August 2021

There are few activities that provide a greater explosion of sense and emotions than putting foot in a new land — a foreign place where you have to navigate language, landscape, and culture practically the instant you arrive.

Memories of stepping off a plane and heading out of the airport in Kathmandu, Port Au Prince, and Guatemala are forever stored and accessible in my brain’s happy file. Prominent among these are the new smells, the architecture, the people, and the only slightly realization that you’re not in Kansas anymore. Or North Carolina or wherever it is you call home.

And the places to which we travel, and the experience we take away from those adventures are tied directly to how safe we feel while out exploring.

As more of us prepare to climb on planes, trains, and boats again, NCOAE wants to share some of the safety and risk mitigation tips we have learned along the way when traveling far from home with clients from all walks of life.

With the tips we offer below, the focus is on adventure travel and ecotourism. Don’t neglect to research basic travel tips as well.

Let’s get started:

If you’re a regular reader of our blog, you may recall that Education Without Walls (EWOW) began more than a decade ago here at The National Center for Outdoor & Adventure Education (NCOAE).

Today, EWOW has become a successful organization — a self-sustaining not-for-profit complete with its own administrative staff, board of directors, programs, and funders… all of which are focused on providing academic and life skills guidance for motivated teens with financial need.

With that as background, the rest of today’s post focuses on what this fledgling organization has been up to since spinning off from NCOAE, and what’s on its horizon.

The Big 24

The organization’s first big fundraising event — The Big 24, which aims to raise enough funds to award one-year scholarships to 24 deserving students — begins this Sunday (Aug. 15) and runs through Oct. 15, culminating with a first-ever “Evening Without Walls” fundraising event.

For information on The Big 24 and how you can help, please The Big 24 webpage or contact EWOW’s Executive Director, Celine Adair, MA, LMFT by email or by calling (910) 515-9157.

Summer Expeditions

Education Without Walls has always been focused on merging meaningful outdoor adventures with ongoing mentorship to assist aspiring students in identifying and accomplishing their (more…)