Appendix - Adventure Guide to Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands - page 442

travel. In other words, it connects all the dots. At the absolute least, it
is benign to the environment, while injecting money into the local
economy in a responsible way. At best, it provides positive benefits to
the affected communities. At worst, which is more often the case than
not, it is amarketing buzzword used by anyone promoting tourismre-
lated to the environment, even if that tourismhas a negative impact.
Often, those claiming that their operations abide by the definition of
“ecotourism” do much more damage than good. In Ecuador's resort
town of Baños, for example, there are more than 20 tour operators
that market their businesses under the name of “ecotourism,” with-
out having any idea what that entails. On one jungle excursion, for
example, the “white-water tubing” consisted of throwing sticks of dy-
namite downriver, then putting clients afloat in tubes to scoop up the
dead, floating fish. This particular outfitter also dumped its trash di-
rectly into the forest adjacent to the waterway.
Ecotourism is a tool for community development asmuch as anything
else. There is no justice in preaching about environmental preserva-
tion and responsible travel if Eduardo cannot feed his family. It is
easy to forget about the effects of our actions while we're caught up in
the magic of exotic lands.
Ecotourism Resources
The following organizations are leaders in supporting
ecotourism and sustainable travel:
EcotourismAustralia (www.ecotourism.org.au) offers an
international eco-certification program for tour operators,
hotels and other organizations.
Planeta.com (www.planeta.com) is one of the best all-
around clearinghouses for ecotourism-related topics in the
Americas and public forums as they cover important events
around the world and online.
The International EcotourismSociety (www.ecotourism.
org) provides a membership-based forum for planners and
operators, with publications related to ecotourism.
US-based Sustainable Travel International (www.
travelwithoutatrace.org) promotes sustainability in the
travel industry through a best-practice accreditation program.
The UK-based Green Globe 21 (www.greenglobe21.com) also
offers a contribution, identifying and placing a stamp of ap-
proval on those they consider responsible tourism operators.