The Concept Of Sustainable Tourism And Its Contributions To A Viable Economy And Healthy Environment.

Sustainable tourism, according to Google is a concept that covers the complete tourism experience, including concern for economic, social and environmental issues as well as attention to improving tourists' experiences and addressing the needs of host communities.

The concept embraces concerns for environmental protection, social equity, and the quality of life, cultural diversity, and a dynamic, viable economy delivering jobs and prosperity for all.

Sustainable tourism had its roots in sustainable developments and in the light of this, there is now broad consensus that tourism should be sustainable, meaning that all forms of tourism have the potential to be sustainable or retained if planned, developed and managed properly.

To achieve these objectives, tourist development organizations are promoting sustainable tourism practices in order to mitigate negative effects caused by the growing environmental impact of urban migration.

For instance, a Canopy Walkway at Kakum National Park in Ghana, ensuring that tourists have least direct impact on the surrounding ecology is a good example for which the visitor park received the Global Tourism for Tomorrow Award in 1998.

To avoid being confused with Ecotourism,
the United Nations World Tourism Organization emphasized these practices by promoting sustainable tourism as part of the Sustainable Development Goals, through programs like the International Year for Sustainable Tourism for Development in 2017.

There is also a direct link between sustainable tourism and several of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) with tourism for SDGs focusing on how SDG can ensure decent work and economic growth, responsible consumption and production, implicating tourism in creating a sustainable economy.

According to the World Travel & Tourism Travel, tourism constituted 10.3 percent to the global gross domestic product, with international tourist arrivals hitting 1.5 billion marks in 2019 and generated $1.7 trillion export earnings.

Even at that, experts says improvements are expected to be gained from suitable management aspects and including sustainable tourism as part of a broader sustainable development strategy.


Ecotourism is a form of tourism marketed as responsible travel to natural areas, conserving the environment, and improving the well-being of the local people, with the stated purpose to educate the traveler, to provide funds for ecological conservation, to directly benefit the economic development and political empowerment of local communities, and also foster respect for different cultures and human rights.

According to tourism exponents, investment in Eco tourism will largely influence the growth of sustainable tourism.

Since the 1980s, they noted, ecotourism has been considered an important endeavor by environmentalists, who have said they want future generations to experience destinations relatively untouched by human intervention. Ecotourism focus' on educating travelers on local environments and natural surroundings with an eye to ecological conservation gives it the effort to produce economic opportunities that make the conservation of natural resources financially possible.

Generally speaking, however, ecotourism deals with interaction with biotic components of the natural environments and focuses on what advocates define as socially responsible travel, personal growth, and environmental sustainability.

It typically involves travels to destinations where flowers and cultural heritage are the primary attractions and is intended to offer tourists an insight into the impact of human beings on the environment and to foster a greater appreciation of our natural habitats.

Ecotourism also aims at minimal environmental impact on the areas visited. Besides fostering respect towards the natural environment, ecotourism endeavors to create socio-economic benefits for the area's communities.

Responsible ecotourism programs include those that minimize the negative aspects of conventional tourism on the environment and enhance the cultural integrity of local people. So, in addition to evaluating environmental and cultural factors, an integral part of ecotourism is the promotion of recycling, energy efficiency, water conservation, and the creation of economic opportunities for local communities. It is for these reasons that ecotourism often appeals to advocates of environmental and social responsibility.

And like most long-distance travels, ecotourism often depends on air transportation, which contributes to climate change. In Addition, the overall effect of sustainable tourism is negative where like ecotourism philanthropic aspirations mask hard-nosed immediate self-interest, experts posits.

Because both sustainable and Eco tourism's roots are connected to nature, rural tourism can be termed an inseperatable link in the chain.

Rural tourism as a tourism that focuses on actively participating in a rural lifestyle can be a variant of ecotourism as many villages can facilitate tourism because many villagers are hospitable and eager to welcome or host visitors.

Although Agriculture has become more mechanized and requires less manual labor, causing causing economic pressure on some villages, which in turn causes young people to move to urban areas, there is however still a segment of the urban population that is interested in visiting the rural areas and understanding the lifestyle.

For instance, back here in Africa, during festive periods, we record large number of people moving from the urban to the rural areas for rest, away from the toxic and congested environment of the urban areas.

It is seen as an opportunity to rejuvenate and reconnect with nature, friends and family with such exchange contributing to the growth of both host communities.

Going by this, it is expedient that stakeholders take advantage of this connectivity in building a healthier and profitable environment for us all.

Category:

Arts & Culture 

Oganisation:

Clevenard.com

Writer:

Franca Idemudia