(Posted 21st June 2025)
Charlotte Beauvoisin – of Diary of Muzungu fame – has been named as a finalist in the annual ATTA Action Awards 2025.
https://www.muzungubloguganda.com/conservation/atta-for-action-awards/
The East Africa Travel Podcast is hosted by Charlotte Beauvoisin, Author of the Diary of a Muzungu, who told ATCNews that she is thrilled to be named a finalist in African Travel and Tourism Association ATTA®’s Media Voice for Action, an awards scheme whose values are close to her heart!
Wish me luck – the winner will be announced on June 23rd at Experience Africa, an ATTA® event in
London.
Said Charlotte further:
‘The ATTA® Media Voice for Action Award recognises the importance of creativity, accurate storytelling, ethical focus, and audience impact to amplify the message of responsible tourism in Africa. This recognition by African travel colleagues means a great deal to me: it reflects the purpose behind everything I have been doing in Uganda over the past 15 years—to share East Africa’s stories in a meaningful, responsible – and fun! – way.’
What is the East Africa Travel Podcast?
I created the East Africa Travel Podcast as a personal and upbeat way to explore
sustainable tourism in Uganda and beyond. It captures unscripted moments and
conversations with tourism changemakers, blending storytelling with East Africa’s natural
soundtrack: the dawn chorus, the grunting of hippos, the call of the great blue turaco and
chimpanzees calling deep in the forest.
From walking safaris in Kyambura Game Reserve with Wildplaces, to the Original
Maasai Lodge in Tanzania, which is run entirely by the Maasai community, the stories are
designed to inspire. Another highlight was chatting to Queen Sylvia, the Nnaabagareka of
Buganda Kingdom, after she returned from tracking mountain gorillas in Uganda's Bwindi
Impenetrable National Park.
Fascinating expert guests include Ian Redmond OBE, Professor Richard Wrangham, and
Uganda's official sports tourism ambassador Rob Walker.
Why I started the East Africa Travel Podcast
The idea was born during lockdown. Friends overseas loved the tropical bird backdrop to my
audio notes – so I asked myself: how could I capture the sounds of nature to inspire travel,
and to showcase the conservation heroes I’ve met over 15 years of travelling around
Uganda and East Africa?
With so much noise online – and AI producing endless generic (and sometimes misleading)
content – I wanted to create something more personal. The podcast gives listeners a strong
sense of place and a human voice behind every story.
Who’s listening?
Listeners from around the world tell me they feel closer to booking a trip after hearing “the
everyday sounds of life in Uganda.” Comments include:
“I had no idea you could get so close to nature.”
“This episode made me want to return.”
Who is Diary of a Muzungu?
In 2009, I left London life to volunteer with the Uganda Conservation Foundation through
Voluntary Service Overseas, supporting rangers tackling poaching and human–wildlife
conflict. That experience changed my life. Life has come full circle: I now live on the edge of
a Protected Area in a wooden house on the edge of Kibale Forest.
Over the past 15 years, I’ve dedicated myself to developing and promoting Uganda and
Africa’s tourism potential. Since 2013, I’ve trained over 1,200 guides, lodge staff and tour
operators in digital marketing. In 2024, I became a sustainable tourism trainer. I’m known
locally as Nagawa, protector of the Nkima (red-tailed monkey) clan.
What’s next for the East Africa Travel Podcast?
Season 2 launches mid-2025 and will feature:
Watching baby turtles with Diani Turtle Watch in Kenya
Ikechi Uko, tourism guru visiting Uganda from Nigeria
Harriet Owalla, Kenyan travel journalist on location in Mombasa
Rowan Martin of World Parrot Trust discussing the impact of the pet trade on wild
birds
Cuthbert Ncube, Chair of the Africa Tourism Association, visiting Uganda from
South Africa and Eswatini
…and more stories from forest walks and gorilla tracking to long-distance travel by bus, train
and ferry from Kampala to the Kenyan coast.
Listen to the podcast here on Diary of a Muzungu, Apple, Spotify, and all podcast directories.
What are the ATTA® for Action Awards?
Tourism is competitive, and in the race to make quick profits, local communities and the
environment are often overlooked. There is a growing business case for sustainable
tourism—one in which local communities gain meaningful social and financial benefits,
where the overall impact of tourism is neutral or even positive. I’m honoured to be a finalist in
these well-designed awards, which go far beyond the prevailing narratives of 'business as
usual' or the often superficial CSR efforts that amount to little more than greenwashing.
The ATTA® for Action Awards celebrate those who are making travel in Africa more ethical,
impactful and sustainable. Each category recognises innovation and leadership—whether in
community uplift, zero-waste tourism, or storytelling. Learn more at awards.atta.travel.
ATTA® for Action Awards are in their second year. Read about all the 2025 finalists here.
Award categories are: Purpose & People, Earthkeepers, EcoInnovation, Zero Waste
Trailblazer, Community Upliftment, Marine Impact, Collaborative Impact, Traveller Education
and Awareness, Media Voice for Action, Emerging Changemaker.
I look forward to meeting my fellow finalists next week at Experience Africa in London!
ATCNews wishes Charlotte the best of success in the upcoming award decision!
