UNDERSTANDING ECOTOURISM

Nature Does Not Care!

2008-05-24T08:09:00.000-07:00

Yup, you read this right. If you want to embrace or promote ecotourism, you have to remember that nature does not need man in oder to continue existing.

If we continue polluting the seas, it will just give us poisoned food.

If we continue polluting the air, well, that same air we take back with loads of killer aromatics.

If we build houses and resorts on beach area, the waves will just eat out the sand and destroy the structure.

If we continue killing other species, nature will just say, "Oh, well, there goes your food security, cure for so-many-diseases and whatever. And because you created a void, here are the pesky, invasive and killer species"

Yes, nature does not care. Therefore, when you think of ecotourism (or environmentalism, for that matter), the main motivation should not only be that ever-dramatic love for nature, but more of a concern for humanity. For man to be able to understand and live within the limits that nature provide for human existence (and enjoyment since we're talking of tourism here).

So before you cut down that tree for your new building or exotic landscape, before you build a structure along the coastline or within the forest, before you compromise the existence of a species, you have to remember that nature does not care.

Nature for Whom?

2008-05-07T20:35:00.000-07:00

There is no doubt that nature belongs to everybody. Sadly, many destructive activities have already damaged most of the natural resources before they could be allocated for the future generations. It had been happening before the word "sustainable" was given to nature. Thousands of hectares of forest lands have been cleared for logging and mountains scraped for mining. The coral areas and the seas are becoming exhausted of marine life and the forest animals are hunted, exterminated and exported to zoos and private collectors. The whales, dolphins, mantas and other big fish and even sharks are consumed for the enjoyment of a few. Even caves are looted of their limestone formations. Very few of the national parks in many countries have actually been developed for recreation, thus denying them of any economic benefits that could have been used as a means to maintain them. The term "sustainable development" has been used much too often that skepticism has started to seep in. Issues have been raised as to whether it is a concept that can be pursued or a fad to be forgotten in a few years.

Whether sustainable development is a fad or an ideal concept, all the indications show that nature's resources are consumed and converted so fast that the coming generations will be left with very little of what we have today. That is why we have to make sustainable living a way of life. We have to find ways where we can use nature without necessarily leaving nothing for the rest of the generations. We have to find alternatives.

Ecotourism offers that kind of alternative. The natural environment has been largely untouched by the tourism sector utilizing only a small part of the resources and concentrated mainly in the coastal and urban areas. In the past, mangroves were regarded as a refuge for the mosquitoes and a source of malaria. People understand only now that mangroves are sources of the wealth of the fishing industry and an interesting place to explore and learn from.

If one will look at the travel magazines and promotional materials of many countries, he will find that ecotourism has been a major contributor in the economic development and protection of natural areas. One can see populations that had been in the brink of collapse, rebound and become robust, partly with the help of ecotourism (money and awareness).

With ecotourism. the use of the world's natural resources will go beyond extraction but rather into a more sustainable way through appreciation.

Lifted and revised from my book, Ecotourism in the Philippines

Welcome!

2008-05-07T20:25:00.000-07:00

Im coming up with this blogsite on ecotourism. Just give me a few more days to start putting in the contents. This site can be most useful for students and researchers trying to find good data on ecotourism.