Essay about How Sustainable Is Ecotourism

Submitted By Nomadicjinx
Words: 600
Pages: 3
Open Document
How sustainable is ecotourism?

Shaochang Jin

24 May 2012

Word Count:

Introduction

Ecotourism is defined as "responsible travel to natural areas that conserves the environment and improves the well-being of local people." (TIES, 1990). The earliest known use of the term ‘ecotour’, undefined, seems to have been by Parks Canada in the 1960s (Fennell, 1999). One heavily promoted though rather verbose definition was put forward by Ceballos-Lascurain (1992). An official international definition was adopted during the UN International Year of Ecotourism in 2002 (UNEP and WTO, 2002). The major components, as analyzed by Buckley (1994) do not seem to have changed: nature-based product, minimal-impact management, environmental education, contribution to conservation. An analysis of published literature by Donohoe and Needham (2006) identified these same four aspects but also added benefit-sharing and ethics. An analysis of ecotourism literature by Weaver and Lawton (2007) indicated that debates over definition have remained a significant theme. Ecotourism then includes four fundamental elements: Firstly, it must be included in a definition of ecotourism, that ecotourism is nature-based. Activities such as business travel, travel to cities, conventional beach holidays and sporting holidays cannot be considered as ecotourism as their focus in not primarily on an experience based on the natural environment of the area visited: ‘Ecotourism is travel, often to developing countries, to relatively undisturbed natural areas for study, enjoyment or volunteer assistance that concerns itself with the flora, fauna, geology and ecosystems of an area – as well as the people who live nearby, their needs, their culture and the relationship to the land’ (Swanson, 1992). The second component is the notion of movement or travel from one location to another. This travel should be restricted to relatively undisturbed or protected natural areas as ecotourism’s focus is fundamentally on experiencing natural areas. Protected or undisturbed natural areas offer the ‘best guarantee for encountering sustained natural features and attractions’ (Ceballos-Lascurain, 1990). The third idea that must be included in a definition of ecotourism is that it has an educative role. The ecotourist generally express a strong desire to learn about nature on their trips (Eagles, 1992). Therefore, a great emphasis is placed on nature appreciation, education and interpretation through the explanation of ‘concepts, meaning and inter-relationships of natural phenomena’ (McNeely and Thorsell, 1989).
Show More

Related Documents: Essay about How Sustainable Is Ecotourism

Ecotourism In Antarctica Research Paper

Paper – The impacts of ecotourism in Antarctica Andrew Horoszczak 4553020 Professor David Fennell Amber Wiley Seminar 17 March 10, 2010 Introduction Ecotourism has coexisted with humans for some time (for example, safari tours in Africa have existed for decades), however, this concept has recently become a new phenomenon (Fennell, Lecture IX-Ecotourism). In the last couple decades, there has been tourism development in many places, which has lead to environmental deterioration…

Words 1691 - Pages 7

Essay on Sustainable Tourism Through Alternative Forms of Tourism

Sustainable tourism is only achievable through the development of alternative and new forms of tourism. Critically discuss this statement with reference to one or more examples of alternative tourism in developed or developing countries. The development of Sustainable Tourism has allowed society to meet their own present needs, without compromising such needs of future generations (Weaver and Lawton, 2010). Much attention in relation to sustainable tourism has been devoted to Alternative Tourism…

Words 1880 - Pages 8

Essay on Rural Tourism

crafts. Through this website, we can see the role of government to advertise their country when it comes to improvement of tourism. This effort will contribute to make rural tourism in one’s country memorable. Two other websites are Ecotourism Society and Sustainable Travel International. According to them, responsible travel to natural areas is that conserves the environment and improves the well-being of local people. Also their mission is to help destinations, businesses, and travelers develop…

Words 1544 - Pages 7

Tourism: Tourism and Anglia Ruskin University Essay

seeking something out of the ordinary, and where their friends and relatives live (Eagles, 1992). To determine an area as a destination country or points of interest visited by tourists, should be taken into account the number of people visiting and how the number keeps growing, safety precautions and the level of tourists satisfaction (Murphy, 2013). This essay focuses on the answers of many inquiries that talk about the advantages and disadvantages of tourism and ways to deal with the risks and overcome…

Words 1378 - Pages 6

Essay about “Maintaining biodiversity at its present level is impossible if people are going to achieve a reasonable standard of living in the near future”

the creation therefore reducing biodiversity. Despite this, the scheme has been a key source for clean, renewable energy through the use of hydroelectric power; however the upset the project caused outweighs the benefits of the generated power. Sustainable development has been successful in many ways in minimising the loss of Biodiversity whilst creating economic development and wealth for countries with TRF biomes. Despite the damage The Grande Carajas mining project caused it has also aimed to be…

Words 1437 - Pages 6

The Importance Of Globalization In A Business Environment

example, Muslims pray throughout their work day due to their religious customs. Some customs also don’t allow you to work on religious holidays. Personal appearances are also an issue in some cultures, such as your clothing attire, personal hygiene, and how you eat. An example of this is that Muslim women are required to wear a headdress (International Business, 2011). Sometimes colors, numbers, words, or even phrases can mean different things in different cultures. What one word may mean here in the…

Words 1604 - Pages 7

world peace Essay

person or community the more likely they will have a better quality of life. However for the standard of living to increase development must occur. Examples of how development is occurring in the Amazon rainforest is the Trans- Amazonian highway, agribusinesses and logging. Development can also occur in a sustainable way such as through ecotourism, afforestation and selective logging. These ways of development can help reduce the impacts on biodiversity and still allow us to reach a reasonable standard…

Words 520 - Pages 3

AP Environmental Unit 5 Study Guide Essay

greenhouse gas emission What is the most widely used method for sustainable management of rangeland? / What is rangeland? 1. The most widely used method is to control the number of grazing animals and the duration of their grazing in a given area so the carrying capacity of the area is not exceeded. 2. Rangeland - Unfenced grasslands in temperate and tropical climates that supply forage or vegetation for grazing and browsing animals. How many national parks worldwide? 1. More than 1,100 national…

Words 1568 - Pages 7

Essay on apes chapter 10

money for each seedling that they plant that survives. This lets them break the cycle of poverty while also improving the environment. We can help new settlers in tropical forests to learn how to practice small-scale sustainable agriculture and forestry, harvest some of the renewable resources on a sustainable basis, debt-for-nature-swaps, and loggers can use tropical forests more sustainably by using gentler methods for harvesting trees. 7. There are surface fires and there are crown fires. Surface…

Words 980 - Pages 4

FINAL ESSAY

60-90 degrees N and S of the equator Student Unit Guide, David Holmes I believe it is difficult to simply answer the question due to multiple factors contributing to the complexity of the question ,values and attitudes are important in determining how cold environments are ultimately used however they are not the solely the determining factor. Technology is just one of the key factors as without advanced technology the opportunity for the land use may not even be viable. In order to answer the question…

Words 2451 - Pages 10