For Immediate Release
*PHOTOS AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST*
Contact:
Tim Boys/Paul Kamon
(604) 452-3212
ECOTOURISM
IN BELIZE
The Hopeful Future of Travel
Tourism,
while reeling over the past few years, is still one of the
largest industries in the world, employing millions of people
and supporting countless businesses worldwide. By the year
2020, the World Tourism Organization (WTO) forecasts that
up to 1.5 billion people will be traveling—more than
double the all-time high of 698 million international travelers
in 2000. With that many feet exploring the earth, the environmental,
social and economic impacts of travel have become a critical
global issue. That is where ecotourism, a culturally and ecologically
sensitive travel model, finds its expanding niche and where
Belize has become a world leader.
Belize,
which has been actively encouraging and experimenting with
ecotourism for the past two decades, has a thriving industry.
Close to 40% of the country’s land and marine base has
been given some form of environmental protection, the most
of any country in the Western hemisphere.
The country’s long term commitment to transforming their
main industrial & agricultural economy to a more sustainable
and ecologically sensitive one, such as ecotourism has proven
to be a tremendous success as the number of visitors to the
country has been steadily growing for over a decade.
Although
it currently represents only two to four per cent of the global
tourism market, ecotourism continues to grow rapidly as travelers
look
beyond the stereotypical mega resorts for a more responsible
and sustainable alternative. One of the benefits of the ecotourism
model is that it helps support the remote rural villages which
traditionally have few sources of income. Small villages,
like Maya Center sitting at the edge of the Cockscomb Basin
Wildlife Reserve (home to the world’s first and only
jaguar reserve) in Belize, have benefited both from the tourism
the sanctuary brings and the needs of adventure tour operators
like Island Expeditions.
Villagers are employed to clear and maintain forest trails,
as porters and as bush guides. Traditional Mayan food is also
prepared by the women of the village for the small tour groups,
adding a tasty cultural element to their experience. In the
village, two locally owned guesthouses have opened and many
of the other village women produce traditional Mayan artifacts
for the collective craft centre at the entrance to the park.
“Each
Island Expeditions’ tour group brings in close to $2,000
US and that is spread fairly evenly across the village,”
explains Tim Boys, director of Island Expeditions Co. “That’s
a lot of money coming into a community that doesn’t
have a lot of options for making money in this remote area.”
In
addition to employment, Island Expeditions also provides local
training and education and supports the Belize Audubon Society
(who manage the Cockscomb), the Belize Zoo and the Tropical
Education Center. “It’s just good business to
invest in the communities and environments that we visit as
well as the organizations that protect them. The cultural
interaction with the local Belizeans is also a big part of
what makes the trips so enjoyable. Our guests love visiting
traditional Mayan and Garifuna villages and learning and sharing
directly with the people,” says Boys. “Ultimately,
ecotourism is about balance. Over the past 17 years, we have
worked hard towards finding and maintaining that balance where
what we do is sustainable and everyone involved will benefit
in some way. And from my experience, the country of Belize
has established itself as a world leader in that regard.”
For
more information about Island Expeditions Co. and their eco-adventures,
please call 1-800-667-1630 or visit www.islandexpeditions.com
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