Introduction : Sustainable Tourism
| A quick history of tourism | The costs and benefits of tourism | The principles of sustainable tourism | Words of wisdom on tourism | Links |
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Definition of tourism according to the World Tourism Organization (WTO) : "The activities of persons traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business, and other purposes".
Definiton of sustainable tourism accoding to the WTO :"Sustainable tourism development guidelines and management practices are applicable to all forms of tourism in all types of destinations, including mass tourism and the various niche tourism segments. Sustainability principles refer to the environmental, economic and socio-cultural aspects of tourism development, and a suitable balance must be established between these three dimensions to guarantee its long-term sustainability".
In our interconnected world, we have never been so close, not in space, but in time, to any other places in the world. Tourism is an activity that still grows every year, in relation to population growth, development of technology, spreading of democracy, and people's access to a better standard of living. I do not think anyone could critisize tourism as a whole, the benefits are well known, and everyone enjoys a little vacation every once in a while, but we have come to realize that this wonderful opportunity, if its development is not controlled, could become more and more harmful to the environment but also to some communities. My intention is in no way to prevent you from travelling, however I do hope to teach you a few principles, and I expect you to have a few thoughts on how you can contribute to the sustainable development of one of my passion ... discovering the world ...
Tourism represents ten percent of the world's GDP and is accountable for close to eight percent of employement in the world. The major problem with tourism is that masses of people go to the same place at the same time, which results in unadapted infrastructures and over exploitation of ressources during some periods of the year.
Here are two pictures of Karluv Most (Charles' bridge), the main touristic site in Prague, Czech Republic. They were taken at two different times of the same day. One was taken at 7:30 am, the other one at 12:00 pm ; I just think they are very representative of the issues of tourism : people gather in same locations at the same time, which mainly prevents them from enjoying the true beauty of the site.
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Photos © Nicolas Schlosser