April 15, 2002

What is ecotourism?

By Adriane Lam
alam@uwo.ca

Leanne Clare is a world traveller. She has sought out proboscis monkeys in Borneo and has learned about the culture of the people in Nepal. During her travels, she has seen both the good and the bad sides of the tourism industry.

Two years ago in Borneo, Clare joined a tour that brought her into a national park.

"One minute you are on the beach, the next minute you are walking through the rain forest, with these huge plants. Then suddenly you are walking along and you are in a semi-arid environment with pitcher plants. It was incredible, a real feast for the eyes. And the monkeys were the coolest part," said Clare. "It was very cool to walk through this evolutionary textbook."

Photo courtesy of Leanne Clare

On one of her many trips, Leanne Clare canoes on Pokhara Lake, in Nepal, with the Annapurna range in the background.

But just a few years before that experience, Clare was a tourist in India, and saw things that were less enlightening. A trip that promised to go to a local waterfall was realized only after visiting three different sari dealers. "What it (the tour) was really about was stopping us at souvenir shops."

This lack of consistency has always plagued the loosely structured tourism industry. But now as niche markets in tourism grow, the problem seems to be getting worse. This is especially true for a relatively new type of travel - ecotourism.

There is a growing demand for ecotourism. People want to go further and participate in activities that only a few daring brave souls have experienced.

However, exactly what ecotourism is depends on who is being asked the question. So far, there has been no officially accepted definition for ecotourism in the tourism industry, though various organizations do offer definitions. This lack of an official definition has led to confusion for both tourists and operators. Though some operators are environmentally responsible, there are also those that take advantage of this lack of understanding. The result is an unregulated, fast growing industry, where ideals and economic realities sometimes clash, and where sometimes neither the tourists nor the environment benefits.

The ecotourism industry is growing in Canada, according to Frank Verschuren, outdoor tourism product development co-ordinator at the Canadian Tourism Association in Ottawa. Though there are no statistics on just ecotourism, outdoor tourism,which includes ecotourism, has been growing at a rate of about 15 per cent a year. But Verschuren said the numbers are probably due to a growing number of people participating in eco-adventure tourism.

Globally, the World Tourism Organization said that ecotourism is one of the fastest-growing sectors in the industry. In 1990, the World Resources Institute reported that nature travel is growing at a rate between 10 and 30 per cent annually. More current studies have indicated that these numbers are fairly accurate.

However, few statistics exist on just ecotourism. Once again, the confusion over and the deficiency in hard statistics is due to the lack of a standard definition.

"If you can't define it, you can't count it," said Geoffrey Wall, a professor in the geography department at the University of Waterloo. He suspects that there is a growing trend, but probably not as great as what people tend to believe.

Part of the reason for such dramatic numbers is because ecotourism is often confused with, grouped into and counted as part of adventure tourism, nature tourism and any other tourism activity that occurs outdoors. Experts know the differences but do tourists and operators?

Adventure tourism takes place in nature and usually involves some risk or some strenuous physical activity. But it does not necessarily include enjoying, learning about or preserving nature. Douglas Larson, a professor in the botany department at the University of Guelph found in his studies of the Niagara Escarpment that cliff climbing - an adventure tourism activity - often destroys cliff vegetation and affects local wildlife.

Nature tourism also occurs outdoors. But it does not have to include contributing to local communities, adding to conservation efforts educating tourists, said Joseph Hnatiuk, president of the Ecotourism Society of Saskatchewan. He said these activities are important components of ecotourism.

So there does appear to be a general understanding of what ecotourism is. Type ecotourism into any search engine on the Internet and hundreds of websites will offer explanations, guidelines and suggestions.

"Ecotourism is a form of tourism that focuses on natural areas, or aspects of the natural environment. It should provide a high quality tourism experience. It should help protect the natural environment. It should provide an educational experience. It should promote the well being of local communities," said Wall.

The International Ecotourism Society defines ecotourism as "responsible travel to natural areas that conserves the environment and sustains the well being of local people." This appears to be the most cited definition.

Photo by Adriane Lam

Divers see nurse sharks in Belize, but is this ecotourism?

Still, whether operators or tourists pay attention to such definitions is questionable.

Hnatiuk uses an example of a hunting and fishing operation calling itself an ecotourism company simply because its activity occurs outdoors. "The operators feel they can have a hunter in here in the morning and an ecotourist in the afternoon."

He calls it "green washing."

The term ecotourism has been thrown around so much that some believe it has lost its fragile meaning and significance. The term has become little more than a marketing phrase.

And some operators are even using this term to sell threatened habitats to tourists.

"There are marketing slogans like 'Come and see it before it is too late,' which I paraphrase as 'go and put the last nail in the coffin'," said Wall.

Barry Griffiths, president and founder of Quest Nature Tours in Toronto, feels his company adheres to the principles of ecotourism, but he avoids using that term. In his opinion, it has become an "empty phrase".

Yet Griffiths does not see imposing regulations as a way to rectify the situation. He said that there will be a natural weeding out of operators who are merely using the term ecotourism as a marketing ploy. The operators who do not meet people's expectations of what ecotourism is will go out of business. A form of natural selection for ecotourism.

Currently, there are no legal measures regarding ecotourism, nationally or globally, though there are plenty of guidelines for tourists and operators. The problem goes back to the lack of a standard definition.

And even for the existing regulations, enforcement is still an issue. Many ecotourism activities occur in economically challenged countries. These are the same countries that lack the budget to go after unscrupulous operators.

Most experts do support regulations even though they do not see how to apply them practically, yet.

"Absolutely, there has to be regulations, but the regulations should follow the research," said Larson.

Until more data are gathered about the impacts of ecotourism, there should be something in place to prevent it from negatively affecting the environment, said Larson.

Even without legislation, the industry has started voluntary self-regulating programs. The ESS, for example, has set up a list of standards and its own peer review system. Companies volunteer to have their operations inspected by the group to receive a certification stating they are an ecotourism operator, along with other benefits. ESS also collects client feedback and does surprise inspections. Hnatiuk said their role is to educate not just regulate. They are constantly striving to help operators be non-consumptive while remaining economically sound.

Like others, Hnatiuk said that it is usually unnecessary to go any further than developing a self-regulating, peer review system. As he explains, there are already many laws in place to control the behaviour of tourists and operators, in regards to nature, especially in national parks. For example the Department of Fisheries and Oceans has set distance and time limits to whale watching, and in Africa, tourists are not allowed to leave a vehicle or the marked roads in parks.

Nevertheless Hnatiuk would not mind some legal support and better monitoring of land use.

Programs like ESS, which are in other places and around the world, are a way to ensure a minimum standard. Yet, anyone can still start an operation in their basement today and call itself ecotourism.

Still, neither the industry nor the government should take sole responsibility for controlling and protecting the environment. Tourists must demand operators to meet certain expectations.

Photo courtesy of Leanne Clare

Leanne Clare and friends ride on an elephant during an ecotour in the Terai region of Nepal.

In Nepal, Clare found that some tourists act as educators for their guides. "I really think that if travellers demand a lot, then the industry will be more responsive."

Yet both Clare and the experts find that most tourists do not do much research to educate themselves prior to a trip.

Prior to her own travels to Borneo, Clare spoke to someone from Malaysia, read the Lonely Planet guidebook and searched the Internet. However, even she admits it is not always possible to do all the necessary research. "Sometimes you do the best you can, on the ground, while you are there."

The situation surrounding ecotourism may be changing, said Griffiths. There is a growing awareness about the environment, and as the use of the Internet grows, more people are researching destinations and operators. He has faith that people can see the difference between a real ecotourism operator and one that is just using the word.

Right now, some tourists are still just picking the operator with the sign or the ad that says "ecologically friendly" thinking they are doing good. Many choose to participate in ecotourism because of their love for nature. For others, it may simply be a wish to do something different from that seven-day bus ride through 20 countries in Europe.

And still some participate because it is the thing to do or because a guidebook tells them this is the place to go, said Lisa Campbell, a professor of the geography department at the University of Western Ontario.

"People want to have Disneyland. They want a simulacra of the Borneo that they read about in their novels," said Clare.

In Borneo, Clare watched 50 people get off a bus, walk around the national park and then get back onto the bus to return to their resorts. That was their ecotourism activity.

Photo by Adriane Lam

The view from a secluded beach on Lizard Island, Australia where few tourists have visited this remote location.

Ecotourists think they are doing something different, something more natural or something better than normal forms of tourism, said Campbell. They enter parks and reserves, and their activity is not much different from other tourists. They arrive on the same planes, and often sign up for their tours using the same agents as other mass tourists. The only difference is that they tend to visit more remote locations.

If not for the lack of definition, and those who abuse the term, ecotourism does offer a way for sustainable development. It can be a solution to environmental conservation while allowing for economic growth.

"The experience can be fairly magical," said Campbell.

Ideally, ecotourism allows people to visit pristine areas and to learn about the environment. It can be a biology and anthropology class in the field. Often when ecotourists come home, they donate money or join conservation organizations to continue helping the environment.

At the location, tourists bring in much-needed money. The money can be used for conservation and to help local communities, whether through education programs or in community projects like building schools and hospitals. Ecotourism can also provide jobs like tour guides or support staff for local people.

"It provides an experience for people, so that their sensitivity to the environment is raised," said Griffiths. "It empowers local people to become stewards of their areas."

Photo by Adriane Lam

A cathedral fig grows in the rainforests of Australia.

Ecotourism is a way to show that a tree is worth more being a tree than a coffee table.

Unfortunately, reality and ideal may not agree. Growing demands and lack of regulations often lead to the destruction, and not the preservation, of the environment.

The economic incentive to grow is very tempting, especially in poorer nations. If it is all right to take six people, why not eight, or 15, or if it is all right for six groups to use an area, then why not 12, said Wall.

It creates a slippery slope, Wall continues. If tour guides' livelihoods depend on tips, they may do things like chase a lion with the jeep to allow tourists a better snapshot. Each act by itself is pretty inconsequential, but it will become a problem when multiplied.

Turning nature into a commodity is also a problem, said Campbell. Ecotourism by itself cannot be the only means to conserve habitats. For one thing, there are ecologically important areas that hold little interest for tourists.

"Some people are just not interested. They want to see big charismatic mega-fauna. They are not really interested in tree toads unless they are brilliantly red," said Campbell

She also thinkscompletely closing off a resource from traditional activities, like fishing, for the sake of tourism cannot work. "If we bank entirely on a tourism rationale as a means to conserving species, then when tourism is gone, you are sort of back to square one."

It is also possible to love the environment to death.

"Too much ecotourism is bad," said Larson. He gave an example of manatees, which are found in the waters near Florida, being injured by boat propellers, all because of the growing number of people wishing to see them.

There is a maximum threshold to the amount of stress that each habitat can take, said Larson. Once that magic number has passed, the habitat can no longer buffer the impact. And his studies also found that it is impossible to restore degraded areas without removing the people first.

So the debate and the struggle continue between ideal ecotourism and the realities of ecotourism.

This year the WTO and the United Nations Environment Program have declared it to be the International Year of Ecotourism. Canada will be hosting the World Ecotourism Summit in Quebec from May 19-22, where international experts and delegates will meet to discuss these issues and more.

For now, tourists are still, more or less, left on their own to sift through the hundreds of operators, throughout the world, to decide for themselves who are and who are not ecotourism companies.

This is still a relatively young industry; it has a name, and now all it needs is to grow into it.

In Borneo, Clare travelled the trails with a guide who came from a family of traditional medicine people. "He walked us through and was pointing out: if you take that plant, it will get rid of headaches; and if you get bit by a snake, you will take that plant, and you will wrap it around where the snake bite is and it will draw out the venom."

This is what ecotourism is about, she said. It is not about just seeing the tree, or the monkey; it is not about simply learning facts about the environment. It is about being made aware of and helping the world and its people - with as little impact as possible, of course.

Photo courtesy of Leanne Clare

Leanne Clare (middle) and friends admire the view of the Annapurna range.