Advantages And Disadvantages Of Ecotourism

Decent Essays
Eco-tourism is a vast growing industry that involves the physical visitation to a nature based area. Eco-tourism is defined as “responsible travel to natural areas that conserves the environment, sustains the well-being of the local people, and involves interpretation and education" (TIES, 2016, pg. 1). In terms of ecotourism, there are many broad meanings to describe the term. Furthermore, throughout the rest of this essay, I will give the benefits and challenges that evolve in regard to the definition, ecotourism. The development of ecotourism arose sometime between 1965 and the 1980’s (Rettie. K, personal communication, 2016). Additionally, there are seven characteristics that have helped shaped ecotourism. The seven characteristics involve …show more content…
“Ecotourism encourages cultural perseveration since it provides a platform for cultural interaction between local and tourists” (CITE). Therefore, conservation of the natural areas is crucial for the future relationships between humans and the environment. For example, in rural communities, conservation tends to be important to sustaining the small, untouched and originality feel. Rural areas are just as crucial in terms of environmental conservation and nature appreciation. This is when “ecotourism occurs in remote tropical or popular areas, and in the terms of fulfilling its role in providing local economic benefits, it’s infinitely more successful in a rural setting than an unpopulated wilderness one” (Weaver, D. B. 2001, pg. 361). Another example involves humans that are passionate and take initiate to maintain conservation in the natural environment. These people are called “eco-tourists”. These types of individuals try to support the land by aspects of …show more content…
“The Economic impact of ecotourism as important as it is, it’s underestimated, underreported and poorly calculated” (Weaver, D. B. 2001, pg. 402). With that said, there has been an assumptions throughout the industry that the says that the environmental impact of outdoor recreation or ecotourism should be used as its benchmark no human use or no human impact on the environment ( ). This assumption is invalid because of the absence of outdoor recreation or ecotourism in some other economic activity. For instance, if a specific site or area is not a national park and isn’t focusing on catering to tourists, it will be supporting other factors. This could potentially include supporting a nearby logging industry. This example provides evidence of beneficial impact on the growth of economic value. Therefore, the economic impact of tourism should be compared with the most likely alternative economic activity. In short, ecotourism has real potential to financially contribute to the creation and maintenance of protected areas, and this potential has been increasingly realized during the past

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