When Wayan Wardika was a child, fireflies lit up his village at night. Today, he dreams that his children will grow up with the same experience.
A natural-born storyteller, the Balinese sustainability activist and leader carved out a career in hospitality abroad and on cruise ships. But in 2018 – prompted by reading the book Life Begins at Forty, he says – he felt a calling to come home to Taro, near Ubud.
Wayan returned to a different Bali from the one he grew up in, with plastic in the river and fewer fireflies than he saw as a child due to factors including an increase in artificial light. This experience changed the course of his life. Pioneering community-based tourism in the region, he threw himself into permaculture, organic farming…
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International Traveller (Digital) - 1 Issue, March - May 2025