Please find below the various ways that you can give back to the local community while traveling to Tulum, Mexico, and a couple of its surrounding areas. Remember, all gestures, big or small, can make a difference for people, so don’t think that you have to move mountains in order to make a difference. <3
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Volunteer!
The Worldpackers website lists plenty of volunteer opportunities for travellers worldwide, including in Tulum!
Participate in a beach clean up!
To get involved, stay up to date with the announcements on the Riviera Maya News website and Google in general.
Donate to Help Tulum Dogs!
Help Tulum Dogs is a non-profit devoted to helping street dogs in Tulum, which has no animal shelters and a severe overpopulation issue. This organization has done tremendous work to help the many dogs on the streets of Tulum.
Plant a tree!
Dreams Tulum of Dreams Resorts is committed to educating its guests about social and environmental responsibility and is heavily involved in community conservation efforts. Guests can even participate in the resort’s Plant A Tree Project and receive updates about the program and their own tree.
Get involved with Playa Animal Rescue!
PAR is a non-profit that raises funds for its no-kill animal shelter in Playa Del Carmen and is dedicated to rescuing and rehabilitating injured and abandoned dogs.
Help sea turtles in Akumal!
Two of the six endangered species of sea turtles nest on the beaches of Akumal. During nesting season from May to November, visitors can get involved in sea turtle conservation by assisting the Centro Ecológico Akumal by assisting its biologists, veterinarians and staff during beach patrols in the mornings and evenings in monitoring, protecting and tagging nesting females and gathering scientific data.
Eat and shop locally!
Tulum town has loads of local restaurants and shops you can visit and support.
Ask your hotels/accommodations!
Some hotels and accommodations in Tulum run programs that allow their guests to give back (e.g., Dreams Tulum).
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Unfortunately, when I last traveled to Tulum, not many volunteer opportunities or outreach programs were available for me to participate in and those that were required minimum 7-day commitments. Counting the day we arrived and departed to/from Cancun as travel days, we really only had 5 days in Tulum and therefore did not qualify for such programs.
However, we did make sure to support a lot of local businesses, find and feed as many sweet street animals as we could and donate to people in need whenever/wherever/whatever possible. I have also tried to do my part by spreading the word and recommending great local spots/services to other travellers who will be visiting Tulum.
Happy Giving!
