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ECOTOURISM – WHO OWNS PARADISE?, Chapter 5 (Costa Rica: On The Beaten Path).
1) THESIS: IYOW, post a single sentence that captures the thesis for EACH CHAPTER/ SECTION of our reading.
2) EVIDENCE: Post and number THREE specific observations from EACH CHAPTER/SECTION of our reading(s) that supports your thesis.
Use 2-3 sentences for each observation, and combine direct quotations from the text (AUTHOR's LAST NAME, 27), with IYOW analysis.
3) QUESTION: Include in your post a SINGLE SPECIFIC question you'd ask the class based on our readings.
Thesis: With Costa Rica being one of the world’s more popular ecotourism destinations, is it possible the country could suffer more devastation under too much traffic coming through each national park or each reserve?
ReplyDeleteFact 1: “ Costa Rica has the right stuff, the proper building blocks, for ecotourism. As is the case for many developing countries, Costa Rica’s ecotourism is built on the national park system” (Honey, 161). This really shows that a majority of the places where ecotourism is a major draw for ecotourists, national parks are the main aspect of each country that brings tourists which also brings money. However, if there’s too much visitation, then these locations could be ruined.
Fact 2: “Today, more than 25 percent of Costa Rica’s territory, with an estimated land value of $2 billion, is under some form of protection” (Honey, 169). I see this as a huge step for Costa Rica and land preservation in general. If there is money going towards keeping the land in good condition, then it will continue to be protected.
Fact 3: “Costa Rica’s history of private reserves and refuges is even older than its national park system” (Honey, 183). This just goes to show how long Costa Rica’s ecotourism system has been in place. Because national parks are such a big aspect of any country, it means a lot to have private reserves that are even older than those national parks.
Question: If there is more money put towards Costa Rican preservation, could there be more than 25% of their land under protection?
Thesis: Costa Rica’s world renowned tourism industry is built off of a strange and diametrically opposed combination of ecotourism and neoliberalism.
ReplyDelete1. “Costa Rica has the right stuff, the proper building blocks, for ecotourism” (161). This is what has spurred the boom of the industry, but it’s also what has drawn developers to Costa Rica. I’ concerned that as ecotourism grows, we’ll start seeing greenwashing of the industry becoming more common. CR has the perfect combination of resources, bur perhaps that will lead to exploitation (if it hasn’t already).
2. “Despite the success of Costa Rica’s ecotourism and sustainable tourism model, along its coasts and particularly in Guanacaste, a radically different tourism model of large resort and vacation home developments has increasingly become the norm” (164).This is an extremely common scenario that can be scene in many different ecotourism locations around the world. The World Bank’s intervention in CR’s development has created a parallel turnstile tourism industry. At first glance it would be assumed that these types of developments would be more affordable for lower income travelers, but in reality they are just as expensive (if not more so) than the rest of CR’s accommodations.
3. “Alarmed by this trend, congressman Gerardo RudÃn asked the ICT to investigate this “privatization of the coasts” (165). This is a phenomenon that is becoming increasingly common in CR. Wealthy residential tourists are coming in and buying land, and this is having a negative effect on the countries culture. It’s creating a rift between the actual indigenous locals, and the newcomers.
Discussion Question: Has residential tourism helped or hindered Costa Rica in the long run?
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ReplyDeletehttps://docs.google.com/presentation/d/14LabWqet6QT6br46t5YHAUp5FjECqdqYr1zTgSAUzMc/edit?usp=sharing
ReplyDeleteThesis: Costa Rica relies heavily on ecotourism, which they meet the criteria for, but are in need of more effective control in order to keep it successful.
ReplyDelete1. Ecotourism is now Costa Rica’s identity after “President Jose Maria Figueres, touted ecotourism as one of the best business opportunities in Costa Rica“ (Honey 165). Originally, the turnstile tourism that supported the country was not environmentally conscious, but many areas and resorts began to adopt modest environmental reforms and government regulations were enacted over time. However, environmental destruction had already occurred prior to the major shift to ecotourism.
2. Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve is the best-known Costa Rican reserve and was initially reserved for research and protection rather than tourism. However, it started to become more involved in ecotourism. Less than 2% of the reserve is used for trails, so not much land was intentionally altered and they began to see that “Visitors…are far more diverse in their interests and tastes than the original rugged breed of scientists, bird-watchers, and ecotourists” (Honey 187). This was great for conservation efforts, but it raised the cost of living and had other complex consequences.
3. Marco Picado and Rodolfo Lizano created the Certification for Sustainable Tourism (CST), and wanted to use it to weed out greenwashing. It measures along three axes: environmental, social, and economic in 4 categories: (1) physical-biological environment, (2) hotel facilities, (3) guest services, (4) socioeconomic environment. Places receive between one and five “green” leaves (a 5 is 94% or higher). 61 hotels were certified as of 2007, but some people say that the bars may be set too low.
Question: Can an ecotourist business bring in travelers without hurting the local system or economy (i.e. without raising the standard of living, increasing inequality, etc)?
Thesis: Costa Rica act as a classic example of ecotourism in action being both know for its ecotourism industry and being a great tourism location in general.
ReplyDelete1. Costa Rica acts as a very well know for its ecotourism industry. "Costa Rica is ecotourism's poster child" (160). It has been marketed as being all about ecotourism causing it to be a very big industry in the country. This means that a lot of work is put into it to keep the ecotourism industry doing well.
2. Costa Rica has had a long history of preserving its natural land making it be able to act as a amazing location for green tourism. "Costa Rica's history of private reserves and refuges is even older then its national park system" (183). The culture of this country has embraced ecotourism to a very large degree, before it even became as profitable as it is now.
3. Ecotourism has become a huge industry for Costa Rica making it integral to their economy. "tourism became the country's top dollar earner" (209). this means they value it very highly and need to for their county to do well.
Question: What would happen to the people of Costa Rica if this industry stopped?
THESIS: While Costa Rica has a strong ecotourism presence, there are still areas for improvement within the system as well as local struggles regarding the large numbers of ecotourists that flock to Costa Rica.
ReplyDelete1. In the late 1980s and moving into the 1990s, Costa Rica gained popularity and a reputation as an ecotourism hotspot, which caused an influx of travellers. In some ways, this influx improved the economy and gave locals a chance to start up businesses that relied on the budding tourism industry. However, the increased tourist interest in Costa Rica caused chain hotels and other luxury accommodations to start to move in. “Beginning in the 1990s, large international chains moved in. Most of the medium to large hotels in the capitol, San Jose, have been acquired by international chains since 1990” (Honey 164).
2. Because of the competition with large corporations, it has proven difficult for local business starters in Costa Rica to start and maintain small businesses that would fit the criteria for ecotourism. “While ecotourism has brought more income and opportunities, it has also increased social and economic inequality” (Honey 190). This quote speaks on the difficulty for local people looking to take advantage of the ecotourism industry to get their foot in the door and compete with larger corporations run by more experienced business people. Often, large corporations will edge local businesses out of the picture by buying out their land, or simply being able to offer better and more broadly distributed marketing.
3. Costa Rica has established a sustainable tourism certification program (CST). The program was put into place in order to combat greenwashing within the tourism industry, as well as offer a system for tourists to gauge the environmental impact of the hotels they are considering staying at. The CST has gone through many ups and downs, but has ultimately become a tool not only for tourists, but for the tourism industry in Costa Rica to prove globally that environmental consciousness and sustainable practices are a priority. “Strengthening the CST program became an important tool for showing the government’s and the tourism industry’s commitment to sustainable tourism” (Honey 206).
QUESTION: Would you ever be willing to not visit a place like Costa Rica, even if it was important to you, in order to reduce the amount of travel and ultimately the negative human impacts? Is this a key piece of ecotourism that we miss?
Good ECO insights here, all!
ReplyDeleteAll posts below this line = C/LATE!
Dr. W
http://qcostarica.com/the-goose-with-the-golden-eggs-tourism-on-costa-ricas-pacific-coast/
ReplyDeleteThesis: Despite the fact that Costa Rica has been recognized as the poster child of ecotourism since the mid-1980’s, the country struggles to maintain a balance between the possible positive and negative aspects, as well as the unintended consequences the industry brings.
ReplyDeleteEvidence #1: In the beginning of the chapter, Martha Honey details for readers exactly what building blocks have come together to make Costa Rica into the ecotourism icon that it is today. She includes a breakdown of which activities travellers usually frequent, and explains that although ecotourism and nature-based travel does meet the needs of many visitors to the country, the attitude of tourists is and has been changing, moving farther and farther from genuine ecotourism.“This mix of offerings is one of the great attractions of the country, but many ecotourism operators report that visitors increasingly demand more luxurious accommodations, while their knowledge and interest in nature are increasingly casual” (Honey 162). Although the nation’s ecotourism industry was built on its national park system, it seems that they could be shifting their focus to more effectively meet the needs of the turnstile tourists, not necessarily upholding the principles of ecotourism to the best of their abilities.
Evidence #2: “Despite the success of Costa Rica’s ecotourism and sustainable tourism model, along its coasts and particularly in Guanacaste, a radically different tourism model of large resort and vacation home developments has increasingly become the norm” (Honey 164). The most concerning thing about this section of the chapter for me, and there were many to choose from, was the glaring fact that even in a place like Costa Rica, considered an eco tourist's paradise and environmental safe haven, private developers can still get into these beautiful places and destroy them for their own agenda. Is anywhere safe?
Evidence #3: “Regrettably, Costa Rica continues to pursue a risky, two-track policy of heavily marketing its parks and ecotourism while trying to increase visitor numbers by means of cruise tourism, prepaid air charter tours, large beach resorts, and urban hotels owned by international chains. While all of tiny Costa Rica is being marketed as an ecotourism destination, the reality is that ecotourism exists only in certain areas” (Honey 214). By allowing turnstile tourism to grab ahold of the country, the positive impacts of ecotourism are threatened and diluted immensely.
QUESTION: What should Costa Rica do to prevent the issues with balance and regulation they face to go any farther?
Thesis: Costa Rica is in many ways, a central player in the Ecotourist world. They are pioneering many strategies, yet are also practicing it unsustainably and are feeling the blowbacks from imperfect eco-tourism.
ReplyDelete1) “Today more than 25% of Costa Rica’s territory, with an estimated land value of $2 Billion, is under some form of protection. Costa Rica has a long tradition of environmental protection, but it wasn’t until 1969 that its first national park was officially created,” (Honey, 169) it is a pleasant surprise that such a small country like Costa Rica would potentially limit their economic and social development due to the amount of protected land. I wish that economic powerhouse nations could take the hint.
2) “The number of squatters is now estimated to be much larger than the original Tortuguero settler population…the growth of the population is closely tied to the explosive growth in tourism in the 1990s,” (Honey, 181) This reminds me of Hawaii somewhat, a ‘green’ thinking state that is a tropical paradise and is secretly oppressing many low-income people. Hawaii has some of the most homeless per population of any state in the USA. I think that these ‘sustainable’ places draw in a certain crowd that doesn’t fit that bill. Namely homeless and squatters.
3) “If the popularity and profitability gap between private reserves and public parks continues to widen, pressure will surely mount, as it is in the United States, to privatize national parks. This would be a tragic mistake,” (Honey, 202) I see what honey is saying with this and i do think that it is on the tourists, the travelers to be aware of this situation, due to the switching over, we could lose many of the national efforts. One of the key parts about sustainability is the access to natural areas, and if the parks become private and expensive, only the tourists will benefit from Costa Rica’s natural areas. Meanwhile the native Costa Ricans are forbidden from using their own backyard.
Question: How are other countries reacting to the ecotourist push in Costa Rica, are the traditional tourist industries established in islands like the Bahamas or Jamaica getting nervous, will they change in response?