BACKGROUND
We ask a lot of tourism these days ... that it be eco, that
it be sustainable and that it be responsible. These signs are
encouraging. Global tourism is experiencing a massive transformation
in '00s. A growing number of travelers want their journeys to
be less invasive and more beneficial to the local community.
They want to better understand the culture of the places they
visit. Interpretation begins long before the trip and ends well
afterward.
Responsible tourism is treating others the way they wish to
be treated.
While tourism campaigns have long touted 'destinations' --
we are simply entering a place
that is someone else's home. Said Transitions
Abroad founder Clay Hubbs in a 2004
conversation: "The golden rule is more and more recognized
as the first rule of travel and adventure travel and I'm told
that group organizers are rewarded by their customers for observing
it."
Perhaps responsible tourism could go a step further, to what
is called the Platinum
Rule -- treating others the way they wish to be treated.
If those working in the tourist trade embrace the values our
counterparts wish developed, then we can make a huge leap forward.
The trick lies in listening to the locals, listening to visitors
and creating the opportunites that connect top-down and grassroots
efforts. Travel agents, travel providers and travelers are the
principal players.
Sounds complicated? Try this -- imagine what irresponsible
tourism is and looks lie and then imagine its opposite.
TRENDS
Travelers and locals are seeking ways of building constituencies
with the shared goal of making tourism more responsible.
Says noted author and activist Deborah McLaren: "Responsible
tourism is based on ethics and human rights. It also means support
for community-based travelers' programs, including homestays,
guest cottages, ethno-museums, and educational programs that
bring tourist dollars directly into communities."
TOWARD CONSERVATION
Responsible travel means extending solidarity over time. Efforts
that exhibit continuity make poor situations better and good
situations great. How to stay in touch? As Rob Brezsny writes
in Pronoia,
"Choose worthy targets and ransack your imagination to
come up with smart, true and amusing praise about them."
CONCLUSION
The work ahead lies in connecting top-down and grassroots efforts.
Responsible travel means extending solidarity over time. Efforts
that lack continuity, even if developed with good intentions,
can make situations worse.
For a recommended overview, download the Responsible
Travel Handbook published by Transitions
Abroad.
What is the opposite of responsible tourism? How about irresponsible
tourism?! There is even a web forum
that discusses the troubling aspects in travel such as wildlife
exploitation and irresponsible tour operators.
FEATURES
Responsible
Travel Photography
Choosing
where to go and what to do once you get there
Definitions
Ethical
Travel
How
to be a responsible traveler
Government
Websites, Ecotourism and Responsible Travel
CAPETOWN DECLARATION
Responsible tourism asks visitors to make choices about their
vacations so that negative impacts are minimized. It is defined
in the 2002 Capetown
Declaration:
• minimizes negative economic, environmental, and social
impacts;
• generates greater economic benefits for local people
and enhances the well-being of host communities, improves working
conditions and access to the industry;
• involves local people in decisions that affect their
lives and life chances;
• makes positive contributions to the conservation of
natural and cultural heritage, to the maintenance of the world's
diversity;
• provides more enjoyable experiences for tourists through
more meaningful connections with local people, and a greater
understanding of local cultural, social and environmental issues;
• provides access for physically challenged people; and
• is culturally sensitive, engenders respect between tourists
and hosts, and builds local pride and confidence.
The declaration
concludes with a commitment 'to work with others to take responsibility
for achieving the economic, social and environmental components
of responsible and sustainable tourism.'
PLANETA FORUM
Responsible
Tourism
Belize
Responsible Tourism Conference
Ethical
Travel Dialogue
GUIDELINES
OTHER FORUMS
Irresponsible
Tourism
Responsible
Travel - Afrikatourism
Responsible
Travel - Lonely Planet
RECOMMENDED
FORUMS
FLICKR
Responsible
Travel Gallery
Responsible
Travel Group
ONLINE
FLICKR
WIKI
Responsible
Tourism
Toward
Effective Communication in Responsible Travel and Ecotourism
ONLINE
WIKI
BLOGS
Harold
Goodwin
BLOGS
VIDEO
Message
for Responsible Tourism Conference
VIDEO
ELSEWHERE ON THE WEB
Ethics
and Sustainable Tourism - David Fennell (slidecast)
Responsible
Travel on Facebook - Afrikatourism
Responsible
Travel - Transitions Abroad
Turismo
Responsable - Buen Viaje
The Good Tourist
EVENT
International
Conference Focuses on Responsible Tourism (Kerala,
India)
International
Conference on Responsible Tourism (Belmopan, Belize)
QUOTABLE
Irresponsible travel to me is where the focus is entirely
on the visitor, to the neglect and detriment of the host and
their community.
- Jane Crouch, Ecoclub
Interview
DEFINING RESPONSIBLE TOURISM
Google
'responsible tourism'
Newsgoogle
'responsible tourism'
Responsible
Travel - Wikipedia
QUESTIONS
What is responsible travel?
What is irresponsible travel?
What are the boundaries of responsible travel?
How should we develop codes of conduct?
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