What is ecotourism is

What is ecotourism and why we need more of it

It’s a way to do a massive difference and it’s something which I hope more and more people will start doing.

Ecotourism is a form of sustainable travel that supports the local environment instead of putting more pressure on it and exploiting its resources.

Things are rarely simple, however, and ecotourism is a complex concept. Its importance is growing more and more each year, as more and more people travel farther and farther away. If you care about nature, the environment, and local communities, you should ensure that your travels are carried out sustainably. Here’s how.

A bridge in ecotourism area of Thenmala, Kerala in India – India’s first planned ecotourism destination. Image via Wikipedia.

What is ecotourism anyway?

The problems with ecotourism start right from the definition, as people working in different fields (academic, tourism, policy) tend to prefer somewhat differing approaches.

There are a few definitions which stand out. The one which is generally accepted in most circles is the one from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN):

“Environmentally responsible travel to natural areas, in order to enjoy and appreciate nature (and accompanying cultural features, both past and present) that promote conservation, have a low visitor impact and provide for beneficially active socio-economic involvement of local peoples.”

Local market in Tanzania. Photo by Rasheed hamis.

Another, simpler and more to the point definition is given by The International Ecotourism Society (TIES), which says that ecotourism is “responsible travel to natural areas that conserves the environment and improves the well-being of local people.” In practice, this implies several things.

The first thing it implies is a level of awareness from the tourist. Tourists should be aware of their impact both on the local environment and on the local community and should try, within reasonable limits, to reduce this impact. Furthermore, the tourist should not only try to do as little damage as possible, but also to support the local community whenever this is possible. Of course, this doesn’t mean that the whole experience becomes less pleasant — on the contrary. This appreciation attitude often leads to the traveler enjoying his experience even more.

It’s also important not to be fooled by pleasant words — a vacation isn’t “ecotourism” just because it says so on the label, and many companies will advertise vacations as eco-friendly without actual justification. A recent study found that many such offers aren’t really helping local ecosystems. Ecotourism is one of the fastest-growing sectors of the tourism industry, and tour operators will try to lure clients using eco-advertising.

However, when used properly, ecotourism can make a difference and help species in need.

The Cliffs of Moher, one of Ireland’s most popular attractions are visited by loads and loads of people every month. Local authorities are working on ways to ensure the eco-friendliness of these visits. Photo by Dora Meulman.

Looking at things from a wider perspective, it’s also about the size of the groups. You can’t do mass-ecotourism, it’s an oxymoron — ecotourism has to be done in small or medium groups. There is also usually a strong educational component associated with ecotourism, which also helps, but is not mandatory. Common themes in this context are recycling, responsible water consumption, local craftsmanship, and cycling or walking as opposed to driving. A great emphasis is placed on protecting local species, especially threatened species.

Why we need ecotourism

According to the Air Transport Action Group, the world’s airlines carried a total of over 3 billion passengers in 2013, a figure which has steadily increased since. Oxford Economics expects that figure to almost double, reaching 5.9 billion by 2030. All these people are not only emitting huge quantities of CO2 (indirectly) but also putting great pressure on many environments.

There’s no getting around it: as living standards increase globally, tourism is set to grow, and tourism places a substantial burden on ecosystems.

Tourists also require additional infrastructure, such as water treatment plants, sanitation facilities, and lodging. Oftentimes, local communities are not able to sustainably offer these conditions and the results can be devastating. In many parts of Africa for example, large-scale tourism led to the improper disposal of campsite sewage. This, in turn, resulted in the contamination of the nearest river where wildlife, livestock, and people draw drinking water — but that’s just the start of it.

Especially in vulnerable areas, the increase in visitors can lead to significant environmental degradation. Local communities can also be harmed by an influx of tourists as the money influx is rarely directed towards them. Wherever people go, we leave behind garbage – and even if it is left in bins, it can still create a dangerous imbalance. Safaris and animal photographing can scare creatures. Feeding wildlife can teach them bad habits and leave them depending on humans. Even just walking can lead to soil erosion and destruction of animal paths. It can be hard to accept, but everything we do has an impact on wildlife – we should be conscious of this.

Are you riding an elephant? Then you’re probably not doing ecotourism. Being in nature and touching wild animals isn’t helping anyone. Photo by BrokenSphere

Examples abound. In the Antarctic, one of the planet’s most vulnerable areas, it can take hundreds of years for any rubbish to decompose and tourists leave behind plenty of garbage. In Australia, tourists are accelerating the downfall of the Great Barrier Reef, and in Africa, tourism jobs are poorly paid, yet tourism is pushing the prices up – the money isn’t going to the locals, but prices are rising. It can be really easy to make a difference, and giving up on mass-tourism is a much-needed first step.

In this context, ecotourism can make a dramatic difference, removing the environmental impact or, at the very least, reducing it.

The world absolutely needs more ecotourism. It teaches travelers to be more attuned to the pristine areas of the world, it helps educate people, it provides funds for conservation as well as for local communities (often indigenous). Also, because a state of respect and awareness is awakened in the tourist, the quality of his travels is also increased significantly.

The goals of ecotourism

Some people consider the terms ‘ecotourism’ and ‘sustainable tourism’ to be an oxymoron altogether — that you can’t travel in a way that helps the environment. First of all, you have to get from one place to another which almost always means a plane, which burns fossil fuels. Secondly, no matter how much you try, your impact will still be negative. But while that is at least worth considering, it’s taking away from the point. If you’ve decided to travel, you can still do a lot to reduce your impact and at least in some aspects, even make a positive difference. There is always room for improvement. Here’s how.

Traditional pottery in Mexico. Photo by Cameron Nordholm.

As long as these objectives are fulfilled, I’d dare say that ecotourism is successful:

Ecotourism and greenwashing

Ecotourism is one of the fastest growing sectors of tourism, reporting growths of 10-15% annually worldwide. Unfortunately, this has had many negative consequences – especially for options masquerading as ecotourism which are actually detrimental to the environment.

Tourists at the Keukenhof Gardens in the Netherlands. Garden tourism, like jungle tourism is not the same as ecotourism – even though you are in nature. Photo by Chuck Szmurlo.

An important fact of eco-friendly travels is avoiding “green” traps.

Some people mistake any form of nature travel with ecotourism. Just because you’re in nature doesn’t mean you’re doing something right – on the contrary, it often means that your impact is high and negative. Things like jungle travel or adventure travel are not eco-friendly and shouldn’t be confused as such even though many touristic operators use buzz words like “green” or “eco-friendly” – this is a clear case of greenwashing.

So, if something is said to be eco-friendly, how can we know when it is or when it’s not? Well, think about the first objective and use your awareness. If the trip involves walking through the jungle, does that walk help nature and locals in any way? If they say the money goes towards conservation, how much is going that way? Is it 1 percent? 10 percent? 70 percent? Ask questions like these before you decide what’s eco-friendly and what’s not. Pay special attention to petting zoos or so-called sanctuaries.

That’s the bottom line, ecotourism should concern three main things:

It’s a way to make a massive difference and it’s something which I hope more and more people will start doing.

What is Ecotourism? – Concept Explanation & Goals

What is Ecotourism?

Tourism is currently seeing a boost unlike any other time in history. While this is a good thing, it has taken a toll on our environment. Nature and local communities are sacrificed in the name of profits, just to accommodate the ever-increasing number of tourists every year.

That’s why sustainable tourism, or ecotourism, should be a top priority for everyone on the planet. But what does ecotourism mean? And is it effective?

Today we’ll explain the concept of ecotourism and how it benefits everyone as a whole. We’ll also talk about who can be considered an ‘eco tourist’ and the steps you can take to become one.

The Ecotourism Definition

The simplest way to explain the concept of ecotourism is with two words: traveling responsibly.

Simply put, ecotourism is tourism that centers around awareness of the environment and the local community. As eco-tourists, the goal is to visit an area with the well-being of the local people and nature in mind. Not only should you respect their home, but you should actively improve it whenever you can.

However, this is easier said than done. Ecotourism can be a very complex topic despite having straightforward goals.

Ecotourism is a booming industry in the broader tourism sector, and it’s getting a lot of attention—both good and bad. The latter, unfortunately, exploits this by luring tourists into “eco-friendly” getaways that aren’t helping the local environment at all.

When done right, however, ecotourism creates a lasting impact on local communities and ecosystems for years to come.

There are many ways to approach ecotourism, but most share a few common elements. One of the most important is tourism education. Successful ecotourism begins with the tourist being aware of the impact they are making on the places they visit. Only then can they take active steps to help protect the local ecosystem.

Education also extends to teaching tourists important conservation efforts like recycling, reducing water consumption, and promoting local crafts instead of mass-produced souvenirs.

That’s why ecotourism works best when done in small or medium-sized groups. Doing it at a mass scale isn’t only practical, it’s also ineffective.

There’s also a misconception that ecotourism makes a vacation “strict” or “boring”. Actually, ecotourism can make your trip much more enjoyable and meaningful. You’ll leave the place of your visit with a better understanding and appreciation of the local culture and environment. More importantly, you’ll gain a sense of fulfillment from having made a difference in the lives of the people and animals you left behind.

What are the Goals of Ecotourism

Ecotourism is all about balancing the need for profits (to sustain operations) with long term sustainability. The focus, of course, is more on the latter.

The overarching goal of ecotourism is to create experiences that benefit everyone equally, not just the tourist and stakeholders. This means protecting the local ecosystem and natural resources. It also involves giving local people a living wage while helping them preserve their communities and culture.

While the goal is simple, the implementation is not. There are many factors and opposing needs involved. To make it easier, here are a set of criteria for achieving ecotourism.

Environmental and cultural awareness

Successful ecotourism needs a way to educate tourists to raise their awareness of their environment. The most common way to do this is immersion with the locals. In this way, tourists get a glimpse of their culture and way of life, while building an appreciation of their surroundings in the process. Some operators also conduct educational programs in schools and local communities to spread awareness.

Benefit for the local community

The next goal of ecotourism is that it should provide a clear benefit to the local community. The way of doing this is through companies providing jobs or donating some of the profit back to the local community. Naturally, their basic human rights should be respected. It’s also best to get the locals involved in every decision the tourist company makes.

Benefit for the environment

Lastly, the ecotourism initiative should have a clear benefit for the environment as well. Part of the profit generated by the ecotourism company should go into nature conservation efforts.

The activities, structures, and accommodations made by the ecotourism company should also leave a minimal carbon footprint. Using sustainable materials and sources of energy is one way of accomplishing this. Doing small tour groups so as not to disturb the local wildlife is another. Whatever the method, it should have a positive, not just neutral, effect on the environment.

What Does Ecotourism Mean For Turtle Island

Turtle Island Fiji resort and its surrounding landscape is known to be one of the most beautiful places in the world. Fiji has one of the world’s most magnificent beaches, and boasts a diverse selection of flora and fauna. Plus, it’s where amazing and hospitable people live.

Turtle Island is a pioneer in conservation and sustainable tourism practices and naturally, we would love to see everyone visit our private island paradise for the next 100 years or more. We’ve practiced sustainable travel since our founding in 1980 and have been working towards this dream with our ecotourism efforts. After all, we weren’t named a “Green Hotelier of the Year” for nothing.

For over 40 years Turtle Island’s founder has committed to a quadruple bottom line decision making process in everything that he did which resulted in Turtle Island establishing itself as one of the world’s leading eco-lodges. Any developments on the Island needed to make financial sense, have environmental integrity, benefit the local people, and celebrate the heritage and culture of the place. Turtle Island’s key pillars of community, culture, commerce and conservation and connection continue to guide Turtle Island’s practices to this day.

Ecotourism has helped protect the Island’s environment. Sustainably built facilities such as ours help conserve the island’s natural resources. Our accommodations and internal furnishings are made from sustainable recycled materials, which include fallen tree limbs gathered from the Island’s forests.

Reforestation of cleared areas gives animals an excellent habitat to live on. We’ve planted over half a million trees on the Island encouraging biodiversity, re-establishing indigenous forests and adding to the Island’s natural beauty.

Sustainable energy, such as solar, helps avoid the use of dirty fossil fuels. Our solar farm was completed in 2013 making Turtle Island one of the first island resorts in the world to be self-sufficient and to light the way towards a clean energy future.

When the environment is protected, it has a positive impact on Turtle Island’s wildlife as well.

One of the most beautiful but endangered species on this island is the sea turtle. We funnel some of the revenue from our ecotourism operations into the conservation of this magnificent animal. Our Turtle Conservation Program in partnership with the World Wildlife Fund helps save the lives of these endangered creatures. Local fishermen bring sea turtles that are accidentally caught to Turtle Island where they are measured, weighed, tagged, and released back into the ocean. The data collected by our team such as weight, size, and distinctive markings are sent to the World Wildlife Fund and helps save turtles by supporting scientists and researchers. We also give our guests, especially kids, a glimpse into our conservation efforts, so that they might have a better appreciation of it.

Lastly, ecotourism has a significant impact on the way of life of the local Fijians in the islands. Employing the majority of our staff from the local villages in our community, our eco-resort has given these warm and hospitable people a chance to earn a living wage without having to sacrifice their culture and identity. This also allows them to continue protecting the unspoiled beauty of the islands so that future generations may enjoy it as they do.

How to Put the Ecotourism Principles in Action

Ecotourism companies can only do so much in protecting the local environment. At the end of the day, becoming a responsible eco-tourist will have the most significant impact.

An eco-tourist is one who is aware of the places they visit and do everything possible to help improve that. You can become one today by following a few simple steps:

First, always be more conscious of your water and electricity usage even when you’re in your hotel room. Turn off the lights and TV when you plan to go out.

It’s also a good idea to put up the “Do Not Disturb” sign on your door and reuse towels if you can. This reduces the water, electricity, and cleaning chemicals used by the staff in tidying up your room.

It’s also helpful to get into the habit of recycling and reusing everything as much as you can. Use a reusable BPA-free water bottle, so you don’t need to use a plastic mineral water bottle. Consider putting back the brochure or maps after you use them so they can be reused.

When buying souvenirs or looking for activities to do, always look for local, sustainable options. Opt for souvenirs made by the locals using sustainable materials. Meet the locals and embrace their culture.

Whatever you do, don’t leave trash or anything behind.

Book Your Next Ecotourism Trip

If you’re inspired thus far to book your next ecotourism trip, a fair warning—make sure you do your research!

There are plenty of tourism operators out there who are just riding the ecotourism wave. They pose as ecotourism companies, but are not doing anything beneficial for the environment at all. Some may even make a negative impact on the local environment and communities on which they operate.

So research any companies, hotels, or tour groups carefully. Take a look at their website and see what their initiatives are in protecting the wildlife and local community. Ask them about their carbon footprint, and if they offer any cultural immersion activities. A true ecotourism company will be proud of this fact, and will happily walk you through the steps they take to be eco-friendly.

Even if you’re not booking accommodations or tours with an ecotourism company, you can always practice the principles in your own way. Most airlines have a carbon offset program you can avail of. Then it’s all about practicing ecotourism principles yourself wherever you go.

Turtle Island

At Turtle Island, we care about the environment and local culture as much as we care about giving you an unforgettable Fiji vacation. If you want to experience ecotourism at its finest, we invite you to book your stay with us. The breathtaking beauty, delicious cuisine, and warm people of Fiji await!

What is ecotourism and why is it important?

Tourism is a widespread and fast-growing industry and contributes significantly to the world GDP. According to a report published by the World Travel and Tourism Council in 2017, the industry accounted for 10.2% of the global GDP. Tourism entails various categories such as –

This blog will focus on the aspect of ecotourism and why it’s important. Read on to find all about this tourism type.

What is ecotourism?

As defined by the International Ecotourism Society, ecotourism refers to “responsible travel that conserves the environment and improves the well-being of local people”. Also called “nature tourism”, the objective of ecotourism is to minimize the impact brought about by tourism on the environment. The idea is to focus on uniting conservation, communities and sustainable development through the means of travel.

Why is ecotourism important?

People who engage in ecotourism need to abide by certain guidelines. The principles of ecotourism are beneficial for the world as a whole, given the constantly deteriorating climatic conditions. Given below are the benefits of ecotourism:

Are you, more often than not, intrigued by the beauty of nature? Do you strongly feel that the nature should be protected? Well then, this is the career for you! Here are some reasons why you should take up ecotourism as a career.

Scope of ecotourism

Tourism, as a whole, has adversely affected the natural beauty of certain places. This is a consequence of commercializing tourist destinations in order to suit the tourism standards. The constantly deteriorating climate is a wake-up call for tourism enthusiasts. In the face of this adversity, nature tourism has come as a blessing. The impact of ecotourism is positive and beneficial for hosts, travelers as well as the world, in general. Ecotourism, as a career, presents professionals with the opportunity of looking at the world with a different perspective and working towards achieving a better environment to live in.

Ecotourism is catching pace with other forms of tourism and it is happening fast. There are varied types of jobs in ecotourism in different sections of the sector. Some of the job roles are explained below:

How to start a career in ecotourism

Many aspects of tourism are resonant in ecotourism, with the difference of a noble cause. Various premium institutes offer travel and tourism courses that can help you understand the nitty-gritties of the industry. Toronto School of Management (TSOM) offers two tourism-related courses for students who are passionate about travel. The courses offered by TSOM are:

If you also want to take up a tourism course and are passionate about this, sign up for a course now! To find out more about the courses offered by TSOM, click here.

Ecotourism: History, Types, Components, and Importance

Ecotourism is eco-friendly tourism responsible for travel to green areas without impacting the local community. Further, this can be helpful in the conservation of our ecosystem.

Everyone adores visiting different natural areas where they can get mental peace and relaxation. Thus, every year lots of traveller’s ride to tourist attractions. Through this, the tour and travel industry have become the world’s largest growing industry. However, the growing tourism industry needs to learn environment-friendly or sustainable tourism that is eco-tourism.

Therefore, here, we will discuss all sorts of information about ecotourism and understand what ecotourism is and why ecotourism is important.

Table of Contents

What is Ecotourism? Definition:

It is a type of tourism between seeing clean and relatively undisturbed natural areas thought to be a low-impact and often small alternative to standard commercial mass tourism. Its motivation resides in training the explorer to provide assets to natural preservation for legitimately profit from the money-related turn of events and political strengthening of nearby networks or to encourage regard for various societies and human rights.

Since the nineteen-eighties, ecotourism was considered as a critical endeavour by environmentalists, so that future generations might undergo destinations comparatively untouched by human interventions, thirty-three many university applications use this description as the working definition of Akkad or ism.

In this manner, yet assessing natural and social factors, a necessary piece of a Kadir ism is to advance water preservation and the age of financial open doors for neighborhood networks. For these reasons, ecotourism usually appeals to advocates for social and environmental responsibility. The term or word ecotourism, like sustainable tourism, is considered by many to be an oxymoron.

Like most kinds of tourism, ecotourism generally depends on air transportation, which contributes to global climate change. For example, tourists differ from a tourist in the sense he or she’s conscious of his environment, in most cases contributing to the sustainability of these surroundings.

History of Ecotourism:

Helzer, in 1965 first used the term ecotourism. He described four pillars of ecotourism or environment-friendly tourism. These are reducing the extent of environmental effects of ecotourism, respecting host cultures, improving the benefits of local communities, and accelerating travellers’ satisfaction.

In 1978, Miller worked on eco-development in Latin America, gives us another reference for ecotourism.

A document was also created on a set of road-based ‘eco-tours’ by Environment Canada from the mid-1979s to the early 1980s.

A few developing countries realized why ecotourism is important and started sustainable tourism programs to conserve and develop our environment by the mid-1980s.

Also, the first definition of ecotourism was given by Ceballos-Lascurain in 1987. According to him,

“Travelling to relatively undisturbed or uncontaminated natural areas with the specific objective of studying, admiring and enjoying the scenery and its wild plants and animals, as well as any existing cultural manifestation (both past and present) in these areas.”

Types of Ecotourism:

According to Fennell, Ecotourism exists with two vast types of tourism; such as:

Mass Tourism:

Mass tourism is Conventional, Standard, Large-scale Tourism.

Alternative Tourism:

It is Further Subdivided below:

If we observe the alternative tourism in a closer look, we’ll get its five subdivisions:

Cultural:

Cultural tourism is a type of tourism where people explore certain places to learn the cultural production and attraction.

Educational:

When you tend to visit a place for learning the different aspects for acquiring knowledge and collecting evidence for any research project, that type of tourism is known as educational tourism.

Scientific:

Scientific tourism means visiting a place for any scientific knowledge acquisition. Here students tend to visit universities, museums, laboratories, etc., to collect knowledge about the research facilities and scope of learning and working in a particular institute or industry.

Adventure:

Adventure tourism is a kind of tourism where you explore and experience different adventures or risk full activities. For example, sky diving, scuba diving, hiking, trekking, snorkeling, bungee jumping, bamboo rafting, rock climbing, etc. People plan such types of trips to remove their fears and to rush some adrenaline and endorphins.

Agri-tourism:

Agri-tourism is another great way to explore and experience nature. We visit agricultural fields, vineyards or grape yards, farms, etc., to learn more about the overall process of food production.

These can be considered as actual types of ecotourism as this helps to study and understand why ecotourism is important and helps to minimize the environmental impact of mass tourism.

Components of Ecotourism:

After understanding what ecotourism is, now let’s know the various components of it. It includes the following seven parts:

So, the components of ecotourism describe three critical factors i.e. natural, sustainable, and educational ecotourism.

Characteristics of Ecotourism:

Ecotourism consists of several characteristics such as;

Why Is Ecotourism Important?

Ecotourism is important, no doubt, but why is it important is the biggest question that comes to our mind when we start studying it. Well, it has lots of benefits, which can take us directly to sustainable development. So, let us describe a few of them;

Learning Non-Hazardous Tourism:

Ecotourism makes us understand the value of learning sustainability. We can seek safe, risk-free tourism, which will benefit us and our planet.

It helps us to protect our environment by reducing the usage of fossil fuels, learning to conserve our nature, and not taking part in species destruction. Mass tourism makes our environment polluted as travellers are unaware of what their impact is. But if we learn ecotourism, we can plan how to gain experience and will be more responsible for our planet.

We will explore more and become curious to learn the history, culture, and other aspects of the plants, animals as well as the local community. Learning makes us more aware, and by that, people will be more sensitive towards influencing others by their actions.

Reduction In Our Ecological Footprint by Ecotourism:

An ecological footprint means the measurement of the adverse impact on our environment caused by a single individual or its organization. It can be either a carbon footprint or a greenhouse gas footprint, which is the result of our daily activities.

But the good news is we can reduce our carbon footprint or ecological footprint effortlessly by practicing ecotourism. For sustainable tourism, we need to travel, and traveling causes us to increase our carbon footprint. This is unavoidable, but if we practice cutting off our travel needs by exploring several local riding methods, or simply by visiting the area on foot, it will be helpful to our climate and our health.

Helpful for Wildlife:

Species extinction, species fragmentation, and habitat destruction are some significant problems that arise due to urbanization and building infrastructure for tourism. Animals are forcefully brought from their natural habitats for attraction, which is a substantial cause of the above issues.

So besides seeking caged animals, we should go for natural places where organisms can stay naturally and undisturbed in their natural habitat. And it teaches us to do so.

Gain Economic Stability:

Tourism plays a big part in our global economy. And for that reason, the construction of tourist places attracts most companies; as a result, the local communities get disturbed both mentally and physically.

In most of the cases, they are ordered to relocate from their land; this destroys their culture, tradition, and everything. However, practicing eco-friendly tourism will create a chance to bring economic stability for local communities if we’ll learn to explore the religion as well.

Beneficial to Everyone:

Learning new things, places, traditions, and much more is a great experience, and as ecotourism provides us with opportunities to educate ourselves, we will be helpful by this.

Our planet will attain relaxation from global warming and climate change like difficulties, and our mother nature gets rid of environmental pollution.

Local communities will not be disturbed or hurt by our actions, and they will participate more in the development of tourism places, and that can be an opportunity for them to operate small businesses.

Functions of Ecotourism:

According to Ross and Wall (1999), it has the following primary functions;

Global Initiatives:

The concept of ecotourism originates from the conservation movement, and since then, a few countries like Australia, Brazil, China, Japan, and India have started taking initiatives.

Conclusion

When we are going across, it is essential to pay attention to the environment around us, especially when you are visiting a place that is spotted with some local communities. This is one way that can help us to preserve the local ecological structure that exists in that area.

When we see the nature around us, we will learn how important it is to be environmentally conscious. By taking part in Eco-friendly tours and travels, people can bring awareness to the neighborhood that lives in that area.

This article covers the concept, history, types, components, functions, characteristics, and importance of ecotourism. If you still have queries, don’t hesitate to comment down below; we’ll answer as soon as possible.

An Introduction to Ecotourism

An Overview of Ecotourism

Ecotourism is broadly defined as low impact travel to endangered and often undisturbed locations. It is different from traditional tourism because it allows the traveler to become educated about the areas — both in terms of the physical landscape and cultural characteristics, and often provides funds for conservation and benefits the economic development of places that are frequently impoverished.

When Did Ecotourism Start?

Ecotourism and other forms of sustainable travel have their origins with the environmental movement of the 1970s. Ecotourism itself did not become prevalent as a travel concept until the late 1980s. During that time, increasing environmental awareness and a desire to travel to natural locations as opposed to built up tourist locations made ecotourism desirable.

Since then, several different organizations specializing in ecotourism have developed and many different people have become experts on it. Martha D. Honey, PhD, a co-founder of the Center for Responsible Tourism, for example, is just one of many ecotourism experts.

Principles of Ecotourism

Due to the growing popularity of environmentally-related and adventure travel, various types of trips are now being classified as ecotourism. Most of these are not truly ecotourism, however, because they do not emphasize conservation, education, low impact travel, and social and cultural participation in the locations being visited.

Therefore, to be considered ecotourism, a trip must meet the following principles set forth by the International Ecotourism Society:

Examples of Ecotourism

Opportunities for ecotourism exist in many different locations worldwide and its activities can vary as widely.

Madagascar, for instance, is famous for its ecotourist activity as it is a biodiversity hotspot, but also has a high priority for environmental conservation and is committed to reducing poverty. Conservation International says that 80% of the country’s animals and 90% of its plants are endemic only to the island. Madagascar’s lemurs are just one of many species that people visit the island to see.

Because the island’s government is committed to conservation, ecotourism is allowed in small numbers because education and funds from the travel will make it easier in the future. In addition, this tourist revenue also aids in reducing the country’s poverty.

Another place where ecotourism is popular is in Indonesia at Komodo National Park. The park is made up of 233 square miles (603 sq km) of land that is spread out over several islands and 469 square miles (1,214 sq km) of water. The area was established as a national park in 1980 and is popular for ecotourism because of its unique and endangered biodiversity. Activities at Komodo National Park vary from whale watching to hiking and accommodations strive to have a low impact on the natural environment.

Finally, ecotourism is also popular in Central and South America. Destinations include Bolivia, Brazil, Ecuador, Venezuela, Guatemala, and Panama. These destinations are just a few where ecotourism is popular but opportunities exist in hundreds of more places worldwide.

Criticisms of Ecotourism

Despite the popularity of ecotourism in the above-mentioned examples, there are several criticisms of ecotourism as well. The first of these is that there is no one definition of the term so it is difficult to know which trips are truly considered ecotourism.

In addition, the terms «nature,» «low impact,» «bio,» and «green» tourism are often interchanged with «ecotourism,» and these do not usually meet the principles defined by organizations like the Nature Conservancy or the International Ecotourism Society.

Critics of ecotourism also cite that increased tourism to sensitive areas or ecosystems without proper planning and management can actually harm the ecosystem and its species because the infrastructure needed to sustain tourism such as roads can contribute to environmental degradation.

Ecotourism is also said by critics to have a negative impact on local communities because the arrival of foreign visitors and wealth can shift political and economic conditions and sometimes make the area dependent on tourism as opposed to the domestic economic practices.

Regardless of these criticisms though, ecotourism and tourism, in general, are increasing in popularity all over the globe and tourism plays a large role in many worldwide economies.

Pick a Travel Company That Specializes

In order to keep this tourism as sustainable as possible, however, it is essential that travelers understand what principles make a trip fall into the category of ecotourism and attempt to use travel companies that have been distinguished for their work in ecotourism — one of which is Intrepid Travel, a small company that offers worldwide eco-conscious trips and has won a number of awards for their efforts.

International tourism will no doubt continue to increase in the coming years and as the Earth’s resources become more limited and ecosystems suffer more damage, the practices shown by Intrepid and others associated with ecotourism can make future travel a little more sustainable.