Who are the authors?

Catherine is a French expat who has lived in Malaysia for 2 years. She likes to travel with her family (husband, 9 year old son and a 12 year old daughter) to discover Malaysia off the beaten track. She does her best to find sustainable tourism destinations within Malaysia and to reduce the family footprint. Catherine was a manager for Sustainable Development projects in a French city council for 5 years, and spent another 6 years in a French NGO developing the renewable energies market. She is also one of the first 20 Museum Volunteers Malaysia guides.

Serina lived a third culture childhood, growing up in various countries as her family traveled all over Asia, Europe and the Middle East. She has been involved in local communities, animal welfare and environmental work since she was 7 years old. Trained in Business Marketing, she took a detour to teach English in Singapore before moving to Cardiff, Wales to complete a Masters in Applied Linguistics. She then managed program content for Discovery Travel & Adventure Channel in Asia. Serina is now a freelance writer and editor based in Kuala Lumpur.  A member of the Malaysian Nature Society since July 2004, she is now happily immersed in her favourite element as she works with children, youth, island communities and the general public to increase awareness and appreciation of Malaysia’s priceless yet fragile marine environment.

How we select the projects featured

Each of the projects featured in Greenselipar relates the author’s first-hand. We do not receive any money, gifts, tokens or favors of any kind from anybody. We paid the same fees that any traveler would pay for the hotel, guesthouse, visit or service. We do our best to provide accurate and updated information with no influence of any kind from any professional or public corporation.
The information is subjective, depending on our personal experiences.
We are currently working on sustainable tourism criteria in order to provide more accurate information and grade the projects.

What is sustainable tourism or travel

We choose this label even though it can be somewhat controversial because “sustainable” refers to the two main international conferences that commit the international community to sustainable development, namely Rio in 1992 and Johannesburg in 2002. Find out more. 

The Greenselipar name symbolizes our vision of a sustainable journey in Malaysia:

  • Green is the dominant color seen in Malaysia (especially if you come from a European country). It symbolizes nature, wildlife, biodiversity appreciation, understanding and conservation.
  • Selipar, means ‘slipper’ in Malay, the most common footwear worn by Malaysian men, women and children. It represents relaxed travel, leaves light footprints and must be taken off as a mark of respect before entering a Malaysian home. It is the ideal travel accessory and souvenir from Malaysia.

We prefer not to give any other definition or explanation because they could be too simple, too general and too conceptual. If you would like to find out more about sustainable tourism/travel you can find it on the World Tourism Information Organization website

Is ecotourism the same as sustainable tourism or travel

Ecotourism should be tourism designed to reduce the negative impact of tourism on the environment. It can be done without social and economic benefits for the local communities.
Tour operators and travel agencies often misuse this label for marketing purposes: they refer to any destination surrounded by nature or away from urban areas as ‘ecotourism destinations’. This is why you have to be aware of what lies behind the branding.

What about responsible tourism?

Sustainable tourism is sometime called Responsible Tourism.

Why we do not review hotels and restaurants

Greenselipar is not another travel guide about Malaysia. We believe that most people will already own, or plan to buy, borrow or download a travel guide to Malaysia before they visit. Greenselipar should be considered an addendum focused on sustainable travel.
We will consider a sustainable tourism review of hotels and restaurants in the future, but that means having to use an international sustainable tourism standard label and to be paid for this review.

Why there are no travel itineraries or routes

The answer is the same than above: Greenselipar is not a travel guide.

Will Greenselipar cover the whole of Malaysia?

Our goal is to cover all of Malaysia. But due to a shortage of hands, feet, time and means, for now you will only find what we have already explored and experienced.

Why so few photos

We have decided to include only a few photos for each entry (about 3 per post). We try to select photos that supplement or provide additional information to the text.
Photos from travel agencies and tourism information centers brochures are very attractive. But reality is quite different from tourist brochures and some people may be disappointed. Indigenous people often only wear traditional clothes for festive occasions. Their houses could be made of concrete and equipped with modern facilities. Not all beaches are postcard perfect. Natural sites are still worth a visit even if you don’t see amazing landscapes or big wild mammals.
These are the reasons why you won’t find these kind of photos in Greenselipar; not because we are bad photographers.
If you would like to see more photos, have a look at Greenselipar’s albums. These will give you a glimpse of how the real Malaysia appears to us.

How do we get paid for Greenselipar

We don’t, we are volunteers and we don’t sell the information. We just want to share it. We believe that it will contribute to the development of some projects and we think that other travelers may be interested in the work.

How can you be part of the Greenselipar project

As a volunteer contributor (you won’t get paid)

  • You can send us your feedback about the projects already featured or fresh updates via the comments windows within the blog.
  • You can let us know about other projects that you think contribute to sustainable tourism. We will try to include them in our personal travel agendas. Send us a message at greenselipar@gmail.com
  • You can write a post about places and projects that you have experimented with. If you are interested, feel free to contact us at greenselipar@gmail.com
  • You can send your pictures to greenselipar@gmail.com. If we feel that they there are accurate illustrations of a post, we will either include them in the related post or add them to Greenselipar’s album.

What do we need

  • Volunteers to contribute to Greenselipar (feedback, information, authors, photographers…)
  • A wider audience : 1- for a wide promotion of sustainable travel in Malaysia. 2- it would be a strong “selling point” for sponsorships.
  • Encouragement : please let us know that you support the Greenselipar project.
  • Money :  to develop Greenselipar, be able to cover our expenses, pay professionals to write for us, communicate, publish a booklet and implement the many other ideas and projects that we have to promote sustainable tourism in Malaysia.

How you can support Greenselipar

Please begin by forwarding the link to your personal network.

  • If you manage a blog or a website related to our contents, please add the Greenselipar link to your favourites (greenselipar.com) and let us know.
  • If you are a journalist please feel free to contact us if you would like to write an article about Greenselipar.
  • If you represent a private company and you wish to sponsor Greenselipar, please contact us at greenselipar@gmail.com.

If you have another idea, please let us know at greenselipar@gmail.com.

What is the future of Greenselipar

  • A Greenselipar website: with more photos, illustrations from local artists, more information about Malaysian Culture, Artists, Heritage, Nature… and why not in other languages? The idea again is not to do what already exists, but to offer complementary information.
  • A traveling exhibition on sustainable tourism in Malaysia: to be displayed at Tourism Information Centers, airports, shopping malls… 

You have more questions about Greenselipar, please email us at greenselipar@gmail.com