59
Nature-based tourism, on the other hand, is widely defined as leisure travel
undertaken largely or solely for the purpose of enjoying natural attractions and
engaging in a variety of nature-based activities (Ecotourism Australia n.d.). It can
encompass different and potentially incompatible activities, such as wildlife viewing or ecotourism, scuba diving, boating, skiing, or walking in alpine areas
(Pickering and Weaver 2003). Nature-based tourism can include both sustainable
and unsustainable activities. However, since it is based on the natural environment,
its tourists are required to be Environmental Citizens to increase benefits for the
destination area and to preserve the environment.
Another form of tourism that is related to Environmental Citizenship is geotourism, defined as visiting geosites for passive recreation, engaging a sense of wonder,
appreciation, and learning (Newsome and Dowling 2005). The term geosites comprises areas with specific geological and geomorphological features and processes,
as well as the natural resources of the landscape, landforms, fossil beds, rocks, and
minerals (Newsome and Dowling 2005). Beside the features themselves, the focus
is on the processes that formed such features. A positive instance of Environmental
Citizenship with tourism stakeholders is the Škocjan Cave in Slovenia, a UNESCO
World Heritage site that despite universal attractiveness has managed to maintain
the visiting level below the estimated carrying capacity. The daily number of visitors is limited, and the cave can be visited only in a scheduled guided tour several
times a day.
Elements of Environmental Citizenship may be applied to all forms of tourism
by using different approaches and concepts of development. One of the most used
in the literature on tourism is responsible tourism, defined as an approach that aims
to minimise adverse impacts of tourism on the environment and maximise its positive contributions to local communities (Fabricius and Goodwin 2002). The key
element of responsible tourism is to take responsibility and action to make tourism
more sustainable, referring to all stakeholders in tourism: operators, hoteliers, governments, local people, and tourists (The Earth Changers 2017).
Similarly, the core of conscious travel/tourism is the consciousness of the effects
and consequences of tourism: travellers who make their own travel decisions and
are conscious of the potential impacts and alternatives, bringing benefit to the world
through their heightened awareness (The Earth Changers 2017). On the other hand,
Andriotis (2002) uses a narrower definition of conscious tourism and associates it
with labour-intensive, endogenous, alternative, and small-scale and enclave tourism
development.
Although ethical tourism lacks a standard definition, it is usually mindful of
travel choices and is based on the awareness of the values that prevent environmental impacts during travel (The Earth Changers 2017). However, that label cannot be
easily associated with a form of tourism or a touristic business, as it requires a more
profound analysis on how it affects economic and social development of the local
community as well as the environment (see Butcher 2008).
Environmental Citizenship can be directly applied to previous three approaches
to tourism in terms of the environment, since all of them put a lot of attention on
preserving the environment and efforts to limit pollution and environmental
4 Societal Issues and Environmental Citizenship
Nature-based tourism, on the other hand, is widely defined as leisure travel
undertaken largely or solely for the purpose of enjoying natural attractions and
engaging in a variety of nature-based activities (Ecotourism Australia n.d.). It can
encompass different and potentially incompatible activities, such as wildlife viewing or ecotourism, scuba diving, boating, skiing, or walking in alpine areas
(Pickering and Weaver 2003). Nature-based tourism can include both sustainable
and unsustainable activities. However, since it is based on the natural environment,
its tourists are required to be Environmental Citizens to increase benefits for the
destination area and to preserve the environment.
Another form of tourism that is related to Environmental Citizenship is geotourism, defined as visiting geosites for passive recreation, engaging a sense of wonder,
appreciation, and learning (Newsome and Dowling 2005). The term geosites comprises areas with specific geological and geomorphological features and processes,
as well as the natural resources of the landscape, landforms, fossil beds, rocks, and
minerals (Newsome and Dowling 2005). Beside the features themselves, the focus
is on the processes that formed such features. A positive instance of Environmental
Citizenship with tourism stakeholders is the Škocjan Cave in Slovenia, a UNESCO
World Heritage site that despite universal attractiveness has managed to maintain
the visiting level below the estimated carrying capacity. The daily number of visitors is limited, and the cave can be visited only in a scheduled guided tour several
times a day.
Elements of Environmental Citizenship may be applied to all forms of tourism
by using different approaches and concepts of development. One of the most used
in the literature on tourism is responsible tourism, defined as an approach that aims
to minimise adverse impacts of tourism on the environment and maximise its positive contributions to local communities (Fabricius and Goodwin 2002). The key
element of responsible tourism is to take responsibility and action to make tourism
more sustainable, referring to all stakeholders in tourism: operators, hoteliers, governments, local people, and tourists (The Earth Changers 2017).
Similarly, the core of conscious travel/tourism is the consciousness of the effects
and consequences of tourism: travellers who make their own travel decisions and
are conscious of the potential impacts and alternatives, bringing benefit to the world
through their heightened awareness (The Earth Changers 2017). On the other hand,
Andriotis (2002) uses a narrower definition of conscious tourism and associates it
with labour-intensive, endogenous, alternative, and small-scale and enclave tourism
development.
Although ethical tourism lacks a standard definition, it is usually mindful of
travel choices and is based on the awareness of the values that prevent environmental impacts during travel (The Earth Changers 2017). However, that label cannot be
easily associated with a form of tourism or a touristic business, as it requires a more
profound analysis on how it affects economic and social development of the local
community as well as the environment (see Butcher 2008).
Environmental Citizenship can be directly applied to previous three approaches
to tourism in terms of the environment, since all of them put a lot of attention on
preserving the environment and efforts to limit pollution and environmental
4 Societal Issues and Environmental Citizenship