Archive Article: 2002: International Year Of Ecotourism. 11 Jan 02
January 3, 2009
The international tourist industry is having problems both because of the global recession and the fears of foreign travel due to the September 11 attacks. The Japanese foreign travel industry is down about 43 per cent. The good news is that this is the International Year of Ecotourism and so it should encourage the tourist industry.
The United Nations each year designates a “year” because it focuses attention on “important” issues. Unfortunately politicians lurch from one headline to the next and so there is always a tendency to deal with “urgent” issues. The urgent drive out the important.
“Ecotourism” can be defined as ecologically sustainable tourism with a primary focus on experiencing natural areas that fosters environmental and cultural understanding, appreciation and conservation. This is different from the old idea of package tours for the newly weds and nearly deads to visit European castles and stately homes. Now we will be visiting nature’s stately homes.
There are four reasons why this is an important theme. First, tourism is one of the world’s biggest economic activities. This is partly a reflection of the growing wealth in developed countries. People have “surplus” money after having paid for all the necessities of life, and some of this extra goes on services, of which tourism is a major example. Overseas tourism was rare until after World War II; only the rich could afford it. Now each year about one billion people worldwide travel from one country to another on holiday. Despite the September 11 tragedy, the international travel industry is bound to expand.
Second, tastes are moving away from the standard sites, such as the well-known European castles and stately homes. People want something more exotic. Ecotourism is the best example of this. Australia is a major player in this field.
Third, the problem with tourism is that sites can be loved to death. Too many people visiting a site can cause great damage to it. Ideally, tourists should take nothing but photographs. This “year” will encourage more attention to the preservation of sites.
Fourth, some ecotourism is done on the land of indigenous peoples. They naturally resent their land, which has been taken from them for farming and mining, now being taken from them for tourist purposes. But the current land grab is being done in a different era: there is now far greater international sympathy for the plight of indigenous peoples and so non-indigenous tour operators need to find more conciliatory ways of working with the original owners of the land. If the issue is handled properly, then ecotourism can be an important source of revenue for indigenous communities.
Another dimension to this issue is that indigenous peoples do not want to live in an anthropological museum. Thus, a balance has to be maintained between encouraging indigenous peoples to continue their lifestyle while not necessarily keeping them frozen in it so that there can be no progress for them.
There are, then, some major issues to be addressed during this “year”. The “year” will be a good opportunity to provide a greater awareness of the rich heritage of various civilizations and in bringing about a better appreciation of the inherent values of different cultures.
BROADCAST ON FRIDAY 11TH JANUARY 2002 ON RADIO 2GB’S “BRIAN WILSHIRE PROGRAMME” AT 9 PM, AND ON 13TH JANUARY 2002 ON “SUNDAY NIGHT LIVE” AT 10.30 PM