Running Head: Ecotourism 1

Ecotourism

Joanina Gazcon, CHES

Department of Health Science and Human Ecology

California State University, San Bernardino

Ecotourism

Ecotourism

While ecotourism has many definitions, the main focus is to create awareness for

travelers and communities of tourist sites to preserve the world’s natural beauties and

the heritage or cultures around the world. The trend of wanderlust or the eagerness to

travel continues to increase from generation to generation. People are eager to see

what they never seen before and share it with the world. With the increase in tourism

the question now arises will these beautiful places continue to be around for future

generations to enjoy? Travel and tourism are responsible for some of the carbon

emissions throughout the world, contributing significantly to climate change that could

erase the world's most visited sites.

With climate change, the risk of eliminating biodiversity, the threat to cultures and

heritages, and much more it is important to realize conservation is most necessary if the

world is to continue to marvel at the natural resources of this earth. Conservation efforts

can alleviate the damage being done by climate change and will preserve oceans, fresh

water resources, and the availability of food on this planet. Climate change can and will

make this planet uninhabitable if action isn’t taken.

What is Ecotourism?

Ecotourism is any form of tourism that focuses on traveling to natural

environments with a mission to learn about and, ultimately, help protect those

environments(“Why Ecotourism Is Booming,” n.d.) Ecotourism is becoming a new trend

as it is the current norm that travelers are sharing all of the pictures they have captured.

Ecotourists get to see things that have never been seen before and want to be sure

share the natural beautiful moments. Meanwhile, in remote areas, heavy foot traffic from
Ecotourism

tourists threatens to change the behaviors of indigenous animals and eliminate plant

species. There is also the risk of tiny microorganisms, hitching a ride on the bottom of

hiking shoes, have the ability to compromise the integrity of foreign lands once

introduced into their ecosystems. The consequences of something so small can destroy

entire ecosystems. Ecotourism is said to have benefits for the environment, economy,

and travelers. In some cases, it may be otherwise. This paper will discuss what

ecotourism is, the benefits if any, possible consequences, and a call to action.

Ecotourism and the Environment

According to the National Chamber of Ecotourism and sustainable Tourism of

Costa Rica ecotourism is:

“It is the specialized segment of responsible tourism, which promotes and sup-

ports the conservation of nature and the cultural values of the various

locations…and sponsoring the socio-economic improvement of local

communities in an ethical fashion… Its activities are designed to be carried out in

accordance with the environment, leading its customers to a direct and personal

contact with nature and the local culture”(Quezada-Sarmiento, Macas-Romero,

Roman, & Martin, 2018).

The term “responsible” is used in the various definitions of ecotourism. Ensuring that

tourists are aware that it is their own responsibility to take care of the place they are

visiting will allow for more conservation efforts and preserve these tourist sites. It is also

important that local communities understand that they take a part in the preservation of

their natural environment. This can be done so by not allowing foreign entities to exploit

these areas. Sponsoring the socio-economic improvement of the areas play a big role
Ecotourism

for these ecotoruistic areas as this maybe the only or perhaps the largest source of

income. The economy is what will keep these efforts afloat and is what will help expand

the conservation.

Benefits of Ecotourism

Ecotourism is an effort to reduce exploitation of natural resources, reduce

hunting and poaching, and preserve indigenous heritage and culture. Ideally

ecotourism should entail the following factors:

 Visitors will be conscientious and will do the best effort of leaving little to no

impact on the place they are visiting

 Visitors will be mindful of the local cultures and biodiversity

 Visitors will support conservation efforts and the surrounding communities of

the area that they are visiting

 Finally, visitors will use ecotourism will use their visit as education to create

awareness of what exist in other parts of the world.

All of these conditions can be abided by when taking small considerations. Visitors can

accomplish being conscientious and mindful by simply sticking to the trail they are

hiking, avoid climbing objects that can be damaged, don’t leave trash behind, and many

more simple tasks that can make a world of a difference for the place that is being

toured. To be sure that a visitor is following the practices of ecotourism make sure

activities are non-extractive, creates conscience, and is ethical in relation to nature

(Quezada-Sarmiento et al., 2018).

While there have been few studies actually evaluate the impact of ecotourism,

studies have revealed that is greatly affected by the method of payment in order to
Ecotourism

support conservation efforts. Ecotourism relies heavily on the income that is generated

from tourists and studies have shown that the most effect method when payment for

these touristic activities are directly for conservation efforts (Eshoo, Johnson,

Duangdala, & Hansel, 2018). Direct payment would be considered when payment is

made directly to national parks or to the communities of protected areas. Indirect would

be when the payment is given to outside organization or third parties to help with

conservation efforts.

Criticisms of Ecotourism

Ecotourism is frequently criticized as its efforts are to conserve biodiversity but

projects can hardly ever provide evidence that their strategy has reduced threats or

improved the status of biodiversity (Eshoo et al., 2018). Even if projects show that there

is impacts further research is required because of the methods used. In a study in Laos

to reduce illegal hunting an poaching ecotourism incentives were offered to local

communities to increase the presence of wild life. This effort motivated the local

communities to increase ecotourism and communities received incentives if more wild

life would be sited in the areas of touristic activities. Wildlife did increase in the areas

but unfortunately that does not mean to say that numbers increased it is more presence

increased. Tourism forces hunters to move to remote areas where that can’t be caught.

The presences more than likely also increase as wildlife slowly adapted to human

presence. Therefore it is not guaranteed that wildlife increased it was just more present

resulting in a need for further research (Eshoo et al., 2018).

Ecotourism also is criticized as a place becomes more popular because the risk

to damaging an ecosystem increases with high rise in visitation damaging non-

Ecotourism

renewable resources and possibly damaging the experience for all future tourists.(He,

Huang, & Xu, 2018). A study related to ecotourism in western China described that

there were lots of financial benefits to ecotourism but with increased popularity came an

increase in sewage and solid waste. Most remote area where ecotourism takes place is

not equipped to take on an increase of sewage or solid waste. This is leading to the

deterioration of soil and pollution. This is the exact opposite of what is trying to be

accomplished with ecotourism. Further policies and investments need to be

implemented from local governments in order to prevent damaging the places of nature.

(He et al., 2018).

A study in Minas Gerais, Brazil revealed that infection of tourists that report

contact with contaminated water associated with ecotourism. This is now considered a

form of disease transmission and dissemination (Murta et al., 2016). Places where this

water is and attractive place for leisure. Tourists can swim and relax by the water, if

temperatures are hot it is place to cool off, and if there are kids presents swimming is a

great way to entertain them and tire them out. The risk of contracting an infection

increase with ecotourism popularity as waters are contaminated with human

excrement’s, topical lotions or even the containments that are soaked in their clothes.

Finally, ecotourism is an attempt to face a highly complex issue which may

benefit issues but is not to all issues, especially when considering certain species.

“Some are threatened by habitat loss; some are protected by habitat expansion or

restoration. Some are threatened by harvesting of individuals, legally or otherwise;

some are protected by conservation measures such as captive breeding and

translocations which operate at the scale of individuals. Some would survive if left
Ecotourism

alone, but are threatened by other industry sectors which ecotourism may or may not be

able to compete with” (Buckley, Morrison, & Castley, 2016). Ecotourism has its good

intentions but the bigger picture needs to be seen in order to save the world from the

most drastic consequences.

Ecotourism and Travelers

“How do we know, what we know about the things we never saw?”- Unknown.

Ecotourism is an opportunity to see things that aren’t something part of every day of life.

Humans are filled with curiosity and hungry for more knowledge. It is important to

remember the portion of responsible travel. Ecotourists have the responsibility of taking

care of the places they visit. They also have the responsibility of creating awareness for

the world. We need to share the importance of keeping the nature as natural as

possible so the future can enjoy and so the organisms can continue to have a home.s
Ecotourism

References

Buckley, R. C., Morrison, C., & Castley, J. G. (2016). Net Effects of Ecotourism on

Threatened Species Survival. PloS One, 11(2), e0147988.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0147988

Eshoo, P. F., Johnson, A., Duangdala, S., & Hansel, T. (2018). Design, monitoring and

evaluation of a direct payments approach for an ecotourism strategy to reduce

illegal hunting and trade of wildlife in Lao PDR. PloS One, 13(2), e0186133.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0186133

He, Y., Huang, P., & Xu, H. (2018). Simulation of a dynamical ecotourism system with

low carbon activity: A case from western China. Journal of Environmental

Management, 206, 1243–1252. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2017.09.008

Murta, F. L. G., Massara, C. L., Nogueira, J. F. C., Dos Santos Carvalho, O., de

Mendonça, C. L. F., Pinheiro, V. A. O., & Enk, M. J. (2016). Ecotourism as a

source of infection with Schistosoma mansoni in Minas Gerais, Brazil. Tropical

Diseases, Travel Medicine and Vaccines, 2, 3. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40794-

016-0019-8

Quezada-Sarmiento, P. A., Macas-Romero, J. D. C., Roman, C., & Martin, J. C. (2018).

A body of knowledge representation model of ecotourism products in

southeastern Ecuador. Heliyon, 4(12), e01063.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2018.e01063

Why Ecotourism Is Booming. (n.d.). Retrieved May 13, 2019, from US News & World

Report website: https://travel.usnews.com/features/why-ecotourism-is-booming

Ecotourism