The paradigm of ecotourism emerged as an alternative tourism and is concerned with protecting ecology, enhancing cultural and environmental destinations, and focus on local community welfare. To deepen the understanding of ecotourism and its connection to sustainable development, it is important to discuss its various definitions.
Moreover, in Indonesia ecotourism is often interpreted and associated with the ‘natural’
tourist destinations and rural areas. There is of course some debate going on among Indonesian tourism scholars about the definitions of ecotourism from an Indonesian economic, social, political and environmental perspective.
Concept, Definitions, and Elements of Ecotourism
Globally, the term ecotourism emerged between the late 1970s to mid 1980s, as
mentioned previously; ecotourism was took shape as a response of dissatisfaction to the conventional model of both development and tourism agendas, it is referred to as
“responsible”, “sustainable”, “green”, or “low-impact” tourism (Honey, 2008: 12).
Although the term is widespread globally, there is no paper examining the origin of ecotourism epistemologically and there are no clear boundaries to define what
ecotourism is. There are various definitions from different times and societies and most illustrate the three principles of sustainability.
One of the consistent agreements among scholars about the origin of the term ecotourism is the statement from a Mexican architect, an environmentalist and
international ecotourism consultant named Hector Ceballos-Lascurrián. He first coined the term ecotourism in 1983, which was then printed in a Mexican Journal in a paper entitled “The Future of Ecotourismo” four years later in 1987 (Wearing and Neil, 1999:
4). Ceballos-Lascurrián defined ecotourism as the following:
“Ecotourism is defined as travelling to relatively undisturbed or uncontaminated natural areas with specific objectives of studying, admiring and enjoying the scenery and its wild plants and animals, as well as any exciting cultural manifestations (both past and present) found in these areas”
(as cited in Boo, 1990: xiv)
20
Added by Hetzer (1965) who identified that ecotourism has four pillars: minimizing environmental impacts, respecting host cultures, maximizing benefits to local people, and maximizing tourist satisfaction (as cited in Blamey, 2001: 5).
Another definition was established by Kurt Kutay, who said that the real definition of ecotourism is not limited to travel for enjoyment or or appreciate nature. Ecotourism also includes minimization of environmental and cultural consequences and a contribution to conservation and community projects in developing countries.
Ecotourism also provides environmental education, building of political awareness, and establishment of codes of conduct for travelers, and wide variety of certification
programs for the travel industry (Honey, 2008: 7).
In 1990, the first international ecotourism non-profit organization named “The International Ecotourism Society (TIES)” defined ecotourism as:
“Responsible travel to natural areas that conserves the environment, sustains the well-being of the local people, and involves interpretation and education (education is meant to be inclusive of both staff and guests)”
(TIES, 2015) Ecotourism is also considered based on the characteristics of each country. It may be different from one country to another, from time to time, and or from one scholar to another as illustrated in table 2.1 below:
Table 2:1: Selected Definitions of Ecotourism
Source Definitions
Richardson, (1993:8) Ecologically sustainable tourism in natural areas that interprets local environment and cultures, further the tourists, understanding of them, fosters conservation and adds to the well-being of the local people
Tickell, (1994, p. ix) Travel to enjoy the world’s amazing diversity of natural life and human culture without causing damage of either.
21
Boo, (1991b:4) Ecotourism is natural tourism that
contributes to conservation, through generating funds for protected areas, creating employment opportunities for local communities, and offering environmental education.
Lindberg & McKercher, (1997:67) Ecotourism is tourism and recreation that is both nature-based and
sustainable.
Dowling, (1997a: 100) Ecotourism should have nature-based products and markets, ecological
sustainable operations and management, environmentally educative for staff and clients alike, locally beneficial, the effort to meet tourist satisfaction.
Petropoulus (2001) Ecotourism is not a segment or a niche.
Any tourism segment can be ecotourism as long as it is environmentally
sustainable, promotes environmental and cultural education, and supports conservation and gives benefits the local community. Ecotourism is not a
‘market-segment’, nor a ‘niche’, nor a
‘fringe’ nor a ‘product’ nor a ‘label.’ It is a noble but realistic concept and movement, a movement for change in the whole tourism sector.
Compiled sources of definitions from: Blamey (2001:5); Diamantis (1999:98); Page & Dowling (2002:23), Leksakundilok (2004:119).
Elements of Ecotourism
Similar to Hetzer (1965), TIES (2015) suggests that ecotourism is uniting conservation, communities, and sustainable travel. This means that those who implement and
participate in both marketing and ecotourism should adopt the following ecotourism principles:
Minimize physical, social, behavioral, and psychological impacts.
Build environmental and cultural awareness, and respect.
Provide positive experiences for both visitors and hosts.
22
Generate financial benefits for both local people and private industry.
Deliver memorable interpretative experiences to visitors that help raise sensitivity to host countries’ political, environmental, and social climates.
Design, construct, and operate low-impact facilities.
Recognize the rights and spiritual beliefs of the indigenous people in the community and work in partnership with them to create empowerment.
In summary, although there have been numerous definitions and ideas, the principal elements of ecotourism include:
Ecotourism is focused on nature and environment conservation;
Ecotourism is providing education;
Ecotourism is empowering local community finance;
Ecotourism is minimizing environmental damage;
Ecotourism is providing public spaces for local communities to be more active and involved in resources management.
Ecotourism is still in its infancy as a global phenomenon, but as David Weaver points out, “some degree of consensus or cohesion may be emerging, indicating, perhaps, that ecotourism is moving towards a higher level of maturity” (Weaver, 2001: 1). As the term ecotourism has evolved, definitions have become more precise, with stronger ties to principles of sustainable development (Blamey, 2001).