I cannot believe it’s been almost a year since I started GoGood. I knew the journey to build a non-profit sustainable travel app would be hard… and it has been! Like most early-stage startups, there have been highs and lows where I’ve swung between hope and despair. And despite steady progress, I still sometimes think about giving up and finding a stable 9 to 5 job.

But, I haven’t given up. I’m passionate about conserving natural places and cultures, and leveraging tourism for that purpose. After talking to hundreds of travelers and experts, I’m more convinced than ever the world needs GoGood.

We are a part of a growing movement to transform the travel industry into a force for good. Though beneficial when done well, too often, tourism harms local people and ecosystems, and degrades the natural and cultural heritage of a place. More than anything else, travel is a massive contributor to global climate change.

GoGood can make a real difference. It promotes, and directly supports, inclusive, sustainable economic development and conservation of the world’s most treasured places.

I’m excited to announce that I’ve teamed up with an incredible group of change-makers and innovators to build GoGood! We now have a great product team, and processes and partners to inventory sustainable tourism assets, and the support of a talented group of local and global experts.

Our amazing team includes:

• Our Common Foundation, led by Matthew King provides our nonprofit fiscal sponsorship and operations and legal support.
• Cynthia Linnell, my former NatGeo colleague and travel expert, supports our business planning and research.
• Brad Weber and Aaron Lea and the talented team at Inspiring Apps are designing and building the GoGood app, which is now in private beta testing.
• Gabriel Campos, a recent graduate from Duke University Nicholas School of the Environment (my alma mater—Go Blue Devils!) is producing profiles for authentic, sustainable places and experiences in our pilot regions of Montana and Belize.

With great appreciation, I’d like to thank Laura Hodge of the Crown of the Continent Geotourism Council, and Montana’s Office of Tourism for providing the seed funding for our GoGood Montana pilot project! And a very big thank you to Lailani Upham of the Blackfeet Nation and her colleagues in the Montana Indigenous Tourism Alliance for collaborating with us to ensure Go Good supports Indigenous communities from the start.

Years ago, I was fortunate to work on a conservation mapping project in Belize, a small, tropical nation on the Caribbean coast of Central America. Because of my fondness for the area and the opportunity to promote its sustainable tourism, I chose Belize as our second pilot region. A tourism-dependent, developing country, Belize is blessed with rich, intact rainforest and tropical reef systems. Its cultural heritage includes ancient Maya cities and temples, and the traditions and knowledge of the local, Indigenous Maya, Garifuna, and Creole communities.

I’m grateful to Nicanor Requena, conservationist, and teacher of Maya descent, and William Heyman, pioneering marine biologist, for coordinating our Belize project. Thank you! We know that local connections and knowledge, mixed with love of place, are key ingredients for authentic and sustainable tourism.

Also, A BIG THANK YOU to everyone who has supported GoGood with your feedback and resources in its first year. Please, continue to send us your ideas and get involved in our efforts to build this incredible app. Soon, we plan to test, launch, and expand GoGood!

Over the next year, I’ll be sharing monthly updates with you. If you want to be part of our community and get the latest news on GoGood, please subscribe to this newsletter and sign up for our email list. It will take a lot of people and partnerships to change the travel industry, and we’re excited to introduce GoGood as an innovative, scalable, market-driven solution for thoughtful travelers to help sustain destinations and support communities around the world.

If you want to support and accelerate our work, please consider a tax-deductible donation to GoGood.

Visit GoGoodTravel.org to learn more, and be sure to follow GoGood on Facebook and LinkedIn.

Wishing you Happy Holidays and Good Travels!

Frank Biasi

CEO & Founder, GoGood