Celebrating 20 years of impact
Help Create a Better Kind of Tourism
Looking ahead to the next 20 years, we are more dedicated than ever to continue growing community tourism so that its ripple effects can continue to multiply and create even more positive change in every corner of the globe for both communities and travellers alike.
Want to support the growth of community tourism?
What we've accomplished so far
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2003
Planeterra was founded in Toronto
The Planeterra Foundation was created as a means for the travel industry to give back. In that same year, G Adventures and Planeterra established camps in Tibet, flying in 60 doctors to perform cataract and other eye surgeries, restoring the sight of over 300 people in remote Tibetan villages
2004
The House of Children of the Sun
2005
Our FIRST COMMUNITY PROJECT IS ESTABLISHED
The Ccaccaccollo Women’s Weaving Co-op, Planeterra’s first community tourism enterprise is established in Ccaccaccollo, Peru
2006
The first Ignite the Night
G Adventures held the first Ignite the Night event as a fundraiser in honour of Planeterra. The event was a huge success!
2007
A new project in India: City Walk
City Walk is a youth-led walking tour that provides a different perspective on Delhi while giving youth the opportunity to gain new skills
2009
New Hope in Cambodia
Planeterra worked with New Hope Outreach Centre to build a training restaurant to support young Khmers living just outside of Siem Reap
2012
A $1 million initiative
Planeterra embarks on a $1 million initiative with the Inter-American Development Bank to build sustainable tourism projects in Central and South America
2017
Responsible Travel with Indigenous People
In partnership with George Washington University, we created the Responsible Travel with Indigenous People: Global Good Practice Guidelines
2018
Child Welfare and the Travel Industry
Partnered with ChildSafe Movement and G Adventures to develop the Child Welfare and the Travel Industry Global Good Practice Guidelines
2019
50 new projects!
2020
Our COVID-19 response
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Planeterra launched the Turn Travel into Impact from Home campaign. We created The Learning Hub – an online resource for community tourism enterprises – with more than 50 different modules, worksheets, and templates. Our work was recognized by the WTM Responsible Tourism Award. In 2020, Planeterra was also awarded a grant from the Canadian Fund for Local Initiatives (CFLI) for a project in Sri Lanka
2021
The Global Community Tourism Network
Publicly launched the Global Community Tourism Network (GCTN) – a network of 454+ partners in 78 countries. Planeterra was also awarded a grant from the CFLI, this time, for a project focused on breaking down barriers of entry for youth in the hospitality sector in South Africa
2022
GCT Fund & IUCN
Launched the Global Community Tourism Fund and worked on a ground-breaking partnership with the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)
2023
Stay tuned!!
Learn more about Planeterra’s work over the past 20 years here
what do the next 20 years look like?
Planeterra set the bar high working towards achieving the following aspirational goals by 2030:
- 50 million travellers experiencing community tourism
- $1 billion worth of income reaching communities
- 3.5 million lives improved through community tourism

Community tourism around the world
Looking for a different way to travel? Check out the community tourism projects that Planeterra has directly supported.
#PlaneterraMoment
Have you visited any of the projects we’ve supported? Tag @planeterracares and share your hashtag #PlaneterraMoment on Instagram with us. We will feature your photos or videos in this section. Let’s inspire more people to make travel a force for good.
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