Talanoa Consulting and Talanoa Treks: Empowering Communities through Sustainable Tourism

Tourism has the power to transform. It’s a bridge that connects cultures and communities. It supports visitors and communities to gain a deeper understanding of the place and each other’s cultures and builds long-standing connections and empathy.  It is these connections and experiences that underpin our relationships with each other as human beings and our responsibility to protect our shared planet.

Marita Manley, co-founder of Talanoa Consulting and Talanoa Treks, shares how her ventures are transforming Pacific tourism. As an analyst, connector, and sustainability advocate, she embodies the shared values of these sister organisations. Her unwavering commitment to conservation and community empowerment is the driving force behind their success.

Located in Suva, Talanoa Consulting is a small yet dynamic firm bridging Pacific experts with development opportunities. Working in the development sector, their underlying goal is to turn words into action.

Talanoa Consulting focuses on bringing in experts in the Pacific and connecting them with opportunities to collaborate. Where possible they also link their partners with funding sources that can support them with specific projects.

The company also specialises in the areas of sustainable tourism policy, climate change, disaster risk reduction and resilience, agriculture, and food security, gender equality and women’s economic empowerment, environmental conservation, natural resource management, and small business and social enterprise development.

Through Talanoa Consulting, the team recently supported the Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation (MTCA) in Fiji with the development of the National Sustainable Tourism Framework, engaging stakeholders across government and within the tourism sector to co-design a sustainable tourism trajectory for Fiji over the next 10 years.  They have also supported MTCA through the Pacific Tourism Organisation (SPTO) and other regional partners to explore the feasibility of establishing a potential UNESCO GeoPark in Fiji.

Then there’s Talanoa Treks, a social enterprise partnered with Fiji’s interior communities. It’s a shining example of how tourism can be a force for good. Talanoa Treks boosts rural incomes and promotes sustainable practices by offering locally guided hikes that explore Fiji’s cultural heritage.

Despite challenges like remote locations and reliance on diesel, Talanoa Treks is committed to reducing its carbon footprint.

The Treks team invested in an electric vehicle in 2023 to try and minimise its carbon emissions, using this whenever possible in the city and on sealed-roads. They also monitor and keep statistics on its fuel and energy consumption and are currently assessing options to allow guests to offset the emissions from their treks.

Talanoa Treks’ sustainability policy inspires the team to do tourism differently. It places the communities it partners with at the heart of everything they do – empowering them to establish small enterprises, and generate employment and income that can support them to realise their development goals whilst also conserving Fiji’s natural beauty and giving tourists a unique experience.

Talanoa Treks also supports its partner communities to meet their development goals where they actively look for funding or training opportunities, and assist with applications and proposal writing.

Marita Manley is the Principal Consultant for Talanoa Consulting, and is actively involved in the management and marketing of Talanoa Treks. Together, Talanoa Consulting and Treks represent      the transformative power of tourism. By prioritising community collaboration and environmental stewardship, they’re paving the way for a future where tourism drives positive change.

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Source: Marita Manley, Principal Consultant – Talanoa Consulting

Photo Credit: Talanoa Consulting and Talanoa Treks