Ever get that feeling when you’re on a tour—the feeling that you’re having the time of your life, and that you’d like to give back to the places you’re riding through, and the people you’re meeting? Many of us don’t realize how much we truly have until we go on tour and see that others haven’t had the same opportunities. And now, Big Little Rides is putting together a tour in Morocco with this in mind.
Photo: Rif.com
Big Little Rides is a moto touring company that’s owned by women (ADVwriter Egle Gerulaityte was a co-founder), coming up with adventure travel opportunities that are designed by women, for women. And that’s the theme of their next “Travel With an Impact” tour in Morocco. This is a no-boys-allowed moto trip through the Rif Mountains, stopping at the Blue City of Chefchaouen. But the trip is about more than just sight-seeing and having the time of your life.
Photo: Rif.com
The Rif Mountains are rugged, beautiful and filled with remote communities. That geography and the local culture makes it hard to for local girls and women to have access to education. Women are often limited to agricultural work, with low pay, and girls have little or no opportunity for post-secondary education.
Seeing an opportunity to improve the lives and opportunities of these girls and women, Big Little Rides has partnered with RifCom, an NGO based in Gibraltar that aims to help women and girls in the Rif Moutains by improving their education and employment opportunities. RifCom helps out with programs such as girls’ boarding schools, preschools, females’ sewing co-ops and other ideas to help improve the future for people living in the Rif Mountains.
Photo: Rif.com
Even if you can’t go on the tour, you can still help out:
To amplify their impact, Big Little Rides is launching a fundraising campaign in conjunction with the Morocco tour. The goal is to raise €1,500 to provide classroom equipment and supplies for a rural preschool, with stretch goals of €3,000 to cover a preschool teacher’s salary and €5,000 to support 15 girls in completing their high school Baccalauréat.
“We believe that adventure travel can be a force for good,” says Egle, co-founder of Big Little Rides. “As female riders, we’re passionate about giving back to the communities we visit, especially those where women and girls face limited opportunities. By partnering with RifCom, we’re able to combine our love for riding with our commitment to empowering women.”
See more info on the tour or find details on how to donate to the NGO’s work with the locals here.