Eco- tour

Courtesy : en.wikipedia.org

Ecotourism is a form of tourism involving responsible travel (using sustainable transport) to natural areas, conserving the environment, and improving the well-being of the local people. Its purpose may be to educate the traveler, to provide funds for ecological conservation, to directly benefit the economic development and political empowerment of local communities, or to foster respect for different cultures and for human rights. Since the 1980s, ecotourism has been considered a critical endeavor by environmentalists, so that future generations may experience destinations relatively untouched by human intervention. Ecotourism may focus on educating travelers on local environments and natural surroundings with an eye to ecological conservation. Some include in the definition of ecotourism the effort to produce economic opportunities that make conservation of natural resources financially possible.

Generally, ecotourism deals with interaction with biotic components of the natural environments Ecotourism focuses on socially responsible travel, personal growth, and environmental sustainability. Ecotourism typically involves travel to destinations where flora, fauna, and cultural heritage are the primary attractions. Ecotourism is intended to offer tourists an insight into the impact of human beings on the environment and to foster a greater appreciation of our natural habitats. Ecotourism aims at minimal environmental impact on the areas visited. Besides fostering respect towards the natural environment, ecotourism also helps in creating socio-economic benefits for the communities of the area visited.

Responsible ecotourism programs include those that minimize the negative aspects of conventional tourism on the environment and enhance the cultural integrity of local people. Therefore, in addition to evaluating environmental and cultural factors, an integral part of ecotourism is the promotion of recycling, energy efficiency, water conservation, and creation of economic opportunities for local communities. For these reasons, ecotourism often appeals to advocates of environmental and social responsibility.

Many consider the term “ecotourism”, like “sustainable tourism” (which is a related concept but broader), an oxymoron. Like most long-distance travel, ecotourism often depends on air transportation, which contributes to climate change. Additionally, “the overall effect of sustainable tourism is negative where like ecotourism philanthropic aspirations mask hard-nosed immediate self-interest.”

Benefits

Seal watching near Malusi Islands in Estonia.

Kikoti Safari Camp in Tarangire National Park, Tanzania.

Ecotourism is tourism which is conducted responsibly to conserve the environment and sustain the well-being of local people.Its benefits include:

• Building environmental awareness.
• Providing direct financial benefits for conservation.
• Providing financial benefits and empowerment for local people.
• Respecting local culture.
• Supporting human rights and democratic movements^: 29–31such as:
  • conservation of biological diversity and cultural diversity through ecosystem protection.
  • promotion of sustainable use of biodiversity, by providing jobs to local populations.
  • sharing of all socio-economic benefits with local communities and indigenous peoples by having their informed consent and participation in the management of ecotourism enterprises.
  • tourism to unspoiled natural resources, with minimal impact on the environment being a primary concern.
  • minimization of tourism’s own environmental impact.
  • affordability and lack of waste in the form of luxury.
  • local culture, flora, and fauna being the main attractions.
  • local people, who benefit from this form of tourism economically, and often more than mass tourism.

Ecosystem protection can occur as ecotourism can help the funding of the operation of protected areas (i.e. national parks) Protected areas such as national parks often need to employ (and pay for) park rangers, and if Safari lodges are foreseen, staff is needed for this as well.

For many countries, ecotourism is not simply a marginal activity to finance protection of the environment, but a major industry of the national economy. For example, in Costa Rica, Ecuador, Nepal, Kenya, Madagascar and territories such as Antarctica, ecotourism represents a significant portion of the gross domestic product and economic activity.In Tan-awan, Oslob, Philippines, the ecotourism of swimming with whale sharks makes up to US$5 million a year, which is used to help stop overfishing and damage to the natural ecosystem. In Antarctica 2002, a study on ecotourism benefits was conducted by joint tourism research units from the US and Australia to assess ecotourism’s immediate influence of Antarctica cruise participation on tourists’ knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors. They were also investigating the longer-term influence of Antarctica cruise participation on tourists’ knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors. Immediately after participation, scores on the general environmental behavior and associated intentions index increased 10% with respondents intending to increase significantly. However, three months after their tour, the retrospective respondents showed no significant increases in behaviors compared to the pre-visitation group.

Terminology and history

A hanging bridge in ecotourism area of Thenmala, Kerala in India – India’s first planned ecotourism destination

Ecotourism is a late 20th-century neologism compounded from eco- and tourism. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, ecotour was first recorded in 1973 and ecotourism, “probably after ecotour“, in 1982.

• ecotour, n. … A tour of or visit to an area of ecological interest, usually with an educational element; (in later use also) a similar tour or visit designed to have as little detrimental effect on the ecology as possible or undertaken with the specific aim of helping conservation efforts.
• ecotourism, n. … Tourism to areas of ecological interest (typically exotic and often threatened natural environments), esp. to support conservation efforts and observe wildlife; spec. access to an endangered environment controlled so as to have the least possible adverse effect.

Some sources suggest the terms were used nearly a decade earlier. Claus-Dieter (Nick) Hetzer, an academic and adventurer from Forum International in Berkeley, CA, coined ecotourism in 1965, according to the Contra Costa Times, and ran the first ecotours in the Yucatán during the early 1970s.

The definition of ecotourism adopted by Ecotourism Australia is: “Ecotourism is ecologically sustainable tourism with a primary focus on experiencing natural areas that fosters environmental and cultural understanding, appreciation and conservation.”

The Global Ecotourism Network (GEN) defines ecotourism as “responsible travel to natural areas that conserves the environment, sustains the well-being of the local people, and creates knowledge and understanding through interpretation and education of all involved (visitors, staff and the visited)”.

Ecotourism is often misinterpreted as any form of tourism that involves nature (see jungle tourism). Self-proclaimed practitioners and hosts of ecotourism experiences assume it is achieved by simply creating destinations in natural areas. According to critics of this commonplace and assumptive practice, true ecotourism must, above all, sensitize people to the beauty and the fragility of nature. These critics condemn some operators as greenwashing their operations: using the labels of “green” and “eco-friendly”, while behaving in environmentally irresponsible ways.

Although academics disagree about who can be classified as an ecotourist and there is little statistical data, some estimate that more than five million ecotourists—the majority of the ecotourist population—come from the United States, with many others from Western Europe, Canada and Australia.

Currently, there are various moves to create national and international ecotourism certification programs. National ecotourism certification programs have been put in place in countries such as Costa Rica,Australia, Kenya, Estonia, and Sweden.

Related terms

Sustainable tourism

This section is an excerpt from Sustainable tourism.

A Canopy Walkway at Kakum National Park in Ghana, ensuring that tourists have least direct impact on the surrounding ecology. The visitor park received the Global Tourism for Tomorrow Award the following year.

Sustainable tourism is a concept that covers the complete tourism experience, including concern for economic, social and environmental issues as well as attention to improving tourists’ experiences and addressing the needs of host communities. Sustainable tourism should embrace concerns for environmental protection, social equity, and the quality of life, cultural diversity, and a dynamic, viable economy delivering jobs and prosperity for all. It has its roots in sustainable development and there can be some confusion as to what “sustainable tourism” means^: 23 There is now broad consensus that tourism should be sustainable. In fact, all forms of tourism have the potential to be sustainable if planned, developed and managed properly.Tourist development organizations are promoting sustainable tourism practices in order to mitigate negative effects caused by the growing impact of tourism, for example its environmental impacts.The United Nations World Tourism Organization emphasized these practices by promoting sustainable tourism as part of the Sustainable Development Goals, through programs like the International Year for Sustainable Tourism for Development in 2017. There is a direct link between sustainable tourism and several of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).^: 26 Tourism for SDGs focuses on how SDG 8 (“decent work and economic growth”), SDG 12 (“responsible consumption and production”) and SDG 14 (“life below water”) implicate tourism in creating a sustainable economy.Improvements are expected to be gained from suitable management aspects and including sustainable tourism as part of a broader sustainable development strategy.

Improving sustainability

Principles

Ecotourism in both terrestrial and marine ecosystems can benefit conservation, provided the complexities of history, culture, and ecology in the affected regions are successfully navigated.Catherine Macdonald and colleagues identify the factors which determine conservation outcome, namely whether: animals and their habits are sufficiently protected; conflict between people and wildlife is avoided or at least suitably mitigated; there is good outreach and education of the local population into the benefits of ecotourism; there is effective collaboration with stakeholders in the area; and there is proper use of the money generated by ecotourism to conserve the local ecology.They conclude that ecotourism works best to conserve predators when the tourism industry is supported both politically and by the public, and when it is monitored and controlled at local, national, and international levels.

Regulation and accreditation

Because the regulations of ecotourism may be poorly implemented, ecologically destructive greenwashed operations like underwater hotels, helicopter tours, and wildlife theme parks can be categorized as ecotourism along with canoeing, camping, photography, and wildlife observation. The failure to acknowledge responsible, low-impact ecotourism puts legitimate ecotourism companies at a competitive disadvantage.

Management strategies to mitigate destructive operations include but are not limited to establishing a carrying capacity, site hardening, sustainable design, visitation quotas, fees, access restrictions, and visitor education.

Many environmentalists have argued for a global standard that can be used for certification, differentiating ecotourism companies based on their level of environmental commitment, creating a standard to follow. A national or international regulatory board would enforce accreditation procedures, with representation from various groups including governments, hotels, tour operators, travel agents, guides, airlines, local authorities, conservation organizations, and non-governmental organizations.The decisions of the board would be sanctioned by governments, so that non-compliant companies would be legally required to disassociate themselves from the use of the ecotourism brand.

In 1998, Crinion suggested a Green Stars System, based on criteria including a management plan, benefit for the local community, small group interaction, education value and staff training. Ecotourists who consider their choices would be confident of a genuine ecotourism experience when they see the higher star rating.

In 2008 the Global Sustainable Tourism Council Criteria was launched at the IUCN World Conservation Congress.The Criteria, managed by the Global Sustainable Tourism Council, created a global standard for sustainable travel and tourism and includes criteria and performance indicators for destinations, tour operators and hotels. The GSTC provides accreditation through a third-party to Certification Bodies to legitimize claims of sustainability.

Environmental impact assessments could also be used as a form of accreditation. Feasibility is evaluated from a scientific basis, and recommendations could be made to optimally plan infrastructure, set tourist capacity, and manage the ecology. This form of accreditation is more sensitive to site-specific conditions.

Some countries have their own certification programs for ecotourism. Costa Rica, for example, runs the GSTC-Recognized Certification of Sustainable Tourism (CST) program, which is intended to balance the effect that business has on the local environment. The CST program focuses on a company’s interaction with natural and cultural resources, the improvement of quality of life within local communities, and the economic contribution to other programs of national development. CST uses a rating system that categorizes a company based upon how sustainable its operations are. CST evaluates the interaction between the company and the surrounding habitat; the management policies and operation systems within the company; how the company encourages its clients to become an active contributor towards sustainable policies; and the interaction between the company and local communities/the overall population. Based upon these criteria, the company is evaluated for the strength of its sustainability. The measurement index goes from 0 to 5, with 0 being the worst and 5 being the best.

Labels and certification

Over 50 ecolabels on tourism exist. These include (but are not limited to):

• Austrian Ecolabel for Tourism
• Asian Ecotourism Standard for Accommodations (AESA)
• Eco-certification Malta
• EarthCheck Australia
• Ecotourism Australia
• Ecotourism Ireland
• Ecotourism Kenya
• European Ecotourism Labelling Standard (EETLS)
• Korean Ecotourism Standard

Guidelines and education

Ecotour guide stands on a kayak spotting dolphins and manatees, around Lido Key

An environmental protection strategy must address the issue of ecotourists removed from the cause-and-effect of their actions on the environment. More initiatives should be carried out to improve their awareness, sensitize them to environmental issues, and care about the places they visit.

Tour guides are an obvious and direct medium to communicate awareness. With the confidence of ecotourists and intimate knowledge of the environment, tour guides can actively discuss conservation issues. Informing ecotourists about how their actions on the trip can negatively impact their environment and the local people. A tour guide training program in Costa Rica’s Tortuguero National Park has helped mitigate negative environmental impacts by providing information and regulating tourists on the parks’ beaches used by nesting endangered sea turtles.