Ecotourism projects Are Showing The Way To Leading Lives Less Destructive And More Conservation Oriented
There are many scary scenarios of the future that one can think up when man will have callously thrown caution to the winds and depleted all of the worlds natural resources and created cities that can best be described as jungles made from concrete and where the lakes and rivers as well as oceans have been polluted and animals have become or are going to become extinct, and carbon dioxide levels have risen alarmingly. Such a scenario is not as unlikely as we may assume and global warming is a very real threat that may lead to many disastrous situations in the not too distant future.
Find A New Direction
We may have to look to the many ecotourism projects being undertaken in several parts of the world to find a new direction in which the planet should be moving. There is ecotourism projects such as Kenyas well known Greenbelt movement begun by Nobel laureate Pro. W. Maathai that is a pioneering works in environmental as also animal conservation. It is ecotourism projects such as this that help maintain the often fragile balance of nature that is essential to the survival of mankind as well as the plant kingdoms, and also many species of wildlife in the world today.
With ecotourism projects such as this, there has also been seen a rise in the economic welfare of the local people which is almost guaranteed through ecotourism projects that utilize local resources as well as the culture of such communities while also making certain that these are preserved now, and also for the future.
There are also several advantages to developing such ecotourism projects because visitors can stay in eco-friendly buildings, interact as well as learn new cultures, enjoy the best game watching methods, and also be able to take part in the conservation of nature through planting locally grown trees and thus making sure that natures beautiful treasures will live on.
In fact, if one really searches for it, there are many ecotourism projects worldwide that are shining examples of good growth and sustainable ecotourism as well. You can see the local peoples involvement in the Community Baboon Sanctuary in Brazil, or the volunteers taking part in Overseas Cooperative Assistance in Senaru Village, Lombok, Indonesia as good examples. It is also possible to judge the impact that feeding of wildlife is having when one visits the Berenty Reserve in Madagascar, and in far off Santa Marianita in Ecuador, one can see women and their crafts as well as attitudes towards conservation paying rich dividends.
These ecotourism projects are ample proof, if any were needed that if we really set our minds to defeating the prospect of extinction of wildlife and destruction of biodiversity then we have a chance of survival and minimizing those frightening thoughts of doom and gloom.
Ecotourism Product
According to figures released by the Travel Industry Association of American and also the Smithsonian Magazine, it was noticed that more than eighty percent of adult tourists were from the United States and they were interested in historic as well as cultural travel.
Another good example of ecotourism is Belize, on which subject too there have been conducted many case studies of ecotourism, and this was among the pioneering countries to have embraced ecotourism which focused on attracting tourists to its own rich natural environment, which offered many attractions including diving for which divers came in great numbers regardless of any particular season of the year. The beauty of that national park is quite unique, but it also serves a higher purpose, showing people that untouched nature is something that is becoming all too rare, and thus must be preserved for future generations. It is also possible to judge the impact that feeding of wildlife is having when one visits the Berenty Reserve in Madagascar, and in far off Santa Marianita in Ecuador, one can see women and their crafts as well as attitudes towards conservation paying rich dividends.
This is just one example of how ecotourism has been known to try and take over the beliefs of others that spend a lot of time in nature.
It also respects the culture of the local surroundings and communities, and emphasizes human rights rather than exploitation. It is not a stretch to point out that the ecotourism movement has proven to be critically important in keeping the environmental movement alive in the world. There are many forms of ecotourism though generally it means visiting places that have one of a kind environment, and one can easily think of places such as rainforests, and also endangered animals habitats as good examples of such ecotourism destinations. One of the impacts of eco and mass tourism is that the wealth created it causes an increase in wage divides among the local population, and also between workers in the tourism industry itself who have access to foreign currency as opposed to those who work outside of tourism industry. This global ecotourism conference had been organized by the International Ecotourism Society (TIES), along with Ecotourism Norway as also the United Nations Environment Program. Its to learn about our cultures and the way nature survives, so we can help insure life for thousands of more years to come.
A very common example of how environmental damage is caused by bad ecotourism is camping.
The history of ecotourism can also be said to have maybe have begun and been known to mankind for many centuries and one can trace the adventures of Charles Darwin as being a part of this history though it is not formally recognized as being so. For the most part, people will argue that ecotourism is not becoming a problem. In fact, if one performs a little bit of ecotourism research, one will discover that the primary purpose of ecotourism is to have fun while learning enjoying the natural world at the same time. Nevertheless, there are certain differences between mass tourism and eco-tourism and we need to explore these to arrive at an informed decision about which one is better and also to learn how to improve both forms of tourism. Such a case study of ecotourism has a number of different purposes that include assessing the awareness as well as understanding of local peoples regarding ecotourism, assessing how has ecotourism contributed to the local population and finding out if the locals are indeed sensitized on ecotourism as well as the environment. |