Our Story
Alyna and Riya Johnson are twins with a passion for anthropology and travel. They are currently fifteen years old and sophomores at The Winsor School. Since they were young, they have been fortunate to travel the world to experience different cultures. Their interest in the diversity of the human species stems from their own ethnic background: their mother is Indian but grew up in Kenya while their father is the son of a British mother and Trinidadian father. He was raised in Canada by Serbian foster parents. Overall, the twins have family from five of the seven continents! As they document their travels and share research, Alyna provides a cultural perspective while Riya details biological adaptations.
Goals and Values
01
Practicing Sustainable Tourism
We acknowledge that tourism can be harmful. However, our goal is to minimize the negative effects we have on the countries we visit. We will preserve their beauty so that future generations can enjoy them. Thus, we use travel agencies dedicated to conservation, such as Abercrombie & Kent; stay at sustainable hotels; and respect local environments.
02
Fostering Genuine Connections
The highlight of our trips is always interacting with locals. Although basic facts about any country are available online, conversations with locals allow us to discover so much more about their lifestyles and mentalities. However, we must foster genuine connections to make our acquaintances feel comfortable sharing their stories.
03
Writing From the “I” Perspective
We acknowledge that our blog posts reflect our perceptions, which are influenced by our prior experiences. You would likely relay the same information differently. Thus, we use the first person to clearly differentiate between accepted facts and our own opinions.
04
Using Credible Sources
We collect most of our information for travel posts from our guides, who are extremely knowledgeable but also human. Thus, they may make mistakes or exhibit personal bias. We, too, are human, so we may subconsciously include our personal views in our blog posts. However, we conduct extensive research to maximize objectivity. To confirm that our sources are trustworthy, you can find them at the end of each post.
05
Respecting Locals’ Privacy
Locals are welcome to turn down questions, and we always receive their consent before photographing or filming them. Additionally, we include ourselves in our photos and videos to avoid treating locals like “specimens.”
06
Avoiding the Idea of Race or Categorization
We acknowledge that race is a social construct and that all humans are part of a single race: the human race. Thus, we do not “other” locals or judge their lifestyles. We are aware that we interact with a limited number of locals and do not claim to collect information representative of entire communities. Last, we dismiss our preconceived notions about locals and never manipulate their responses to align with racial stereotypes.