Sustainable tourism
[1] Sustainable tourism should embrace concerns for environmental protection, social equity, and the quality of life, cultural diversity, and a dynamic, viable economy delivering jobs and prosperity for all.
As one of the world's largest and fastest-growing industries, this continuous growth will place great stress on remaining biologically diverse habitats and Indigenous cultures.
By educating tourists, indigenous communities can foster a newfound appreciation toward their “country's natural, cultural, or historical uniqueness” (Cohan, 1978).
[16] Therefore, in an effort to compare and bring mass tourism to the remotest islands,[16] remote regions will accommodate and meet the needs of guests by developing these facilities.
[26] Some argue that it actually detracts attention from the wider issues surrounding tourism that are in need of regulation, such as the number of visitors and environmental impact.
This could be through supporting reforestation or regeneration initiatives,[37] making space for nature in urban hotels, or changing operating procedures to eradicate light and water pollution.
[38] More broadly, the partnership aims to support the implementation of the Global Biodiversity Framework, an agreement that aligns closely with the principles of the nature-positive goal.
A report ('Nature Positive Travel & Tourism in Action') was published in April 2024 to describe the partnership's plan to work towards the nature-positive goal.
[40] Some of the priority actions suggested include identifying impacts on biodiversity by assessing operations, setting SMART targets (specific, measurable, assignable, realistic, and time-bound), and stopping animal exploitation.
[44] Such cases highlight that sustainable tourism covers a wide spectrum from "very weak" to "very strong" when the degree of anthropocentrism and exploitation of human and natural resources is taken into account.
[45] The government plays an important role in encouraging sustainable tourism whether it be through marketing, information services, education, and advice through public-private collaborations.
[3]: 93 Good governance principles for National Parks and protected areas management include legitimacy and voice, direction, performance, accountability and fairness.
More environmentally aware organizations, corporations, and government agencies are now seeking more sustainable event practices, greener hotels, restaurants and convention venues, and more energy-efficient or climate-neutral travel and ground transportation.
[61] The GSTC Criteria serve as the international standard for certification agencies (the organizations that would inspect a tourism product, and certify them as a sustainable company).
[62] The GSTC Criteria has the potential to be applied to national parks to improve the standards of operation and increase sustainability efforts in the United States.
[66] The International Air Transport Association (IATA) considers an annual increase in aviation fuel efficiency of 2 percent per year through 2050 to be realistic.
"[67] The European Tourism Manifesto has also called for an acceleration in the development of cycling infrastructure to boost local clean energy travel.
[71] It has also called for sufficient and predictable rail infrastructure funding, and a focus on digital multimodal practices, including end-to-end ticketing (such as Interrail), all of which are in-line with the EU's modal shift goal.
This percentage takes into account airline transportation as well as other significant environmental and social impacts that are not always beneficial to local communities and their economies.
Peoples' desire for more authentic and challenging experiences results in their destinations becoming more remote, to the few remaining pristine and natural environments left on the planet.
[80] The permanent destruction of these natural lands has increased due to tourists seeking more adventurous experiences, such as places where they feel challenged by the change of scenery and lifestyles.
Which in turn, decreases the number of natural destinations.Promotion of sustainable tourism practices are often connected to the management of tourist locations by locals or the community.
A salient feature of CBST is that local knowledge is usually utilized alongside wide general frameworks of ecotourism business models.
In Honduras, such a divergence can be demonstrated where consultants from the World Bank and officials from the Institute of tourism wanted to set up a selection of 5-star hotels near various ecotourism destinations.
But another operating approach in the region by USAID and APROECOH (an ecotourism association) promotes community-based efforts which have trained many local Hondurans.
Many assume that more money is gained through developing luxury goods and services in spite of the fact that this increases a countries dependency on imported products, foreign investments and expatriate skills.
In the 1970s, this changed as academics started to take a much more negative view on tourism's consequences, particularly criticizing the industry as an effective contributor towards development.
[103] Scholars argue that "surrogate tourism" will allow tourists to remain home while employing local guides at the destination to facilitate personalized, interactive, real-time tours (PIRTs).
While these options will not take the place of conventional travel experience, there is a market for PIRTs especially for persons with disabilities and the elderly, and for the "sustainable citizen who wishes to minimize their impact on the planet".
In just over four decades the forest has been transformed from a run-down forestry holding to a flourishing, multi-use operation with benefits to owners, employees and the public at large as well as the environment.
