In Conversation With Pooja Akula

Pooja, how did your passion for travel and sustainability inspire your career path as a Digital Nomad and Content Curator?

My time on the roads is a constant journey of learning, unlearning and relearning. It makes me fall in love with this world and encourages me to be a good human.

The taste of this freedom is addictive! It’s simple—travel makes me happy and the digital nomad lifestyle supports this happiness.

Sustainability came gradually along the way when I realized the impact travel had on me, and similarly on the planet and the communities that live on it.

I developed a passion for involving myself in community-based projects, and content creation backed that passion with a direction.

Could you share some insights into how your lifestyle as a Digital Nomad influences your approach to content curation and communication services?

Digital nomadism is my lifestyle, and offering content services is my profession. The former is for me, and the latter helps to sustain the lifestyle.

There’s not much influence, except for the part where I love sharing this lifestyle and its pros and cons on my Instagram—mostly encouraging women to take the leap of faith themselves!

Life is too short to not experience the versatility of this beautiful world, isn’t it? Digital nomadism also helps me expand my clientele.

For example, my time in Spain allowed me to meet and network with new people, one of whom became a client. This doesn’t happen every time—sometimes it’s a new client, but most often, it’s new friends.

What strategies do you employ to effectively convey brands’ identities and voices across various platforms while on the move?

It’s a new strategy each time. No two brands have the same voice—similar, sure, but not the same. Besides, it has nothing to do with whether or not I am on the move.

I could be working from a café in Essaouira, Morocco, or on my couch in Mumbai; it’s the same amount of work that’s put in.

How do you balance your love for travel with the demands of your profession in content curation and communication?

Slow travel. I spend a minimum of a month in every country I visit, more when there aren’t any visa restrictions.

This liberty of time helps me balance my explorations with work without having to compromise on either.

On some days, I don’t touch my laptop at all. On other days, I don’t leave home for days at a stretch, even when in a foreign land.

As an advocate for Responsible Tourism, what initiatives have you undertaken to promote sustainable practices within the industry?

Most of my projects are responsible tourism-centric. Sometimes, it’s providing content for conservation projects, other times it’s involving myself in on-ground projects.

I also write awareness creation pieces and promote responsible tourism businesses and professionals that deserve recognition.

In 2022, I co-founded the Tourythm Community—a safe space for global tourism changemakers to exchange synergies, passion projects, knowledge and resources. The community builds a sense of belonging, fostering co-creation and collaboration.

Can you tell us more about Tourythm Community and its mission to unite changemakers in responsible tourism and hospitality?

Tourythm Community came to birth when Andreas Koch, my co-founder in the initiative, and I decided to build a community that recognizes the courage required to become a changemaker in the space, despite its many shortcomings.

We recognize good work and bring global changemakers together to keep the spirit of responsible tourism high, echoing its importance.

We prioritize knowledge creation and exchange by hosting panel discussions on various critical topics related to tourism, which are open for all to attend. One of our plans for this year is to collaborate with universities to train future advocates of sustainable tourism.

How do you incorporate the principles of Responsible Tourism into your content creation process?

Being conscious of the organizations I work with is one of my principles. For example, I’m currently writing content for Postcard Travel, a company that focuses on conscious luxury travel, emphasizing values similar to mine.

Another example is my project with Majuli Music Festival, collaborating with the Mising tribe of Majuli, Assam. Curating content for this initiative has involved creating awareness about the culture, lifestyle, and environmental challenges of Majuli as the world’s largest river island.

Another way is by avoiding clickbait content on Instagram, a practice many resort to for views and engagement in today’s demanding times. While this approach has led to loss, I prioritize genuine travel experiences over portraying myself as a travel influencer.

What challenges have you faced as a woman navigating the digital nomad lifestyle, and how have you overcome them?

The start is often the most challenging part. In India, not many women are encouraged to travel, let alone travel solo. Like many others I’ve met on the roads, I faced multiple setbacks. But determination helps you focus on the positives, I suppose?

Other challenges persist, but I want every woman to know—it’s the kind of challenges we face as women in general! They’re not unique to travel. So why not travel anyway? One tip is to understand the cultural expectations of a place and respect them without challenging it.

In what ways do you see your work contributing to the empowerment of women in the tourism and hospitality sectors?

I miss no chance to encourage a woman to travel the world. It reflects in everything I do—conversations, work, and social media.

And I think this itself is very important. I try to lead by example, so there’s more credibility and convincing.

Someday, I’d like to give out travel scholarships too! Not just to women but to the underprivileged in general.

Could you share a memorable experience from your travels that has shaped your perspective on responsible tourism?

Years ago, traveling across Ladakh, I stayed at a homestay in Hanle, a very remote location. The homestay was run by a family who sent their children to school with the money they made from running it.

Now you see, the direct impact of tourism is the revenue that helps the family sustain their life. But the social impact is access to education and exposure to society for the children.

It was beautiful to know my money contributed to somebody’s education; a lesson to always choose local businesses over global brands because the impact and contribution we make to them oftentimes exceeds our imagination.

As a global citizen, how do you envision the future of sustainable travel and its impact on communities worldwide?

I hope that travelers and tourists become more conscious of their impact. I envision us being mindful of supporting the local economies of the destinations we visit. Let’s remember that we are guests and respect the host environment.

What advice would you offer to other women who aspire to pursue a similar career path combining their passion for travel, sustainability, and content curation?

If you haven’t already, just take the leap of faith! Know that there are many like you, so go ahead and do it for yourself!

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