Ecotourism: Criteria and Context

Weaver, 2001

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Ecotourism

– Who participates … ?– Where does it occur … ?– What impacts does it have … ?– How can it be managed … ?

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Emergence of Ecotourism

• First emerged as a term in 1973 (ecotour)

• Recognized from the start that the relationship between tourism and the natural environment tended to be one of conflict, but that the potential existed for a relationship based on mutual benefit

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Ecotourism is:“…tourism that consists in traveling to relatively

undisturbed or uncontaminated natural areas with the specific objective of studying, admiring, and enjoying the scenery and its wild plants and animals, as well as any existing cultural manifestation found in these areas” (Ceballos-Lascurain)

• What is the historical context within which ecotourism emerged?

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Mass tourism era (end of WWII)

pro-tourism advocacy platform (1950s – 1960s)

Cautionary platform (1970s)

Adaptancy platform (1980s) / alternative tourism

Knowledge-based platform (1990s)

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Additional definitions…

• Ecologically sustainable (non-damaging & contributing to protection and management)

• Accepts nature – not transforming nature; appreciation not thrill-seeking/physical achievement

• Improves the welfare of local people

• Educational

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Ecotourism as tourism

• Certain forms of travel• Spatial component• Time component1. Domestic excursionists2. Domestic stayovers3. International stayovers4. International excursionists

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Charismatic megafauna

– Ecotourist is interested in a certain rare species of flora or fauna than in the broader ecosystem in which it occurs

– Examples?– Consequences? Implications?

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Cultural component

• Why is this component included within the context of ecotourism?

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Education

• Structured, assessed and non-assessed, learning opportunities

• Informal structure … – Education/learning/appreciation differences

become blurred -> is it still ecotourism?– Interest/involvement spectrum

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Sustainability

• Brundtland report (1987): ‘development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs’

• Agreement? Yes. Difficulty? Bigger yes.

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Why the difficulty in developing sustainable tourism?• Biocentric or anthropocentric?

– Constant capital rule (one generation should leave a stock of capital assets to the next generation that is no less than the current stock)

• Steady state sustainability (maintaining) and enhancement sustainability (environment experiences a net benefit)– Passive vs active ecotourism

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Why the difficulty in developing sustainable tourism? (continued)

• Monitoring and implementation issues– Indicators– Benchmark and threshold values– Short term vs. long term – Influence of other activities (copper picture)– Time lag between cause and effect– Past trends not indicative of future developments

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Textbook (Weaver 2001)“Ecotourism is a form of tourism that fosters learning

experiences and appreciation of the natural environment, or some component thereof, within its associated cultural context. It has the appearance (in concert with best practice) of being environmentally and socio-culturally sustainable, preferably in a way that enhances the natural and cultural resource base of the destination and promotes the viability of the operation.”

• What are the aspects in this definition?

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Ecotourism in the context of other tourism types

• Nature-based tourism– Ecotourism is a subset of nature-based tourism– Non-ecotourism, nature-based tourism:

• 3S tourism (sea, sand, sun tourism)• Adventure tourism• Captive tourism• Extractive tourism• Some types of health tourism

• None of the non eco-tourism nature based tourism sectors are constrained by the requirement to have a learning component or to have the appearance of sustainability

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Ecotourism in the context of other tourism types (continued)

Cultural TourismEcotourism

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Ecotourism in the context of other tourism types (continued)

Adventure Tourism

Ecotourism

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Ecotourism in the context of other tourism types (continued)• Hybrids:

– ACE tourism (Adventure tourism, Cultural tourism, Ecotourism)

– NEAT (Nature-based, Ecotourism, Adventure Tourism)• 3S (sea, sand, sun) tourism

– No when w/ mass tourism; yes for some marine activities

• Alternative tourism and mass tourism– Provided that there is adherence to the basic criteria,

ecotourism could be part of mass tourism and part of alternative tourism

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Ecotourism in the context of other tourism types (continued)• Sustainable tourism

– Ecotourism is a subset– Note: sustainable tourism can also encompass

parts of mass and alternative tourism

• Extractive and non-extractive tourism– Difference? Where is ecotourism?

Sustainable tourism: world trends and challenges ahead

Yunis, 2003

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Progress in sustainable tourism

• Need for a systematic planning approach now widely accepted

• Also growing as a research topic• Increased adoption of voluntary initiatives

(ecolabels, certification schemes, environmental awards…)

• However: the level of actual application is still limited to a few market segments, a few destinations, and a few market operators

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Challenges …

• Continued and unstoppable growth of tourism

• Liberal attitude towards its management

• Lebanon?– MoT: “Tourism in Lebanon will follow steady

and stable growth estimated around 20 to 25% [in the next ten years]”