Ecotourism About Eco Travel
What is Greenwashing?
Since ecotourism has become such a hot potato there is frequent talk of greenwashing within the travel industry yet it’s not always entirely clear what that means.
Definition of Greenwashing
To whitewash over something is to cover the cracks so when people talk about whitewashing over the issues they mean that the real issues aren’t being dealt with. Therefore, when people refer to things as being greenwashed, or mention greenwashing, it means that consumers are being misled by false advertising while the real environmental and ecological aspects are ignored.
Big Business
Greenwashing happens frequently, on a grand scale. Today’s travel industry is rife with businesses who claim to have given their company an eco-friendly facelift while doing next to nothing about their environmental impact. And because ecotourism is one of the fastest growing sectors of the travel industry everyone wants a piece of the pie.
Date: May 1st, 2008 |
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World Hum Travel Article on Koh Phangan, Thailand
I stumbled across this wonderful article on World Hum recently and wanted to share it with you. It describes a journey to the once pristine island of Koh Phangan in Thailand; how it was in 1994 and then again in 2006.
It’s a great travel story that manages to capture the raw disappointment a traveller feels when they return to a place they’ve held dear for many years only to find it’s been engulfed by mass tourism and globalisation.
It’s a sad realisation that, with all the best intentions in the world, the …
Date: February 26th, 2008 |
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Galápagos Islands on Unesco Danger List due to Mass Tourism
News that the Galápagos Islands, the world’s first World Heritage Site, are under threat has again put mass tourism in the spotlight.
The Galápagos are a cluster of volcanic islands in the Pacific Ocean sitting just west of Ecuador, South America. They are best known for their wealth of unique native species and are thought to have instigated Darwin’s theories on evolution and natural selection.
Recent Number of Visitors To the Islands
Visitor numbers to the islands have grown from 40,000 in 1990 to 145,000 in 2006, that’s a 250% rise and as a result Unesco has added the archipelago to its ‘in danger list’, specifically citing the fragile ecosystem and the negative effects of a sizable growth in tourism.
“Unless we start to make fundamental changes right now, in the next 10 to 15 years we will see the Galápagos suffer from both economic and environmental degradation,” said Dr Graham Watkins, Executive Director of the Charles Darwin Foundation, whose mission is to conserve the Galápagos through scientific research.
Date: February 13th, 2008 |
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Ecotourism is Growing Up
I bet if you were asked how long the term ‘ecotourism’ has been around, you’d never guess 25 years. Well, this month, the ever-changing travel concept turns a quarter of a century and like a good wine it only gets better with age.
Since 1983, when Hector Ceballos-Lascurain, a Mexican architect, environmentalist and ecotourism consultant, first coined the phrase ‘ecotourism’, almost every country in the world has made efforts to cater towards the growing number of travellers looking for something more than kitsch souvenirs and a tan.
But even after all these years a clear definition of ecotourism is hard to …
Date: February 8th, 2008 |
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Ecotourism Australia Up For Top Travel Award
As I’m writing from Australia at the moment and the country has just celebrated Australia Day, I thought I’d make today’s entry about this hot and dry but rather lovely land.
Australia has long been in touch with their eco side and have had eco lodges around long before the idea of ecotourism became trendy, and they are soon to be awarded for their efforts… maybe.
The World Tourism and Travel Council (WTTC) have just revealed Ecotourism Australia is one of three finalists for a coveted Tourism for Tomorrow Award in the conservation category. The Tourism for Tomorrow Awards showcase a selection of “the world’s leading examples in sustainable tourism development”
Date: February 3rd, 2008 |
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EcoTravelLogue listed by International Ecotourism Society
While it’s great to be recognised by other websites and it’s very important to maintain an air of humility, y’know, not get too pompous about it, how could I possibly not get excited when I discovered an article by EcoTravelLogue highlighted by the granddaddy of all ecotourism organisations, The International Ecotourism Society (TIES). Thanks guys!
TIES, the largest and oldest ecotourism organisation in the world, has been dedicated to promoting ecotourism for almost 20 years. The not-for-profit, non-governmental association sets the tone for ecotourism by providing guidelines and standards, research …
Date: April 6th, 2008 |
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The Return of the Wolf to Yellowstone National Park
A few nights ago a programme called Strange Days, televised by Planet Earth TV, discussed what happens to an environment when predators are removed. The documentary makers found that when natural predators are left to flourish so too does an ecosystem.
Hunters Become the Hunted
A problem was highlighted in Yellowstone National Park. Local researchers studying the native aspen trees, which once densely populated the area, found there had been no new growth for around 70 years. On further investigation they thought it was something to do with the mass cull of over 100,000 native wolves, killed because they were taking livestock and getting too close too humans.
Without professing to be an expert on the matter, surely if people decide to build a ranch on the edge of a thriving National Park it means that they will no doubt be visited by its inhabitants at some point, especially if they have a fondness for flesh, after all, they know no boundaries. But for people to complain and cull because native predators do what is only natural to them in their habitat is quite astonishing. It’s akin to pitching a tent in your neighbours lawn and then shooting them when they get too close because they’re on your land. Doesn’t really make sense, but I digress.
The Yellowstone wolves were hunted almost to extinction, like so many species that get in the way of human progression and expansion.
Date: February 18th, 2008 |
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New Ecological Travel Guides by VERY Publications
Just when you thought you’d found your favourite travel guides another lot pops on to the market to cause confusion but these aren’t any old tourist guides, no, eco travellers, the VERYstyleguide Ecological focuses specifically on the various aspects enviro tourists get excited about like, green restaurants, ethical businesses or alternative travel in the city ie, pedicab tours and bike rental. And the new guides are causing quite a stir.Published by UP&CO, these mini mags and shopping directories are the brainchild of designer, editor and publisher, Uscha Pohl. A long-time fan of all things ethical, especially clothing, Uscha has created a range of city guides that combine eco style and culture in an easy-to-use flip-over booklet.
VERY Eco says, “… the ecological guide offers new options to everyone who seeks to inject ecological and ethical principles into their daily life. These will permit the reader to live and shop in accordance to their convictions and to discover lesser known ecological domains like ethical banks, high-end fashion labels which rely on truly ecological and/or ethical production and sourcing procedures, as well as ‘ecologically correct’ information centres.”
Date: February 12th, 2008 |
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New Look Ecotourism Travel Guide at EcoTravelLogue.com
Well, whaddya think of our new home? Eco Travel Logue has been given a wonderful face lift to take us skipping and dancing through the rest of 2008 and beyond. And, to complete the fancy makeover, we’ve been given the new name of Ecotourism Travel Guide. Like it? I do.
Navigating the site is a bit different from the old one but all previous articles are still listed here. If you’re looking for an old article, scroll down to just below where it says ‘Ecotourism News’ and you’ll find the archives which date back to 2006; you …
Date: February 6th, 2008 |
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Travel Like Royalty, Take The Train
It’s not every day you see the Queen of England taking the train but last week, for an official engagement, Queenie and Prince Philip took the morning train to work, like everyone else.
Every year the Royal Family spends winter at Sandringham, their country retreat in Norfolk, England, and would ordinarily attend public engagements by chauffeur driven car or by helicopter, a mode of transport popular with celebrities and politicians.
But now, with all the commotion about climate change and pollution, it seems that even those on the throne are keen make an example and are travelling more frequently by train; and with commoners too if you please.
Date: January 14th, 2008 |
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