Beyond Greening - Tourism Watch
Beyond Greening - Tourism Watch
Beyond Greening - Tourism Watch
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<strong>Beyond</strong> <strong>Greening</strong>: Reflections on <strong>Tourism</strong> in the Rio-Process | Positioningpaper• Consulting – where the communities are consulted with but where the aspirations ofthe community might or might not be addressed. In this instance the communitywould have the space to influence decisions while not being a formal part of thedecision making process• Collaborating – where communities are seen as equal partners in the ecotourismdevelopment planned and are formally part of the decision making process. Thecommunity would then have control over the impacts as well as the benefits ofecotourism.• Ownership – where the community owns the enterprise, which becomes the capital ofthe community. Where the pace, nature, forms, stakeholders are all decided by thecommunities and all others involved are supporters of the enterprise.Studies show that unless there has been either proactive response by the community orintervention by an outside agency, most ecotourism developments see the following impactswhich need to be taken into account while planning for any ecotourism programme: 23• The nature of ecotourism activities are similar across almost all ecotourism sites.Clearly the activities do not take into account the cultural and social specificities ofcommunities in the region. Neither do they take into the account the special skills thateach of the communities has in terms of conservation.• Displacement of adivasis from protected areas, which are then later promoted asecotourism destinations.• Objectification of adivasis by the government in their promotional material andliterature, the tourism industry and by the tourists in the way they see the adivasis.• Very often ecotourism activities impinge on resources that are otherwise used by theadivasis for livelihood, health and other purposes making them self-reliant and selfsufficient.• Construction of tourism infrastructure like roads, accommodation structures likepermanent tents, cottages etc. further damage the environment and also are a threat tothe adivasis.• The use of AC tents and other construction material result in increased energyconsumption, where the resorts have captive generation of electricity, while very oftenthe villages nearby have not yet been electrified/see frequent power cuts.• Carrying capacity/limits of acceptable change are very often not taken intoconsideration while planning ecotourism initiatives.• Solid waste produced due to tourism initiatives is not properly managed impactingboth the environment as well as the people.Legislation for Ecotourism in Forest Areas in IndiaIndia's forests are governed by a series of acts, policies, regulations and guidelines. However,there seems to be little application of these in the context of tourism. While only theguidelines for the declaration of Eco Sensitive Zones talk of specific guidelines for tourism,from some of the sections like Section 4 (2) (f) of the Scheduled Tribes and Other TraditionalForest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006, the boundaries for the operation of23 Equations (2010): Note on Community Involvement in Ecotourism, www.equitabletourism.org/readfull.php?AID=122631