کتاب زبان اصلی ECOTOURISM- 4th EDITION
نویسنده: DAVID FENNELL
تعداد صفحات: 356
قطع: وزیری
ناشر: TAYLOR & FRANCIS
اورجینال چاپ آمریکا
One of the benefits of coming to ecotourism in its earliest days as a field of study is that I
have seen first- hand how the concept has evolved over time. During the latter part of the
1980s, ecotourism was defined by a rather restricted range of opportunities in a few charismatic
destinations that were essential in defining the nature of the experience. The
market, typically birdwatchers and scientists, was much more predictable for these types
of experiences: ecotourists were affiliated with conservation organizations; they heavily
invested in the gear that would allow them to better capture these travel experiences; they
traveled as ecotourists frequently; and they were long- staying, well educated, financially
well off and allocentric in their travel desires. Ecotourism (‘eco’ standing for ecological)
also represented a promising platform for conservationists to affect meaningful change in
an industry that was increasingly defined by negative socio-cultural and ecological
change. The allure of this new type of travel, no doubt stemming from the onset of sustainable
development and the media hype generated from its coverage, gave way to an
expanding market clamouring to take advantage of new alternative tourism opportunities
in places that were virtually terraincognita . Concurrent to this growth in demand were
opportunities for service providers to develop their own small- scale ecotourism packages,
in their own little corner of the world, without being tied to large tourism organizations.
Not surprisingly, the growth in ecotourism supply and demand over such a relatively short
period of time has been accompanied by some very serious philosophical and practical
inconsistencies that continue to plague ecotourism in study and practice. For example, in
a sobering account of her travel experience in the Peruvian rain forest, Arlen (1995) writes
that ecotourism has reached a critical juncture in its evolution. She speaks graphically of
instances where tourists endured swimming in water with human waste; guides capturing
sloths and caiman for tourists to photograph; raw sewage openly dumped into the ocean;
mother cheetahs killing their cubs to avoid the harassment of cheetah- chasing tourists;
and an ecotourism industry under- regulated with little hope for enforcement. Other writers
have recorded similar experiences. Farquharson (1992) argues that ecotourism is a dream
that has been severely diluted. She writes that whereas birding once prevailed, ecotourism
has fallen into the clutches of many of the mega- resorts like Cancún: the word [ecotourism]
changes colour like a chameleon. What began as a concept designed by ecologists
to actively prevent the destruction of the environment has become a marketing term
for tourism developers who want to publicise clean beaches, fi sh- fi lled seas and a bit of
culture for when the sunburn begins to hurt (Farquharson 1992: 8). It comes as no surprise
therefore that mass tourism industry developers have capitalised on the concept in implementing
their own version of ecotourism: one that is defined by a larger and softer market
that is perhaps less ecologically knowledgeable and sensitive than their more traditional
counterpart.
