ECOTOURISM For Nature Conservation and Sustainable Mountain Tourism A Case Study of Himalaya, Karakorum and Hindu Kush (HKH) Region By Nazir Sabir President, Alpine Club of Pakistan Presented at IMS Congress Mountains and Sustainable Tourism Wednesday 3 November 2010 / 9am 3.15pm Brixen / Bressanone Dolomites Italy
Context and Perspective Sixteen major rivers in Asia originate from the Tibetan Plateau and the Himalaya, Karakoram and the Hindu Kush (HKH) ranges This region is often called Water Towers of the World and The Third Pole It provides direct ecological and development services to large populations from carbon sequestration to fresh water and energy supply This is a fragile ecology and it is threatened by rapid processes of globalization and climate change
Key Issues in HKH Regions Remoteness, harsh living conditions, poverty and marginalization Severe ecological degradation and vulnerability to climate change impacts, and all forms of shocks and disasters This has implications for populations living downstream: recent floods in Pakistan affecting over 20 million people is an example
Key Imperatives Biodiversity and ecological protection must be balanced with livelihood needs Engage local communities in nature conservation, building on their knowledge and resilience and improving their living conditions Create alliances with world community for addressing global challenges, such as climate change through local actions
Ecotourism, an effective Tool for Sustainable Mountain Development Ecotourism ensures engagement of and benefits for local communities Imposes less stress on fragile ecology Focuses on high value and low volume tourism products Enhances knowledge and awareness about conservation Improves communication and satisfaction between ecologically conscious consumer and service provider
Major Challenges in Promoting Sustaining Tourism in HKH Lack of awareness, education and communication among key players Outdated public policies and over bureaucratic procedures Poor infrastructure and services Lack of knowledge and trained human capital Political boundaries limiting cross border travel and access Increased stress on fragile environments from excessive use and protracted conflicts
Major Opportunities in HKH Region World s most unique and diverse mountain ecosystem High potential for introducing new products and services, including cross border tourism across the entire HKH Belt Conservation value and sustainable benefits for local people A tool for adaptation to climate change and globalization for a harmonized existence between mankind and nature
Current Best Practices in HKH Region Bhutan is a regional leader in low volume high value ecotourism practices Nepal is a pioneer in many public community partnership ecotourism projects Pakistan has some successes, particularly in wildlife conservation through communitybased trophy hunting China has introduced the concept of eco shelter and compensation for eco services
Guiding Principles Create and implement enabling policies, strategies and capacities at all levels Transfer knowledge and pilot and scale up good practices Create value added livelihood options and integrate conservation with development Create new win win partnerships between stakeholders
Conclusion and Recommendations Developing better understanding between conservation and development needs through the open doors of Tourism Neighboring countries need to harmonize their policies and procedures and share knowledge and experience with each other International organizations and stakeholders need to help develop sustainable national and cross border ecotourism strategies and long term programs Continuous research, awareness creation and product development in eco tourism There is a strong need to establish a regional center for research and skill development in this sector