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| About T4A and the environment |
Tracks4Africa (T4A for short) is a organisation run by ‘Environmental users’.
What lies at the core of our business? Our core business is MAPPING AFRICA. More specifically, Community Mapping because the only way to map Africa accurately, reliably and environmentally correct is to put the task of land surveying in the hands of experienced and responsible eco-travellers who are in touch with conditions at ground zero.
What’s the main focus? Our main focus is the GPS mapping of eco-destinations in rural and remote Africa. Outdoor activities including hiking, mountaineering, mountain biking, river rafting, scuba diving, bird watching, flower viewing, paragliding, skydiving and the off-road users (the bikers, the quad’ers and the 4x4 people), all have an environmental impact on the diversity of plant and animal life.
Eco-mapping requirements are of utmost importance given the increase in human traffic to eco-destinations. Most of these destinations are outside the National Parks, Nature Reserves and Protected Areas, and as such, they don’t enjoy the relative benefits of research, legislation and access control. Moreover, many of these destinations are home to historical, cultural and religious heritage.
The responsibility for protection and preservation of our environment rests with ‘Environmental users’. The birth of Tracks4Africa in 1999 was indeed a manifestation of this responsibility.
To support our extending family of ‘Environmental Users’, we at Tracks4Africa have come up with…
Our mission:
- To Foster and Contribute an understanding to a “CODE OF CONDUCT” when utilising natural resources for leisure purposes, especially in remote and eco-sensitive areas
- To establish a complete and accurate spatial record of ALL the eco-destinations in the safe reaches of Africa.
- To develop a high quality, reliable and continuously updated GPS navigational system for travelling to these eco-destinations. ”Let’s get the wheels back on track”
- To develop an en-route INFORMATION toolkit which must meet the information needs for solo and first-time travellers to these sensitive eco-destinations in the remotest parts of Africa.
Jan Joubert professed, “INFORMATION” and “to INFORM” as the only mechanism to preserve and to protect environment for the next generation to do the same. CONSERVATION == INFORMATION
- Information needed not to expose oneself, travel companions, assets and environment to unnecessary risks.
- Information needed to make informed decisions on the spot. “First time travel as if I knew the place”
Tracks4Africa has become the NAVIGATIONAL STANDARD for GPS assisted travel into remote and eco-sensitive areas in Africa.
Our vision:
Our vision is driven by the current realities and future trends in tourism in Africa. On the Tourism Conference Nov 2006 (Windhoek) it was said that in 10 years 65% to 70% of tourists in Africa will be ‘self drive’. We believe by that time high quality GPS maps will be freely available. What will not be freely available is high quality and timely travel information.
- To chance our mission and core-business from ‘mapping’ to ‘information’. The 4th dimension of eco-travel. To make true the concept of ‘virtual travel’. The decision ‘not to travel’.
- To empower the touring public with information. Tourists to become the eco-custodians of the places they travel to. To leverage on the professional skills of tourists and to employ this skills resource to make a difference where and when they travel.
- To change the core-business of lodges and rest camps from ‘lodging’ to become information centres.
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