ECOTOURISM: ASSESSING THE NEED FOR QUALITY CONTROL AND CONTINUAL IMPROVEMENT USING CANADIAN STANDARDS

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1 ECOTOURISM: ASSESSING THE NEED FOR QUALITY CONTROL AND CONTINUAL IMPROVEMENT USING CANADIAN STANDARDS Theme B Regulation of Ecotourism: Institutional Responsibilities and Frameworks Contacts Ms. Sherry Sian Inuvialuit Environmental & Geotechnical Inc. 1338R 36 th Ave. NE Calgary, Alberta T2E 6T6 Canada Telephone: (403) Facsimile: (403) sherry.sian@ieg.ca Ms. Jennifer Sipkens Sustainable Tourism Association of Canada th Ave NW Calgary, Alberta T2N 0M9 Canada Telephone: (403) Facsimile: (403) jsipkens@sustainabletourism.ca Abstract Ecotourism has emerged as a niche market within the tourism sector. Controversy surrounding the effectiveness of ecotourism in achieving sustainable development has prompted enthusiastic discussions about the requisites for both environmental and social standards for assessing ecotourism. There is a need to consider cooperative approaches to economic development within the tourism sector through a balanced approach that considers the limits of acceptable change to a community as well as the capacity of the ecosystem to restore itself. In order to explore the required management paradigm for ecotourism in anticipation of the World Ecotourism Summit in Quebec City, May 2002, the Canadian Tourism Commission sought the assistance of the Sustainable Tourism Association of Canada to develop a discussion paper about the current state of ecotourism in Canada. This examination involved a rudimentary analysis of relevant provincial and federal policy as well as current and upcoming initiatives to craft standards for ecotourism in order to identify a suitable national mechanism for facilitating the legitimate expansion of ecotourism in Canada. Speculation on the future direction of ecotourism development and mechanisms for implementing credible national standards must be derived from a cogent view of the Canadian tourism industry, 99% of which is made up of small (up to 50 employees) to medium-sized (50 to 500 employees) enterprises. An examination of the achievements and challenges in developing and implementing regional and national Canadian standards as well as other notable standard systems around the world informs projections on the future of ecotourism in Canada. This was achieved through a comprehensive literature review, operator workshops, and interviews with ecotourism operators, tourism industry specialists, and policy makers across the country. The context for ecotourism in Canada and around the world is changing. The failure of this niche market to prosper separate from other tourism markets suggests that ecotourism must consider economic viability. Conflicting and disabling policies and the lack of capacity to ascertain regional visitor use levels beyond protected areas, present notable challenges to implementing what would be considered an authentic form of ecotourism, especially where several tourism activities co-exist. This presentation proposes a mechanism to engage ecotourism operators or enthusiasts and environmental mangers in facilitating the transition to ecotourism or at minimum, more environmentally and socially responsible tourism. 1

2 The Eco in Ecotourism Ecotourism has been subjected to intensive marketing that has altered expectations of what constitutes eco in relation to ecotourism. The tourism industry and the media have aggressively promoted adventure and eco tourism. Often used interchangeably, these notions have been popularized though prime time television. The behaviors most often depicted are contrary to the environmental and social norms of ecotourism. This situation has led to confusion about ecotourism. The mixed-behaviors represented as ecotourism have created controversy about the effectiveness and indeed, the role of ecotourism in achieving sustainable development. The convergence of ecotourism with comparable tourism products raises questions about the economic viability of and appropriateness of examining ecotourism in isolation from other tourism sectors. Enthusiastic discussions about the requisites for environmentally and socially conscious ecotourism in Canada have thus ensued. Study Rationale and Approach In anticipation of the World Ecotourism Summit, the Canadian Tourism Commission sought the assistance of the Sustainable Tourism Association of Canada to assess the current state of ecotourism in Canada. This examination involved a rudimentary analysis of relevant provincial and federal policy as well as current and upcoming initiatives to craft standards for ecotourism in order to identify a suitable national mechanism for facilitating the legitimate expansion of ecotourism in Canada. This review encompassed: a series of workshops with government, non-government, industry and tourism representatives with an interest in ecotourism; telephone and in-person interviews with representatives of government, industry associations, and ecotourism businesses; and key conferences exploring the requisites for ecotourism as well as certification programs. Ecotourism in Canada There are a plethora of definitions of ecotourism. Many of these definitions have already been introduced at the Summit. This assessment was based on the most commonly accepted definition of ecotourism put forth by the Ecotourism Society which states that [e]cotourism is sustainable and responsible travel to natural areas that conserves the environment and improves the well-being of local people. In spite of the abundance of ecotourism definitions, this assessment noted that most Canadian government jurisdictions federal, provincial and territorial advocate ecotourism as a component of economic development strategies in the absence of a widely-accepted operational definition or standards for ecotourism products. The governments of Alberta, Newfoundland, Northwest Territories, Nova Scotia, Nunavut, Ontario and Yukon all do not have official definitions of tourism nor policies to guide them. The Northwest Territories and Nunavut, however, are both in the process of developing tourism policy that will explicit define and outline standards for ecotourism. 2

3 Saskatchewan uses the Ecotourism Society of Saskatchewan s definition of ecotourism and has recently drafted policies regarding ecotourism on Crown Lands and protected areas. British Columbia uses a very broad definition of ecotourism and has several government policies and inter-departmental agreements aimed at promoting environmentally-responsible tourism. Similarly, Manitoba has adopted an ecotourism definition and further drafted a Three-Year Adventure Travel and Ecotourism Strategy. Quebec is without a definition of ecotourism but does have standards. The governments of New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Yukon have indicated a strong reticence to use the term at all. Instead they prefer to refer to their product as soft adventure. At an industry level, the distinction between ecotourism and other tourism products has blurred. Ecotourism is often combined with similar and compatible tourism products such as learning vacations, cultural tourism, nature tourism and soft adventure tourism. The key distinction for ecotourism continues to be the emphasis on environmental conservation. A certification program to preserve the integrity of ecotourism is essential. This was re-affirmed by participants at a special workshop on ecotourism held at the Leading Edge 2002 Conference in Burlington, Ontario in October Workshop participants indicated that the only element that distinguishes ecotourism from other tourism products is the existence of standards. It was generally agreed that the main requirements for ecotourism are: travel to natural sites; minimal environmental impact (positive or negative); environmental awareness and appreciation of its intrinsic and other values; financial benefits for the conservation of species and ecosystems; financial benefits and empowerment for local communities; respect for local culture (indigenous and historic agriculture and fisheries); sensitivity to the political environment and social climate; and support for human rights (traditional land use and harvesting). Roles and Responsibilities The International Year of Ecotourism has engaged the world in a discussion about the need for standards to define appropriate ecotourism products and visitor use thresholds. This can not be achieved without the cooperation of the government, industry associations and ecotourism businesses. Government has the capacity to create enabling policies to support the development of a vibrant ecotourism industry in Canada while also instituting measures to protect the natural resources and community well-being upon which the ecotourism industry depends. The tourism industry and ecotourism operators, however, understand the feasibility of implementing ecotourism and help to identify the barriers to implementation. To illustrate this point, it is worth re-counting an ecotourism operator s experience in the failure of policy to consider the full life cycle of an ecotourism product. In Ontario, the licensing of limousines, buses and taxis requires a surcharge for each municipality entered. Entrance to seven municipalities results in thousands of dollars per year for 3

4 regional touring. The diversity of experiences that ecotourists typically seek, according to industry research, suggests that a regional tour should be included in a package for an ecotourist. This option is not cost effective for small- to medium-sized enterprises that represent the vast majority of ecotourism operators in Canada. The operator is then forced to meet guests at a gathering place, resulting in less efficient fuel use and a poorer ecotourism product. Throughout the 1990s the desire for multi-sector cooperation to establish, at minimum, provincial standards for ecotourism in protected areas and other sensitive environments has been a major theme. Adequate mechanisms for monitoring visitor use and setting limits, particularly in sensitive environments outside protected areas, remains a challenge and barrier to truly fulfilling the requirements for ecotourism. This has prompted some provincial governments, such as British Columbia and Ontario, to adopt an approach to ecotourism rooted in sustainable land management. These approaches promote the sustainable use of landscapes to minimize environmental impact. Incentives, such as lower commercial recreation fees for ecotourism operators on Crown land in British Columbia, promote environmentally-sensitive land use. Alternatively, regulatory requirements described in Ontario s Living Legacy Land Use Strategy ensure that Resource Stewardship Agreements are created to preserve tourism values for tourism operations occurring within an area covered by the agreement. This approach reserves the most pristine areas for ecotourism operations. Other examples of government-industry cooperation are emerging at the provincial level. A three-year commitment of financial support from Tourisme Quebec has aided the Association des producteurs de tourisme d aventure du Québec in advancing ecotourism. This partnership has resulted in a progressive model to encourage sustainable tourism based on improved environmental management. The Association des producteurs de tourisme d aventure du Québec set up the Club de produits aventure, écotourisme, plein air Québec, to facilitate the development of expertise on markets, distribution networks and products. January 4, 2001 marked the beginning of a national accord between Parks Canada and the Tourism Industry Association Canada that affirmed their commitment to work together to foster sustainable tourism. The influence of the accord will likely be restricted to Canada s system of national parks. In spite of these advancements, the majority of initiatives to promote ecotourism and certification continue to be industry driven and voluntary. As recently as 2000, the Natural Resource Consortium for Tourism Standards, the predecessor for the Sustainable Tourism Association of Canada, noted considerable posturing on the part of government and industry with each waiting for the other to take the lead in the development of certification programs. The World Ecotourism Summit seems to have overcome this inertia. Quality Control and Canadian Certification The representatives of government, industry associations and ecotourism businesses that were interviewed or participated in the workshops, all agreed that Canadian certification would be valuable. In areas where regional programs were already well established, such as Saskatchewan (Horizons) and Quebec (Club de produits aventure, 4

5 écotourisme, plein air Québec), there was some ambivalence about the need to expand from a regional to national program. The desire for provincial autonomy is a barrier to the formation of a national association to oversee a Canadian certification program. This could be overcome through cooperatively working to create targeted additions to existing regional programs that would meet the national standard to supplement rather than compete with existent programs. Government representatives, industry association members and ecotourism operators recognize that authentic ecotourism requires a general definition that acknowledges a dual commitment to environmental conservation and the betterment of the human condition in affected communities. They also agreed that a common set of standards was essential and failure to adopt some form of certification would risk: diluting the ecotourism concept and further marginalizing it within the tourism sector; undermining consumer confidence in the availability of an authentic ecotourism experience; hurting the Canadian ecotourism industry by reducing purchases of ecotourism products; and cheating the communities that have placed great faith in ecotourism as an option for sustainable development. Proposing a Way Forward The formation of Canadian standards for ecotourism and mechanisms for administering it through a national organization can not be achieved in isolation of global processes that are defining globally acceptable practices. Efforts are underway to explore the appropriateness of creating an international accreditation body for sustainable tourism and ecotourism certifiers. International pressure to develop credible certification programs is increasing. The development of a national certification program in Canada would have to be cognizant of this shifting global pressure. The Mohonk Agreement may define the acceptable attributes of national certification and auditing programs to ensure that the standards established do in fact allow sustainability goals to be achieved while allowing a level of flexibility recognizing regional differences in social, economic and environmental conditions. This assurance is particularly important given that the ecotourism niche market has a distinctively international character and the credibility of the ecotourism product depends so heavily on quality delivery of conservation education. The Sustainable Tourism Association of Canada proposes to bring together government, industry associations, ecotourism operators, non-government organizations and universities or colleges with ecotourism programs to develop learning networks committed to the improvement of all tourism operations. In this way, the practitioners of ecotourism along with the industry s critics, consumers and capacity-builders all influence acceptable minimum standards and play a role in continual improvement of the industry. Continual improvement maintains the legitimacy of ecotourism by ensuring the sector benefits from the ever-increasing understanding of the environmental impacts and 5

6 mitigation tools while ensuring that Canadian ecotourism products continue to meet with international expectations. The national organization could be a new or existing organization that: includes government, industry, ecotourism businesses, non-governmental organizations with an interest in ecotourism; represents the character of the Canadian tourism industry that predominantly consists of small and medium-sized enterprises; provides a coherent voice for industry and other stakeholders to strategically position Canadian ecotourism in the world market. The tendency of ecotours to offer a diversity of activities in combination with learning holidays, cultural tourism and soft adventure suggests the need for a certification program that has a sustainable tourism focus. Nested within this program, there should be a special category for ecotourism that is clearly defined by stringent standards. In this way, the national certification program offers improvements in all tourism markets in response to more global concerns regarding sustainable development and social equity. Presenter Biographies Ms. Sherry Sian, M.E.Des. Sherry Sian is an environmental planner who has specialized in capacity building and bioregional governance for integrated resource management and sustainable development. Formerly an independent contractor, Sherry has worked with the Canada - Man and the Biosphere (MAB) National Committee, Parks Canada, Environment Canada, the Ecological Monitoring and Assessment Network, the Canadian Biosphere Reserves Association, Western Economic Diversification, and the Community Committee for Redberry Lake Biosphere Reserve. In this capacity she has served as a bridge between community organizations, industrial sectors, nongovernment organizations, and government partners. Sherry has represented Canada in the North American Preparatory Meeting for the World Conference on Science, and the Young Scientists Forum on Science Education, at the invitation of the Canadian Commission for UNESCO. Most recently Sherry has been based out of Inuvik, Northwest Territories with the 100% aboriginal-owned company, Inuvialuit Environmental & Geotechnical, Inc., where she is assisting with consultative processes and community capacity building projects throughout the Mackenzie Delta. Sherry is an Honorary Director for the Canadian Biosphere Reserves Association and a co-founder of the Sustainable Tourism Association of Canada. Ms. Jennifer Sipkens Jennifer Sipkens is the Executive Director of the Sustainable Tourism Association of Canada, a society that she, along with other tourism and science professionals, nursed into being at the close of the nineties. Jennifer has drawn on her experience as manager of a tourism consortium developed by the Canadian Biosphere Reserves Association. The consortium was aimed originally at developing ecotourism product and criteria in Biosphere Reserves; but ultimately moved toward the development of sustainability for tourism across Canada. Jennifer has a technical grounding as a Fish and Wildlife Technician and Ecotourism Management graduate from Ontario. This experience has been bridged by a number of years in sales and visitor services for commercial retailers, museums, and interpretive centers. 6