Going Green: Ecotourism, the new trend in travel!

A new and popular trend in travel is making waves and I believe most of us heard a lot about it. Ecotourism is trending now in travel! Especially in our country whose provinces highly depending on it nowadays. Ecotourism is one of the key components of Green Travel. It a new kind of tourism that encourages green travel but at the same time encourages and promotes community's active participation, development and economic growth in the area where ecotourism site is.

Hundred Islands National Park, an ecotourism site in Pangasinan.

In the country, especially in the tourist provinces, ecotourism is highly practice like in Palawan and Bohol. The government done several acts and laws and to strengthen and support ecotourism in our country. It also at the same time help the surge of tourists in the ecotourism sites of the province. The result is many people in the community places depend on it like their everyday livelihood, income and development aside from the promotion of the province as a destination of choice. More and more people are visiting the ecotourism sites and more provinces are developing their ecotourism potential to invite visitors and gearing up for this kind of travel as a result as well. It also enables the provinces to gear up for this kind of travel because of its positive and beneficial effects to the province and community. The good concept of ecotourism is that not only the place or tourism site is promoted but also encourages a sustainable tourism by giving enviromental awareness, taking care and preserving the place and at the same time help the people around it in their livelihood and income through participation and education about it. Ecotourism promoted both community growth, provincial tourism and green travel!

Here's a concrete definition and principle of Ecotourism: Ecotourism  is a form of sustainable tourism within a natural and cultural heritage area where community participation, protection and management of natural resources, cultural and indigenous knowledge and practices, environmental education and ethics as well as economic benefits are fostered and pursued for the enrichment of host communities and satisfaction of visitors. Ecotourism helps in sustaining the development of the country as it aims to protect our natural resources, on which the ecotourism industry depends. 

Loboc River in Bohol - one of the ecotourism sites in the Philippines.

Principles of Ecotourism:

Ecotourism is about uniting conservation, communities, and sustainable travel. This means that those who implement and participate in ecotourism activities should follow the following ecotourism principles:

* Minimize impact.

* Build environmental and cultural awareness and respect.

* Provide positive experiences for both visitors and hosts.

* Provide direct financial benefits for conservation.

* Provide financial benefits and empowerment for local people.

* Raise sensitivity to host countries' political, environmental, and social climate.

Ecotourism in the Philippines

The Philippine Department of Tourism's hat has been thrown into ecotourism game for awhile now. They've made it part of their plan for economic development. The country's ecotourism program strives to install processes and procedures that are economically beneficial, socially responsible, ecologically sustainable and advantageous to the local communities by creating jobs and improving living conditions overall. Palawan is the second biggest province in the country in terms of land area and has been recommended by the tourism department as the top eco-destination in the country.

Ecotourism Activities

There are a variety of eco-friendly activities available for the ecotourist to enjoy: Swimming with whale sharks in the their natural environment or getting out the binoculars and watching for the rare Philippine Eagle or 600 other varieties of birds. A traveler can also go to a jungle environment survival training camp where he or she can be taught to drink from a water vine, cook in a bamboo steamer and dine off a bamboo plate. Other activities include Trekking/Mountaineering, Wildlife Watching, Scuba Diving/Snorkling, Caving, Kayaking/Rafting and Surfing.

Eco-friendly Resorts

The Department of Tourism recommends The El Nido, Lagen and Miniloc Island Resorts, Club Noah Isabelle and the Bohol Bee Farm. These hotels all carry out environmentally friendly practices: Coastal clean ups, prohibiting the gathering of shells and coral, eco-safe cleanser and many others.

Taal Volcano from Tagaytay City - an ecotoursim site.

I'm glad that more and more province in our country are gearing up towards ecotourism. Its the new trend in travel that a lot of travelers are attracted to. And hotels and resorts are leaning to Green Hotels concepts. It only shows that ecotourism and going green is not just profitable but very helpful in the livelihood of people involve because of its positive benefits. Its has a beneficial idea and principle behind it. A sustainable tourism is a good way to practice and promote green travel. I'm glad to experience and visited some ecotourism site in our country like Bohol, Hundred Islands National Park, Taal Volcano and Tagaytay City. I hopefully to see other ecoutourism sights and places in the country like Palawan (the ecotourism capital of the Philippines), Camiguin, Mayon Volcano and Vigan. And there's a lot more ecotourism places in the country! And more potential places to develop too! May more travelers and visitors promote ecotourism in the Philippines. The beauty of nature is hard to resist and marvel. Ecotourism preserves it while sharing that beauty.  

Special thanks to these sources:The International Ecotourism Society, WikiPilipinas, and Josh Peterson.

Going Green: Green Travel 101

Going Places is for Green Travel! A campaign I started since 2009. I believe this is not only very helpful for us travel lovers and wanderers but also to the places and communities we visit by. But before we go ahead in campaigning for this important cause in travel, let us first get to know what is Green Travel all about. 

What is Green Travel? Maybe you already heard about ecotourism, sustainable tourism and responsible travel from various media, magazines and news headlines. Those terms are all part of the many catch phrases of Green Travel.

There are various shades of difference among all these terms, but at the heart of the matter is the importance of protecting the natural and cultural environment of the places you visit. That means conserving plants, wildlife and other resources; respecting local cultures and ways of life; and contributing positively to local communities.

Green Travel, for me is becoming environmentally aware and earth-friendly while on travel. I am environmentally aware by having knowledge of the importance of cleanliness and pollution-free of the places I am visiting both natural and man-made sights and becoming concern for the environmental impact that I may create whether big or small to the place or sight that I am visiting. Practicing earth-friendly living while on travel can be from small ranges like keeping your own trashes, recycling plastics, usage of bikes to large ranges like staying to a green hotels, involving in ecotourism activities, etc that most are easy to practice and remember.  

Boracay Beach - one of the places that tend to be overexploited by tourism.

Green Travel, defined by Go Green Travel Green:

1. Thinking about your impact on the environment (both the physical and social environment) when you travel

2. Doing your part to minimize your impact on the environment – so that tourism in your destination can be maintained in the long run.

3. Understanding eco-friendly choices you can make

4. Making eco-friendly choices when they are options

5. Doing your research to be a responsible traveler

6. Saving money by making low-impact choices

Why go green?

With nearly 1 billion tourists crisscrossing the globe every year, it's more important than ever for travelers to minimize their individual impact on the earth's natural and cultural treasures. The potential negative effects of tourism are both local and global; oceanfront hotels contribute to beach erosion in Hawaii, rising numbers of visitors threaten the fragile ecosystems of the Galapagos Islands, and carbon dioxide emissions from planes are a growing contributor to global warming.

Chocolate Hills and Bohol province itself is an ecotourism destination.

Taking a green approach to travel is an easy and essential way to protect the places you love to visit, not just for yourself but for the travelers who come after you and for the people who will continue to live there long after you've flown home. As an added bonus, it often makes for a more rewarding, authentic travel experience, encouraging deeper connections with the people and places you visit.

Contrary to popular belief, you don't necessarily have to pay more in order to travel green. While offsetting the carbon emissions from your air travel will set you back a negligible amount, you can find green lodging options in all budgets, from hostels to luxury hotels. And earth-friendly transportation options like biking, walking and taking public transit are often cheaper than taking a cab or renting a car.(Source)

Going Green in Alaminos City

Why I go for Green Travel? Simply because I want to share to others the beautiful places that I have been and places that I am going to visit in the future in its full glory. You wouldn't want Boracay's beaches or Tagaytay's surroundings be polluted, right? Or the Great Wall of China being eroded and Sydney's Parramatta River dirty? I believe we can preserve these beautiful places by simply practicing green travel. I did a past entry of simple and easy but very effective way to practice green travel tips (click here to see) which is very helpful in campaigning for Going Green.

Also more and more cities and municipalities in our country are campaigning for ecotourism and proper waste management like my recent trip to Alaminos City who is strongly campaigning for Reduce, Reuse and Recycle platform in every street corners. Lastly, Green Travel for me is one effective "travel for a cause" that you can contribute to our community and get something good in return. By practicing this, we don't just show and do a care for the place or country that we are visiting but also a care for our planet Earth.

Learn more about green travel through this online communnity sites:

- Go Green Travel Green

- Green.Travel

Going Green

I want to start the year of "Going Places" to promote "Going Green." I have been recently becoming aware about the preservation of our environment. And I believe that I won't enjoy the places I have traveled if it is not cared for its preservation. I want to campaign for "Going Green" because I would like all of us to be aware of our environment, how can we bring changes to it and how we will preserve it in our small ways. The beautiful tourist places we have in the country will benefit the most if we start "going green" today. Maybe you have probably heard of climate change and global warming that becomes an environmental turmoil lately but we are mostly affected by pollution. And so the community we live in.

By going green means doing positive changes to our enviroment and to our community in our own ways. Let's start practicing "going green" by doing these simple 5 things...

1.) Keep your trash! Whenever a place you go, keep your small trashes like candy wrappers or tissue to your pockets until you find a trash can where you can dispose it.

2.) Let's recycle! Newspapers and old papers sheets can be use again, find ways or sell it junk shop.

3.) Walk! If the the place your going to is just near a corner, just walk instead riding vehicles that emits harmful gases. You already work your muscles! You also do contribute to a clean environment.

4.) Save! Close water faucet if not needed, doing so will conserve water. Switch off light if not needed to save energy.

5.) Pay it forward! Be a model by showing this simple practice to kids and/or teach about these green tips to your friends.

The basic 3 Rs are easy to do!

Of course, there are a hundred more simple ways than these I have mentioned. But I think these basic 5 are easily attainable. Those are small and personal ways to go green in preserving our environment. Those maybe small steps but from here you can make a big impact. See, going green is easy. And it is benificial to all of us. It is not too late to save our environment. So let's act now! Just don't think green. Go green!