Eco-Tourism and Eco-Cities Analytical Essay

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The earth is evolving at a remarkable rate. It is also changing rapidly. To many, evolution refers to better species and strength. However, change also refers to negative things. The major cause of change and evolution is human interaction. The rising population of mankind has also led to physical changes, like the building of cities to accommodate the population.

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Such activities have led to the destruction of natural forests to create space for human occupation. This essay looks at the impact of human influence, urbanisation, and economic class divisions on sustainable development. The essay aims to show that all these factors are against sustainable development.

Sustainable development entails achieving progress in all areas of life without interfering with the ecosystem. Currently, there are communities that try to achieve sustainable development, but most communities pursue development unsustainably. For example, the La Cienaga community does not observe sustainable development.

Carruyo (41) indicates that there is only one environment conservation organisation in the whole region. The scholar adds that people are only interested in knowing how much they affect the immediate environment they live in, while everything else is wasted.

In spite of illiteracy, many communities, just like the La Cienaga community, value the environment and use guidelines on how to interact with the wild. The values and guidelines are passed down from one generation to the next.

Sustainable development is important for the present and future generations. From the study books provided, all scholars blame ecotourism for the destruction of exotic places on earth. Martha Honey explained that it is highly suspected that an ecotourist passed on a dangerous disease to the Golden Frog in the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, Costa Rica.

The same is echoed by Davenport, who argues that ecotourism has destroyed the lives of the locals in Zanzibar. However, one difference that can be cited is that both Honey and Davenport agree that the communities have fought ecotourism, while Carruyo explains that the community in La Cienaga does not care about the environment, except the places they reside.

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The data collected from the resources shows that all the scholars are in favour of sustainable development. The main reason cited for the support of sustainable development is the impact it has on the environment and the communities nearby.

The impact is so great and negative that it has changed the ecosystem completely. For example, all scholars cite different things that will now only be read in history due to extinction. Sadly, the main cause of the extinction is unwanted human interaction.

Indeed, there is inequality in the various communities, which is the main reason why ecotourism has gained momentum all over the world. For example, Davenport (257) argues that greed, corruption, and politics have influenced tourism and its impact to Zanzibar.

The scholar adds that the local communities have been forced to come to terms with lavish living because of ecotourism. Some have even staged riots, thereby destroying hotels and curio shops in frustration. In the film, The Golf War, the poor Philippines are affected most by ecotourism, as the rich cut down trees to make golf courses.

It is crucial to note that the communities and their surroundings have changed a lot due to the lack of sustainable development. It is at this juncture of the essay that the thesis statement will be stressed. Governments have the responsibility to ensure that their communities are safe.

Therefore, it is the governments’ job to ensure sustainable development. However, major communities and even living things like frogs (Honey 3) have become extinct due to governments’ support for ecotourism. The extinct things are only to be read in history books.

Having this in mind, it is crucial to always consider environmental factors when discussing sustainable development. One major factor that has to be discussed is pollution. Arguably, it is pollution that led to the suspected extinction of the Golden Frog in Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, Costa Rica. Moreover, the interference with nature by allowing tourists to go into exotic places disturbs the ecosystem.

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However, it is important to point out that the communities that live in such areas do not interfere with the ecosystem because they have studied nature over time. The unexposed communities have lived peacefully with other animals and creatures in the forest for many years. Thus, it is believed that they do not cause any harm or danger to the environment.

Apart from ecotourism, rapid urbanisation and climate change also impact sustainable development. In The Golf War film, the director highlights a community that has been fighting developers who want to change their land into a golf course.

Not only does the film highlight the impacts of economic class divisions, but it also shows the impact of urbanisation. The cutting down of trees will lead to the destruction of the ecosystem, which will affect the climate in return.

The Philippine community in the affected jungle has come up with several ways of resisting the developers. For instance, as can be seen in The Golf War film, the community has established a New People’s Army that lobbies for the communities. In addition, the people usually create human barricades to prevent bulldozers from penetrating the forest.

Davenport (3) explains that in Zanzibar, people try on numerous occasions to frustrate the ecotourism industry. They chase away tourists, burn down curio shops, and invade hotels just to frustrate the industry and save their community. All over the world, there are numerous other forms of resistance that also support sustainable development.

For example, there are organisations that fight ecotourism, thereby ensuring that the most exotic places in the world are not disrupted. In the same vein, there are organisations that protect communities living in the exotic places by restricting tourists from interacting with them.

This has been done to ensure that the tourists do not influence such unexposed communities. Any sort of influence can change the behaviour of the community and affect the environment.

In conclusion, the future of sustainable development is shaky. The rich in the society are making it extremely difficult to enhance sustainable development, despite the resistance being forged by communities and organisations that support sustainable development. It is not only the rich that appear to be against sustainable development, but the governments also promote unsustainable development.

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Some government officials are corrupt and greedy. They supported ecotourism, which is evidently one of the factors that go against sustainable development. The example of the Philippine jungle and the creation of a golf course is a classic example of how politics, wealth, and corruption have bad influence on sustainable development.

Works Cited

Carruyo, Light. Producing Knowledge, Protecting Forests: Rural Encounters with Gender, Ecotourism, and International Aid in the Dominican Republic. University Park: Penn State Press. 2008. Print.

Davenport, Audrey. Ecotourism and Sustainable Development. Self-Published. 2005. Print.

Honey, Martha. Who Owns Paradise? London: Island Press, 2008. Print.

Schradie, Jen and Matt DeVries. The Golf War. 2015. Web.

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IvyPanda. (2019) 'Eco-Tourism and Eco-Cities'. 23 June.

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IvyPanda. 2019. "Eco-Tourism and Eco-Cities." June 23, 2019. https://ivypanda.com/essays/eco-tourism-and-eco-cities/.

1. IvyPanda. "Eco-Tourism and Eco-Cities." June 23, 2019. https://ivypanda.com/essays/eco-tourism-and-eco-cities/.


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IvyPanda. "Eco-Tourism and Eco-Cities." June 23, 2019. https://ivypanda.com/essays/eco-tourism-and-eco-cities/.

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