In 1969, Lars-Eric launched the Lindblad Explorer, opening Antarctica to more adventurous travelers. Dog teams, once common, are no longer used on the continent. Regarded as the father of ecotourism, Lars-Eric was literally the first travel company owner to take travelers where only scientists had gone—the first to take citizen explorers to many destinations, including Antarctica and Galapagos, in 1966 and 1967, respectively. By believing that educated people who saw things with their own eyes would be a potent force for the preservation of the places they visited, he made his notions a powerful force for the good of conservation and restoration projects worldwide.