RESEARCH REPORT. Globalization: Creating a Common Language. Sustainability Committee. Promoting ecotourism as a tool for sustainable environment

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1 HISAR SCHOOL JUNIOR MODEL UNITED NATIONS 2018 Globalization: Creating a Common Language Sustainability Committee Promoting ecotourism as a tool for sustainable environment RESEARCH REPORT Recommended by:

2 Forum:SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE (SA-4) Ümmünaz Yanık Issue: Promoting ecotourism as a tool for sustainable environment Student Officer: Ümmünaz Yanık Introduction Sustainable development meets the contemporary needs and deals with the issues of today s world without blocking the way of future generations to meet their own needs. Sustainable development requires the united endeavor to build an inclusive, sustainable and resilient future for both humanity and the planet. Sustainable development goals include targeted articles on the development of the organizations and systems. These systems are aimed to work with the least consumption of natural resources and to refrain any damage to the environment. 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable for Development 1

3 The systems of the current and previous tourism agencies failed to meet the conditions for protecting the environment by poor planning, habitat destruction of livings and animal cruelty. Ecotourism -also called as sustainable tourism- is proclaimed as one of the most successful tools for promoting sustainable environment by encouraging environmental conservation and scientific researches as well as protecting fragile ecosystems and improving ecological diversity of the living things globally. For more than a decade there has been an increasing number of organizations and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) around the globe that collaborate in order to promote ecotourism as a common solution for the sustainable environment. Definition of Key Terms Ecosystem: Ecosystem is the short form of ecological system. Ecosystem is defined as all the living things in a certain area and the way they affect each other as well as their surroundings. Every ecological system has its own food chain. Extinction: The condition in which the last individual of a species no longer exists. Degradation: Process of becoming damaged and insufficient. In this research report it is used to refer to land degradation which is generally because of pollution and industry. Urban area: Urban area is a term used to refer to cities and other urbanized areas where the human population is dense. General Overview Logo of The World Conservation Union Ecotourism is defined as a travel responsible for its environment with having a low traveler damage with providing socio-economic involvement of local people, appreciating and conserving the nature by World Conservation Union (IUCN). It is also differentiated from other types of tourisms since it does not allow any inappropriate planning and management -which may further threaten the climate and local habitants- of the fragile and sensitive ecosystems. However, a great deal of the tourism in natural resources today cannot be count as an ecotourism, therefore they are generally not sustainable. Especially in the vulnerable areas the impact of the traveler may lead up to a drastic degradation on the environment. Furthermore, it may threaten some certain species of the animals with the extinction. Several number of non-governmental organizations (NGOS) and international associations especially United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) support ecotourism as one of the successful ways for contributing to the conservation was chosen for International Year of Ecotourism by world leaders in United Nations General Assembly in After that, World Ecotourism Summit took a place in Quebec, 2

4 Canada with the number of one thousand participants from 132 countries in Then, United Nations General Assembly adopted many resolutions on the issue between the years 2010 and Moreover, 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development also included targeted articles for promoting ecotourism. Major Parties Involved and Their Views Costa Rica: Costa Rica is one of the earliest adopters of the ecotourism concept and also the first country in America where animal hunting is banned. In the 1970s the National Park System of Costa Rica expanded so fast and covered %21 of the territory by including 70 protected areas. Norway: Since Norwegian Government tries to reach sustainability standards in every category, Norway adopted the concept of ecotourism innovatively. The country has achieved Sustainable Destination standard announced by Global Sustainable Tourism Council in The standard includes 45 criteria and 108 indicators. Conservation Areas in Costa Rica, 2014 Pearson United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP): UNEP is the branch of the United Nations that works for the environmental issues and collaborates with the Sustainable United Nations for assisting eco-friendly solutions and practices. The International Ecotourism Society (TIES): The International Ecotourism Society is a NGO established for promoting ecotourism in The primary aim of the foundation is to help organizations and communities by providing educational guidelines and setting technical standards as well as preparing training programmes. The organization has its members from more than 190 countries with different professions. Timeline of Events July,1998 December,1998 May,2002 October,2007 December,2010 United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) suggested the members of United Nations General Assembly choose 2002 as the International Year of Ecotourism. UN General Assembly accepted the request of ECOSOC and declared the year of 2002 as an International Year of Ecotourism. World Ecotourism Summit was hosted in Quebec City of Canada with more than thousand delegates from 132 countries. The Second International Conference on Climate Change and Tourism took place in Davos, Switzerland. United Nations General Assembly adopted the resolution 65/173 on Promotion of ecotourism for poverty eradication and environment protection. 3

5 September,2015 September,2015 January, Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development are accepted by world leaders in United Nations Summit The United Nations General Assembly chose 2017 as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development. SDGs of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development officially came into operation. Treaties and Events Antarctic Treaty System: Antarctica is the fifth largest continent. The area does not belong to any particular country; however, there are seven countries raising territorial claims. All of the human activities including the researches are under the rules and the surveillance of Environmental Protocol of the Antarctic Treaty. Antarctic Treaty System is a set of treaties that was firstly signed to protect fragile environment in Also, the treaty declared the continent as a natural reserve. Therefore, any touristic attraction takes place in the continent can be counted as ecotourism since it is under the strict surveillance of the Protocol. Evaluation of Previous Attempts to Resolve the Issue The conferences arranged under the name of United Nations were adequate for drawing attention to the endangered ecosystems and promoting ecotourism as a solution. However, since they are not a treaty or a convention, they did not lead Member States to make any binding decisions. For example, Antarctic Treaty can be count as successful implementation since the treaty does not allow any tourism other than ecotourism legally in the region. Moreover, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are rational and applicable implementations since the articles address the problems and state the goals specifically. Consequently, the awareness regarding to the sustainable environment by ecotourism may be increased and also temporary actions may be taken sequentially. Possible Solutions First of all, fragile ecosystems, especially the ones that endangered species live in, may be put under the surveillance of related UN bodies as well as the non-governmental organizations. Likewise, in the case of Antarctic Treaty, the treaties or the conventions may be signed in order to get more binding outputs and the detailed decisions upon the matters such as the process of the surveillance. Symbolic image for eco-friendly navigation app Secondly, a new navigation and route application which will show only the eco-friendly routes and ways for the traveler s destination may be created for mobile phones. With the help of this app the awareness may be developed on the issue. At the same time, it will help preservation of the ecosystem. 4

6 Thirdly, United Nations General Assembly may encourage Member States to give additional opportunities and support on the ecotourism planning offered by entrepreneurs or investors. Lastly, UNGA may ask for Member States to only give permission to ecotourism for the targeted areas that are chosen with the help of UNEP. Bibliography "About the World Ecotourism Summit." UNEP Division of Technology, Industry, and Economics, "About TRAVEL ENJOY RESPECT." TRAVEL ENJOY RESPECT, 29 Aug. 2017, "Ecotourism - a Tool for Sustainable Development." SOST International, 7 Sept. 2014, "Ecotourism - Ecotourism And Sustainable Development." Science Encyclopedia - JRank Articles, science.jrank.org/pages/2270/ecotourism-ecotourism-sustainable-development.html. GDRC The Global Development Research Center, Declaration_2007.pdf. IISD's SDG Knowledge Hub. "UN General Assembly Adopts Resolutions on Ecotourism and Code of Ethics for Tourism News SDG Knowledge Hub IISD." SDG Knowledge Hub Daily SDG News IISD, sdg.iisd.org/news/un-general-assembly-adopts-resolutions-onecotourism-and-code-of-ethics-for-tourism/. "IYE 2002 The International Ecotourism Society." The International Ecotourism Society Uniting Conservation, Communities, and Sustainable Travel,

7 "TIES Overview The International Ecotourism Society." The International Ecotourism Society Uniting Conservation, Communities, and Sustainable Travel, "UN YEAR OF SUSTAINABLE TOURISM FOR DEVELOPMENT 2017 WHAT DID WE GET UP TO?» Ecotourism Australia." Home» Ecotourism Australia, what-did-we-get-up-to/. "What is Ecotourism and Why We Need More of It." ZME Science, 10 Sept. 2016, "What is Ecotourism? Principles, Importance and Benefits of Ecotourism." Conserve Energy Future, 23 Dec. 2017, 6