Ecotourism campaigns Have Succeeded As Witnessed In Arsal, North East Lebanon
Ecotourism in Lebanon really took off as a serious tourism activity in the year 1997 when people began to take annual trips to Arsal which is a huge village in North East Lebanon. The aim of the ecotourism campaigns used here were to add strength to the relations between the local community and those of the Association for Rural Development in Arsal (ARDA) that is a major player in environment and development activities, and is a non-government organization (NGO) as well as partner to Reforestation Network. They were to introduce the unique culture and also nature to friends of Arsal and also provide to ARDA a means to generate income.
Need For Better Organization And Coordination
In the recent past, this region has witnessed growth in ecotourism which has raised the need to have a well managed ecotourism campaign so that this sector can be better organized and there can also be better coordination with those that provide services and also to even certify these processes so that one knows which the proper services are.
Thus, in the year 2000, an organization known as Green Line set into motion the wheels that were to help in the development of ecotourism that ultimately took the shape of an ecotourism campaign that involved municipalities, youth groups as also NGOs. The program so developed included agro-tourism in the form of olive oil production, bee keeping as well as processing of cherries and apricots, and also ecotourism that was taking place in places such as Horsh Ehden, Kammoua, Barouk cedars as well as the valley Nahr Ibrahim.
This ecotourism campaign aimed at highlighting as well as publicizing ecotourism as a concept as well as a method to conserve natures resources while providing a means of earning an income to the local peoples. It also meant needing to coordinate between ecotourism providers and different municipalities as also governmental bodies and NGOs so that a viable network to sustain this form of tourism could be formed.
There have been a number of notable achievements that have resulted from this ecotourism campaign including of course assessing and developing ecotourism sites in places such as Mtein, building teams of experts in ecotourism and also being able to secure adequate sources of finance in the form of income as well as support.
In addition, this ecotourism campaign has been able to organize Training of Trainers (ToT) workshops meant to impart knowledge to teachers, staff involved in administration as well as for parents from many schools. It is ecotourism campaigns such as this that raises hope for being able to conserve nature in different parts of the world, while also sustaining local communities as well.
Ecotourism Peru
It would also mean building capacity for the creation and also marketing of ecotourism environmental education products as also getting local people to participate in creating as well as developing new ecotourism environmental education products.
Perhaps you may wish to send over an environmentalist doubting Thomas to the site so that perhaps they may be converted to the cause! If one develops a solid knowledge base through extensive research ecotourism self study, then one will be able to more effectively take advantage of the benefits that ecotourism provides while simultaneously eliminating and dispelling myths. Without awareness, there will be no way to mount an effective conservation movement. 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 are also hills where green tea is grown and there are also many bird sanctuaries as well as heavily wooded forests and a lot of wildlife as well.
It is ecotourism campaigns such as this that raises hope for being able to conserve nature in different parts of the world, while also sustaining local communities as well. If one perpetuates teaching ecotourism to where the awareness level of the subject arises, then the teacher will be doing the world a great service. These countries may even need to devise their own national plans to provide guidelines that will help the country tap into the huge ecotourism potentials that are available now as well as be available in the future as well. People would travel from all over the country to rest on the bans of the river and bask in the sun, fish or spend a little time swimming. You can also see the benefits of ecotourism in the design and construction as well as maintenance of eco-resorts that use technologies and also principles adhering to eco-friendly methods that are throwing up a whole new industry in itself.
tourist that needs to be considered.
In the recent past, this region has witnessed growth in ecotourism which has raised the need to have a well managed ecotourism campaign so that this sector can be better organized and there can also be better coordination with those that provide services and also to even certify these processes so that one knows which the proper services are. Whether by the community who runs an ecolodge or the tourists themselves, preservation is a huge part of the heart of ecotourism. And, at the recently concluded ecotourism global conference in Oslo, Norway it was found that countries such as Australia and Costa Rica were very good ecotourism examples, and which are playing a major role in the multi-billion dollar ecotourism industry that has seen tremendous growth which is believed to be about thirty percent each year. |
