Fair tourism or even responsible travel , these terms are probably familiar to you and for good reason, traveling ethically is a fundamental trend that is giving meaning to our expeditions around the world.
With the tourism industry responsible for more than 5% of global greenhouse gas emissions, travelers have sought to travel while reducing their impact on the environment, but not only that. In the ethical approach, humankind takes its rightful place.
Eco-responsible travel for family or solo, it is gaining traction and reinventing the rules of adventure at the ends of the earth.
Define the concept around ethical and committed travel
Ethical and responsible tourism is a phenomenon that is changing the habits of a large number of travelers. It aims to be more moral and respectful by prioritizing reflection on each of its actions. It is giving rise to a new type of expedition, more concerned with the environment and local populations .
Certain basic principles provide a framework to avoid excesses but also to avoid trivializing the original meaning. Travelers seeking to restore a positive and supportive value to their epic journey to the ends of the earth also wanted to highlight fundamentals to define what ethical travel is.
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Be tolerant
Beyond acceptance, it is tolerance that is elevated as an inherent value when one wants to embrace a different approach.
Promote respect for others , whether it be their religion, standard of living, language, skin color, etc. This will help tourists better immerse themselves in the culture and discover local traditions.
As travelers, our role is also to live in harmony with those who are not like us and to transmit humanist notions without wanting to impose anything.
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Cultivate your curiosity
There are as many travelers as there are journeys. When a person nurtures their desire to discover and encourages an open mind, the experience can be much more exotic.
Cultivating one's curiosity means refusing to follow the already marked paths but rather seeking to take an interest in aspects of the country that have hitherto been little explored.
Vacations are for relaxing, travel is for exploring. Being curious demonstrates a deep desire to experience unique things. Opening up to a new world in close connection with nature and the locals.
The importance of developing responsible tourism
Once you've gotten over the excitement of packing your suitcase and planning your travel itinerary, it's important to think about your road trip in a whole new light.
Ethics is defined crudely as "a set of moral concepts of someone or of an environment." Tourism in 2022 perfectly combines both. It sets out to discover others while seeking to respect the environment, culture, and traditions.
Please note, this is not about drawing uncrossable lines to force future travelers to give meaning to the expedition of a lifetime.
No, it's simply the desire to offer a model other than the one we know, namely mass tourism. The latter is causing damage, and this is one of the reasons why ethical travel is increasingly taking up space in the hearts of globetrotters .
It's also important to remember that traveling with humanist and moral principles in mind requires effort. The means of transportation or the sites to visit in the country are not always suitable for fair tourism, requiring adaptation and finding alternatives.
The benefits of ethical and responsible travel
The tourism industry provides a livelihood for many countries. A trip to Thailand or the Philippines doesn't have the same impact as a trip to China or Australia.
For the first, more than 10% of the country depends on it, while it represents barely 3% of the Australian economy.
This data provides a more accurate view of the situation in each country and allows for the choice of local shops or restaurants to be prioritized in order to participate fairly in the development of the regions concerned.
For travelers, the advantage of these trips is the ability to immerse themselves in the culture like no other option can offer.
The food is prepared according to local traditions, with ingredients inspired by local flavors, far from the idea of industrial food. It's also an opportunity to meet and interact with locals who will introduce you to extraordinary places off the beaten track.
Ethics therefore very often rhymes with authenticity. Minimizing one's footprint on the planet offers a direct dive into the unknown and the unexpected.
Regardless of the destination chosen, the traveler of tomorrow must be aware that visiting a country, even for a few days' vacation, can have a positive or negative impact on the environment and local populations.
While a paradigm shift appears to be underway, there's still a long way to go before things are completely shifted. This is due to our bad habits, but also to the limited number of solutions available for practicing ethical tourism.
A global awareness will give rise to innovations in this sector, which has too often brushed aside the issue of ecology.
While global tourism growth has certainly reduced the price of airline tickets and given millions of travelers the opportunity to discover destinations that were inaccessible just a few years ago, its impact should not be overlooked.
Ethical travel is looking to the future and will likely dethrone mass tourism, which has failed to reinvent itself.
