Ecotourism revisited: Last twenty-five years

A rise in the popularity of ecotourism has coincided with voluminous definitional discourse. Amongst stakeholders, confusion has resulted from the disparate nature of these definitions. In the absence of a common definition or set of key tenets the challenge has been to ensure operational ecotourism that adheres to the theoretical underpinnings of the concept. Without some semblance of definitional consensus, ecotourism may be on a precarious course whereby the ethics upon which the activity is conceptualised, the natural environment upon which the activity depends, and the legitimacy of the industry are at risk. The ambition of this research is to disentangle a set of themes from the evolving definitional debate in order to provide a framework for the development of ecotourism policy and applications. Recurring themes are identified through the application of content analysis methodology to select contemporary definitions. Those themes that appear most frequently are then introduced as an ecotourism conceptual framework based on key tenets. The tenets are meant to represent a set of established fundamental beliefs central to ecotourism: (1) naturebased; (2) preservation/conservation; (3) education; (4) sustainability; (5) distribution of benefits; and (6) ethics/responsibility/awareness.

The research within the area of ecotourism still appears to be at its infancy stage. The definitional perspective of the concept is lacking both in terms of scope and criteria used, as well as in aspects of its planning and operationalisation. There are a variety of ecotourism definitions all reflecting a range of paradigms and perspectives. The view that this article has taken is that the definition of ecotourism is not really necessary if the discussion focuses on the concepts rather than the issues implied by ecotourism. Hence, it seems that ecotourism definitions could range from passive to active stances incorporating the three common concepts in the form of trade-off scenarios. The three common concepts within ecotourism are natural-based, educational, and sustainable (which includes economic and social criteria). Within these components, both benefits and costs exist, and in some circumstances there is disequilibrium towards greater costs. Fundamentally, ecotourism could merit wider credibility, but only when the different actors involved avoid overmarketing, and control the overuse of its products by consumers. In light of these pitfalls, this paper focuses on the three components of ecotourism and includes a review of ecotourism's definitions followed by an examination of its natural-based, sustainability and educational components. It concludes with the future state of ecotourism research in light of the changes in trends in the tourism industry.

Potentials and challenges of Ecotourism by NZAYISENGA ADRIEN, 2017

Around the world, ecotourism has been hailed as a panacea: a way to fund conservation and scientific research, protect fragile and pristine ecosystem, benefits rural communities, promote development in poor countries ,enhance ecological and cultural sensitivities ,instill environmental awareness and social conscience in travel industry, satisfy and educate the discriminated tourists and some claim, build world peace. It is often positioned as an alternative to mass tourism, however, the understanding and implementation of the concept has been riddled with uncertainty. The ideal balance of conserving and developing at the same time is considered paradoxical not just for ecotourism but also related concepts like sustainability and improving nature conservations. This review paper critically examines the nature and application of ecotourism in improving nature in developing countries. The review adopted triangulation method which involved examination of two bases of information, on the one hand information from secondary information including books, journals, and on the other hand from periodical bulletins. It was found that ecotourism has not achieved the objective of integrating conservation of biodiversity and the socioeconomic development of adjacent communities; one reason for the existing implementation problems has been the concept itself and how it has been operational zed. Furthermore, ecotourism in the developing countries has been plagued with issues related to non-realization of promised benefits, none or weak development structures and absence of efficient governance and management. The review recommends greater coordination between the stakeholders involved in ecotourism and of key interest, the participation of the government and the local community. The present reviewed sources are twofold; theoretical and empirical, that gives understanding of why the developing countries have not been able to sustainably develop ecotourism and provides the concerned parties with crucial insights on the possible actions for achieving the objectives of ecotourism in improving nature conservations.

Journal of Tourism and Gastronomy Studies, 2017

Mainstream approaches ecotourism focus on the main idea that the tourism activities employ the kinds of sustainability that are economically viable, ecologically maintainable and socially equitable. Hence, ecotourism is considered a special type of sustainable tourism that aims at responsible use of natural, cultural and historical resources, and it simultaneously contributes to the local and national development and the protection of natural areas. This paper presents critical assessment of the mainstream explanations about the nature of ecotourism. To do so, the critical views in the related literature are collected, reviewed and presented. Their criticisms include the central assumptions and explanations provided by the mainstream scholars about ecotourism, such as definition, goals and outcomes of ecotourism, business practices, environmental sustainability, ethics and tourism policy. It is clear that critical approaches come up with explanations that are diametrically different and, thus reject the validity of the mainstream approaches.

Revista De Turism Studii Si Cercetari in Turism Journal of Tourism Studies and Research in Tourism, 2013

This paper takes into consideration some theoretical notions about ecotourism, an important segment of the tourism phenomenon, and wants to place face-to-face some of the most important attempts to define it (from Ceballos-Lascurain to David Weaver and Yi-Yen Wu). An important role in understanding ecological tourism is understanding the impacts that it has had on various elements of human society, and in a holistic vision we can conclude that ecotourism should be actually a principle that leads / underpins the entire global phenomenon of tourism.

2000

2019

Ecotourism is very much in vogue and widely contested and debated. Understanding ecotourism and its impacts is subjective and depends on one’s perspective whether it is a genuine approach for sustainable development of a destination or a marketing ploy. Past interpretations place the concept on a spectrum of opinions offering both positive and negative conclusions and indicating lack of clarity of what ecotourism is and how it can be operationalised. Early studies neglected the negative aspects of this form of tourism, viewing it as a panacea for the ills of mass tourism. More recently, our attention has been drawn to the need for the protection of the natural and social environments as well as ecotourism’s contribution to the economic development in a more sustainable way. The debate on sustainable ecotourism is still ongoing and its complexities are now being recognised. The aim of this conceptual paper is to identify the main differential characteristics of ecotourism. In so doi...

1994

Tourism Management, 1995

This paper reviews a variety of the definitions which have been given to the term ‘ecotourism’, and presents them as a continuum where, at one pole, all tourism can be viewed as ecotourism and, at the other, no tourism can be viewed as ecotourism. Examples of ecotourism definitions are then classified according to their position along this continuum. As a result of this classification it is suggested that it is desirable to implement management strategies which attempt to shift the ‘ecotourist experience’ from simple enjoyment and satisfaction through stages of greater understanding, attitude change and finally more environmentally responsible behaviour. A model which displays this shift is offered and a series of indicators which can be used to measure the transition are suggested.