Tourism
- Indigenous peoples should be seen as key contributors to ecotourism
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As traditional custodians of their lands, with intimate knowledge of the eco-systems they long protected, indigenous peoples must be viewed as key contributors to the ecotourism industry. Yet, not enough is known about the effect of tourism, including ecotourism, on indigenous people, according to a recent briefing paper by Minority Rights. The recognition of indigenous collective land rights, the right to participation and development as well as the right to prior and informed consent need to be taken better into account when planning and implementing tourism operations.
Tourism and development
To make tourism really work for development tourism should be harnessed as an effective tool for poverty alleviation and environmental conservation. In order to avoid its negative social and economic impacts, tourism operators should focus on working with small enterprise and participation of the community, creating linkages with other local economic sectors thereby creating wealth in poor areas which stays in the community. These approaches also should also try to limit economic impacts wherever possible by integrating conservation strategies. Recommended reading...
Key challenges
The number of sustainable tourism initiatives has grown steadily over the past years. Yet, the overall impact of these has not always proved to be as effective and beneficial as anticipated. Key challenges that need to be addressed are Transportation and Climate Change, Tourism Standards and Marketing. More...
Practical info: case studies and manuals
A good way to learn more about responsible approaches to tourism is to take at look at case studies of different projects or at manuals and handbooks. We have put together a selection of practical hands-on reading. More...
More on sustainable tourism: the complete listings from Eldis
