Regulating ecotourism internationally

Overview

Québec Declaration on Ecotourism, green Globe Scheme and UNESCO World Heritage Site.

What you need to know

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Questions from this subtopic

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1. 1

   What was the Québec Declaration on Ecotourism?

   Model answer

   It was the statement issued by the World Ecotourism Summit held in Québec City in 2002, the principal event of the United Nations International Year of Ecotourism, organised by the United Nations Environment Programme and the World Tourism Organization and attended by around a thousand delegates from over a hundred countries, including governments, businesses, non-governmental organisations, academics and indigenous representatives. It set out an agreed statement of what ecotourism is and issued recommendations to each of those groups on how it should be developed.

2. 2

   What does the Québec Declaration actually say?

   Model answer

   It states the principles that distinguish ecotourism: that it should contribute actively to the conservation of natural and cultural heritage, include local and indigenous communities in its planning, development and operation and contribute to their well-being, interpret the heritage of the destination to visitors, and suit independent travellers and small organised groups. It then makes recommendations: that governments should adopt national ecotourism policies, regulatory frameworks and land-use planning that protect fragile areas and secure community land rights; that the industry should minimise impacts, use local labour and suppliers, and market honestly; that NGOs and communities should be involved in planning; and that international bodies should provide technical and financial support.

3. 3

   Discuss the limitations of the Québec Declaration as a regulatory measure.

   Model answer

   It is a declaration, not a treaty. It creates no legal obligations, no sanctions and no enforcement mechanism, and no body monitors compliance. Implementation depends entirely on each national government choosing to legislate, and many did not. Its language is general enough that operators can claim conformity without changing practice, and it applies only to those who choose to acknowledge it. Its value is as an agreed international reference point for what ecotourism should mean, and as a basis for national policy and for certification criteria, rather than as regulation in any binding sense.

4. 4

   What was the Global Ecotourism Conference 2007?

   Model answer

   It was the international conference held in Oslo in May 2007, organised by The International Ecotourism Society with Norwegian partners, convened five years after the Québec summit to review what had happened since. It brought together operators, governments, NGOs and researchers, and produced the Oslo Statement on Ecotourism, a review of progress and a set of priorities for the sector's next phase.

5. 5

   What did the Global Ecotourism Conference 2007 conclude and call for?

   Model answer

   It reaffirmed the definition and principles agreed at Québec and found that progress in implementing them had been limited and uneven. It placed climate change at the centre of the agenda for the first time, recognising that the emissions of long-haul air travel are a substantial problem for a sector defined by environmental responsibility, and calling for measurement and reduction of the carbon footprint of ecotourism. It called for stronger, more credible and better-harmonised certification and accreditation to combat misleading claims; for better measurement and monitoring of ecotourism's actual impacts, since evidence was thin; and for ecotourism to be used explicitly as a tool for poverty reduction as well as conservation.

6. 6

   What are the limitations of the Global Ecotourism Conference 2007 as a means of regulation?

   Model answer

   The same as those of Québec, and in some respects sharper. The Oslo Statement is a voluntary statement by a non-governmental body with no legal standing, no funding attached and no monitoring or enforcement. Its main finding was itself an admission of weakness, namely that five years of the Québec principles had produced little measurable change. Its recommendations on certification and carbon measurement required action by governments and by the airline industry, over which it had no influence. It is best regarded as evidence of how difficult voluntary international regulation is, as well as an attempt at it.

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