering a memorable prize safari holiday in Kenya.

The prize includes 7 nights accommodation (1 night Tribe Hotel, 2 nights Amboseli Porini Camp, 2 nights Ol Pejeta Rhino Camp, 2 Nights Mara Porini Camp) and return economy flights from Heathrow to Nairobi.

Read more about this amazing holiday.

Nominations needed

The Responsible Tourism Awards team is particularly keen to get nominations in these categories:

• Best in a Marine Environment – An organisation related to a beach or other marine environment, such as turtle conservation or a marine eco-tourism trip
• Best for Conservation of Cultural Heritage – A tourism organisation or initiative working to protect and promote cultural heritage
• Best Large Hotel – A hotel, lodge or other accommodation of more than 50 rooms that is run with the environment and needs of local people in mind.
• Best Personal Contribution – A person who has made an outstanding contribution to responsible tourism.

But hurry – the deadline for nominations is next Monday 15 June! Make your nomination.

Award-winning holidays

To give you an idea of the kind of holiday that wins an Award and why, let’s have a look at some of last year’s winners…

Kingfisher Bay Resort, Fraser Island, Australia
This breathtaking resort won the Best Large Hotel Award in the 2008 Responsible Tourism Awards.

The judges commended the resort for its low environmental impact, educating its guests about conservation, and getting involved with the local, indigenous people helping them to share their culture and learn new skills for employment.

Nkwichi Lodge, Mozambique
A stunning lodge on the shores of Lake Niassa, it’s the perfect getaway: beauty, tranquility, crystal clear fresh water, white beaches and a welcome feeling of remoteness – there are no cars and the only access is by boat. The lodge is very private with only 7 chalets all uniquely designed to blend in with the local environment.

The lodge won the Best Small Hotel Award in the 2008 Responsible Tourism Awards. Not only is it environmentally-friendly in design but those behind it also played a key role in the creation of the Umoji Association which represents 20,000 local people through their chiefs and elected representatives. As one of the first large community associations in Mozambique, it has helped six communities to secure their land rights certificates from the Government.

Ecoventura, Ecuador
Winner of the Best in a Marine Environment Award in 2008, Ecoventura will take you around the awe-inspiring Galapagos Islands while taking every precaution to protect this delicate environment.

Ecoventura won its Award for creating scholarships for education, and developing micro-business for local women, converting a fishing boat into a restaurant and boutique to offer alternative livelihoods for the wives of fishermen.

Ecoventura was also among the first cruise operators to be independently environmentally audited.

Shigar Fort – Palace Restoration Project, Pakistan
This beautiful fort won the Best for Conservation of Cultural Heritage Award in the 2008 Responsible Tourism Awards. It would make a unique and relaxing holiday haven for those who want to get off the beaten track.

The project was commended by the judges for the sensitive restoration of this historic building and its development as a hotel which has placed the property once again at the heart of the community.

It is now a cultural and economic asset which brings employment, microenterprise opportunities, and social and cultural empowerment to local men and women.

Inspired? Get nominating now – deadline Monday 15 June!

Want the latest on the Responsible Tourism Awards? Follow them on Twitter.

Katie
Ethical Weddings