From Greenwashing To Mindful Natural Tourism

Ecotourism faces accusations of greenwashing and exploitation of both communities and the natural world globally. Tourism in the Eastern Himalayas is at a pivotal stage and must be shaped deliberately to avoid its pitfalls.

- Ranjit Barthakur

Until the 1970s, concerns about tourism’s environmental impact and the impact on local communities and their economies were rare. The industry’s focus on tourist needs, interests and desires meant there was little attempt to balance this against the concerns of those most impacted by tourism. Local communities were disrupted and citizens were rendered little more than second-class citizens in their own regions, in addition to creating profound stress on local ecologies.

Born from the recognition of this problem, ecotourism aimed to mitigate the worst of tourism’s effects on both natural ecology and local communities, while creating meaningful and individualized travel experiences that connected people with nature. Currently estimated to be one of the fastest growing sectors of the travel industry, ecotourism now accounts for 6% of the world’s total GDP.

However, with this boom, commentators have begun raising questions about its effectiveness – particularly in conservation and environmental preservation. Can ecotourism truly help preserve biodiversity in fragile biomes around the world by drawing tourists in? More to the point, is ecotourism what it says it is, or is it mere greenwashing – and is it time for a new green-driven tourism?

Ecotourism: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly