Few places offer the variety of physical geography—everything from lofty mountain peaks to living deserts and over 1,000 miles of Pacific shoreline—that California does. Preserving this fragile ecosystem is a growing priority in the state, where over 20 percent of its land is protected by state, local and national parks and wildlife refuges.
The state’s tourism industry is embracing this sustainable mindset, according to Caroline Betata, CEO of Visit California.
“From spas to ski resorts, hotels and restaurants, California businesses are incorporating sustainable practices and materials that honor the environment,” she says. “Because of California’s reliance on natural assets, we must be good stewards of the land. What protects our children’s future also makes good sense for the tourism industry.”
Ocean Adventures
Groups can experience two of the world’s most pristine marine ecosystems on excursions to Channel Islands National Park, 14 miles offshore from Ventura, and Farallones National Marine Sanctuary, 27 miles offshore from San Francisco.
“A great option for groups is to take a boat excursion out from Ventura Harbor to the Channel Islands and then kayak around the islands,” says Rebekkah Evans, executive director of Ventura County West. “The waters are so incredibly clear that you can see 30 feet down.”
Outfitters that offer Channel Island activities for groups include Island Packers and Santa Barbara Adventure Co. Depending on the time of year, participants are likely to see whales, sea lions, dolphins and other marine creatures.
San Francisco Whale Tours offers chartered and scheduled excursions with naturalist guides to Farallones National Marine Sanctuary. Along with whales during the migratory season, passengers have the chance to observe elephant seals, leatherback sea turtles, tufted puffins and other rare species. The company donates a portion of its profits to the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society. PageBreak
Land Adventures
The stark beauty of the desert area surrounding Palm Springs is the backdrop for an array of team-building programs and eco-tours offered by Desert Adventures. Among them is the San Andreas Fault Jeep Eco-Tour, which takes up to 100 passengers into the heart of the famous earthquake fault line, a place of steep-walled canyons and lush palm oases. Accompanied by naturalist guides, participants can hike through slot canyons, get a glimpse of the life and culture of the native Cahuilla Indians and learn about earthquakes and geology at the Epicenter Earthquake Education Center. Moonlight desert hikes and instruction in desert survival are among the many other options available from Desert Adventures.
In the redwood forests just north of Santa Cruz, Mount Hermon Adventures provides a host of team-building and eco-tour programs, including a Redwood Canopy Tour with zip lines and sky bridges through the trees. A new offering is the E.C.O. (Experience, Conserve, Outdoors) Tour, where small groups hike through the Santa Cruz Mountains with a naturalist guide to find seasonal fungi, elderberries, redwood sorrel and other forest edibles.
Depending on the season, Squaw Valley Adventure Center leads hikes and snowshoeing excursions into the Sierra Nevada Mountains near Lake Tahoe to learn about the local botany and explore creeks, waterfalls and alpine lakes. Customized for various fitness levels, the hikes can last from two hours to half a day.
Responsible Team Building
Team-building options with a green or Corporate Social Responsibility aspect are plentiful in California. In the San Francisco Bay Area, TeamBuilding Unlimited has an array of activities that include Project Green Thumb, where participants help plant trees, flowers and shrubs at schools and parks, and Project Recycled Runway, where participants engage in fashion design competitions using recycled materials.
In San Diego, Chairs and Bears is a team-building activity offered by AlliedPRA-San Diego, a local DMC. Participants assemble wheelchairs for wounded military veterans and craft stuffed teddy bears for children in military families.
“We’ve done it on the flight deck of the USS Midway, a really massive open-air space, and then followed it up with a dinner,” says Lynn Lee, director of sales for AlliedPRA. “Or we can do it in the hangars at the Miramar Air Station, where the movie Top Gun was filmed.”
TeamBonding, a team-building company with locations in Los Angeles and San Francisco, offers a variety of charitable and green-focused programs, including Go Green Racing. In this two-hour activity, participants create toy solar-powered cars from kits and recycled materials and then put them to the test in a round-robin drag race. The completed cars and solar car kit are then donated to a local school.
