The tourism industry has been around a long time, so why the recent push for sustainable tourism? We have to look at this from many angles, including political, social, environmental and long term vision. Tourism is the fastest, I repeat, fastest growing industry. Having said that, it’s an understatement to claim that tourism makes an impact on the world. It’s simply unavoidable. The key is to decrease the negative impact before it occurs, while simultaneously creating strategic positive impact. Let’s look at this based on the three pillars that make up sustainable tourism. People Sustainable tourism must take people into consideration, primarily the locals. A sudden explosion of travel in a new area can clog streets (if the infrastructure exists) resulting in a poor living experience. The added traffic places more strain on the infrastructure, natural world and quality of life. On the other hand, sustainable tourism avoids exploiting the area (both built and natural) and the locals. Sustainable tourism empowers the local people. It provides them job opportunities. It establishes a global mindset. Sustainable tourism opens doors and creates new paths. Planet Planet, also referred to as the environment pillar, is a tricky one. Often criticized for being an oxymoron, providing tours that introduce the natural world and historic sites can be sustainable. Stretch Tourism looks at this from a balanced perspective. Sustainable tourism does impact the planet, but in a regulated and managed way with a sustainable mindset. Profit Mentioned above, tourism can open doors for locals. Sustainable tourism keeps money local. Hotels are owned locally. Outfitters hire locally. The locals know their land best and often times can speak to their history and natural areas best. For example, when my friends and I visited Costa Rica last year we stayed at a unique eco-lodge situated on the
The tourism industry has been around a long time, so why the recent push for sustainable tourism? We have to look at this from many angles, including political, social, environmental and long term vision. Tourism is the fastest, I repeat, fastest growing industry. Having said that, it’s an understatement to claim that tourism makes an
