Ecotourism
GEN 1030 Introduction to Environmental Studies Project “Ecotourism: pro’s and con’s”
Outline
Introduction
Advantages: 1. Environmental:
a) Symbiotic relationship with nature
b) Environmental education
2. Economic:
a) Beneficial for the whole country
b) Beneficial for local people
Disadvantages 1. Environmental:
a) Carbon footprint
b) Illegal using of flora and fauna
c) Necessity of building living rooms and hotels
2. Economic:
a) Import leakage
b) Exploitation of local tribes
Conclusion
Ecotourism was firstly introduced in Africa in the 1950’s with the legalization of hunting (Miller, 2007). Before this date the concept of ecotourism was not widely recognized and understood properly. From 1980s the concept of ecotourism became more common and widely known (Weeks, 2009). According to Ceballos-Lascurain (1993), Mexican ecotourism and cultural tourism expert, "Ecotourism is environmentally responsible travel and visitation to relatively undisturbed natural areas, in order to enjoy, study and appreciate nature accompanying cultural features, that promotes conservation, has low visitor impact, and provides for beneficially active socio-economic involvement of local populations”. In other words ecotourism is a type of tourism that involves visiting fragile, and usually protected areas. Hovards (2006) defines 3 major types of ecotourism:
• Nature-based ecotourism. This form of tourism based on direct interaction of tourists with wild environment. It includes African safari, coral reefs diving, visiting national parks, etc.
• Argo tourism is type of ecotourism where visitors are able to
Outline
Introduction
Advantages: 1. Environmental:
a) Symbiotic relationship with nature
b) Environmental education
2. Economic:
a) Beneficial for the whole country
b) Beneficial for local people
Disadvantages 1. Environmental:
a) Carbon footprint
b) Illegal using of flora and fauna
c) Necessity of building living rooms and hotels
2. Economic:
a) Import leakage
b) Exploitation of local tribes
Conclusion
Ecotourism was firstly introduced in Africa in the 1950’s with the legalization of hunting (Miller, 2007). Before this date the concept of ecotourism was not widely recognized and understood properly. From 1980s the concept of ecotourism became more common and widely known (Weeks, 2009). According to Ceballos-Lascurain (1993), Mexican ecotourism and cultural tourism expert, "Ecotourism is environmentally responsible travel and visitation to relatively undisturbed natural areas, in order to enjoy, study and appreciate nature accompanying cultural features, that promotes conservation, has low visitor impact, and provides for beneficially active socio-economic involvement of local populations”. In other words ecotourism is a type of tourism that involves visiting fragile, and usually protected areas. Hovards (2006) defines 3 major types of ecotourism:
• Nature-based ecotourism. This form of tourism based on direct interaction of tourists with wild environment. It includes African safari, coral reefs diving, visiting national parks, etc.
• Argo tourism is type of ecotourism where visitors are able to
References: Cox, S. (2007). Brave new world of tour- ism. Retrieved from http://ebscosustainability.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/ecotourism.pdf Honey, M. (2009). Community conservation and early ecotourism: Experiments in Kenya. Retrieved from http://www.environmentmagazine.org/Archives/Back%20Issues/January-February%202009/Honey-abstract.html Honey, M. (2003). Protecting Eden setting green standards for the tourism industry. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=10166085&site= McRandle, P. (2006). Low-impact vacations. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=21169122&site= Parks, T., Parks, T., & Allen, C. (2009). The development of a framework for studying ecotourism. International Journal of Management, pp. 89-98. Svoronou, E., & Holden, A. (2005). Ecotourism as a tool for nature conservation: The role of WWF Greece in the Dadia-Lefkimi-Soufli Forest Reserve in Greece. Journal of Sustainable Tourism, pp. 456-467. Tomazos, K., Butler, R. (2009). Volunteer tourism: The new ecotourism? Anatolia: An International Journal of Tourism & Hospitality Research, pp. 196-211. Weeks, K. (2009). Eco chic. Retrieved from http://eco-chick.com/2009/10/4596/eco-chic-weekly-october-4-2009/