Ecotourism
Ecotourism can certainly be a trend for some, but it means a lot for people who care about the environment and wildlife protection. 𝑺𝒐 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒕? 🔻
What is ecotourism?
𝑬𝒄𝒐𝒕𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒎 is tourism focused on the conservation of the environment and the protection of animal lives. It also seeks to contribute to the betterment of the locals’ quality of life by enhancing their environment & providing sustainable jobs.
💪🏾Ecotourism is the result of governments, establishments and individuals' gathered efforts to make the world a better place 👫🌏👫
🤔How did they make ecotourism a reality?
By passing laws and proposing activities that protect and do not alter nature and animals’ habitats; Building less or none damaging touristic activities; Actively teaching the population and tourists on daily habits that could save the world and so on...
❌ However, it can’t be perfect and an aspect of Ecotourism I deplore is the commercialization of places that should have remained untouchable or not that crowded. In the effort to show how pristine and beautiful nature is without human intervention, companies that promote such “ecotouristic” visits sometimes contribute to the destruction of the ecosystem.. so what can we do as tourists?
How can we help as tourists?👫🌏👫
The answer is simple: 𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒗𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒑𝒐𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒃𝒍𝒚!! B𝒖𝒕 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒅𝒐𝒆𝒔 𝒊𝒕 mean and what does it 𝒊𝒏𝒗𝒐𝒍𝒗𝒆?
Traveling responsibly is simply being socially, culturally, ecologically, and also financially aware of your impact on the earth, on people you meet and on a country. Yes, every time you travel you do have an impact! Here are some ways you could travel responsibly:
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- Learning more about the country you are traveling to
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- Getting to know the places we decide to spend our money on, for activities (e.g. avoiding places/activities where animals are obviously or known to be abused, yes we do want an epic picture for IG but at what cost for those animals, the environment, ecosystem, etc? 🤷🏾♀️)
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- Visiting animal conservation centers rather than zoos;
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- Not participating in illegal trades such as ivory or the turtle trade
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- Knowing when to travel and where to when we want to see animals in their natural habitat (e.g. knowing when turtles lay out their eggs so that you don’t invade their space since it’s been proven to psychologically affect them & is negative on the long term..);
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- Reusing hotels towels
AND 𝐒𝐮𝐫𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 as it may seem, traveling alone is also useful in that Group travels usually involve larger groups which pollute more
Overall? Traveling but in a MORE RESPONSIBLE AND INFORMATIVE WAY‼️
Why does Ecotourism matters & why should we care ⁉️
Most importantly because we want to preserve our beautiful nature (isn’t this beautiful? Listen to the sound of the ocean 🥰), keep oceans clean, get a clean earth with less (free) plastic ♻️ , breathe fresh air (the air in Mauritius’ mountains is definitely not the same than the one in Abidjan ). Then, it’s obvious that we do need a place to live and if we do destroy our unique nature and earth, what’s left? 🤷🏾♀️
Moreover, because we also care for our other human fellows. Therefore, it’s important to remember that in those places you visit, the local population lives there on a daily basis and though you might be there for a short time, you should do your best to NOT LITTER EVEN IF THE PLACE IS ALREADY DIRTY, clean after yourself.
It might seem like nothing to you « it’s not what’s gonna change the world » (Tchr,tchip, tsss) BUT a single action could teach others and eventually save the world
Finally, as tourists, we don’t want those places to be closed forever and not accessible, take a look
Finally, if you can contribute humanly or financially to local initiatives that seek to conserve the environment and better the local population’s life, 1$,1€,500CFA could go a long way but your willingness to learn about others, their lifestyle, their culture and what they live and go through as locals is also of the utmost importance
If you liked and learned something through this article, please share with your beloved ones and on social media :)