It’s 2024, and all over the world the tourism industry is skyrocketing, bringing with it a plethora of benefits — from boosts to a country’s economy to the much deserved appreciation for a country or region’s culture, religion and physical beauty. We’ve all seen the positive effects of tourism right here in South Florida. Yet increases in tourists can create tangible harm for the communities who live in popular travel destinations. So, how do we as tourists ensure we’re not part of the problem?
While tourists can pick what they desire to do, locals in these host communities are often subject to the double-edged sword of tourism — overuse of resources, pollution and littering from inconsiderate visitors as well as the lack of care towards maintaining a community’s environmental and cultural integrity. But how do we travel more conscientiously, keeping in mind the importance of respect towards the locals and environment? The perfect approach to this is what we like to call “sustainable tourism.”
According to the United Nation’s Tourism Agency, sustainable tourism is “tourism that takes full account of its current and future economic, social and environmental impacts, addressing the needs of visitors, the industry, the environment and host communities.”
Dr. Shouraseni Sen Roy, a University of Miami professor in the department of geography and sustainable development, believes sustainable tourism is the key to solving issues associated with the disconnect between victors and residents of vacation destinations across the globe.
“[There is a lot of] disconnect between the tourists, what their demands are, and what the supply is versus what is there, the communities, the local residents, and what they face when tourists come,” Roy said. “That needs to be brought up.”
Miami is a tourism hot-spot, especially during spring break, and Roy views the Magic City as an example of a community where sustainable tourism measures must be implemented. “In Miami, we are ground zero for climate change, so we must have more eco-friendly trips and options,” Roy said. Some examples of more eco-friendly excursions provided by Roy include visiting Shark Valley in the Everglades as well as shopping with local businesses and dining at local restaurants that source sustainably.
Even if tourist-centric communities encourage eco-friendly excursions and implement sustainable public policies, they may still suffer if residents and visitors do not make an active effort to preserve them — increasing the chances of certain sites not surviving the inevitable effects of climate change.
“We should be thinking about what we are leaving behind for those who come behind us,” Roy said.
When asked what travelers can do in preparation for traveling to a new place, Roy explained that learning as much about the culture and community as possible is the first step to move towards a more conscientious travel experience.
“Read up about the culture, read up about the current movements, activities that are going on, and the issues [the community] is facing so you don’t exacerbate those issues,” said Roy.
But back to the benefits that tourism provides. Aside from spring breakers, tourism communities in the United States such as Miami Beach, places in California, New York City and more are drawing people from all over the world and generating profit. According to the UN’s Tourism Agency, the United States drew nearly 51 million visitors in 2022 — a 50% increase from the year before — and tourism accounted for $2.02 trillion in the United States’ overall GDP that year.
Tourism destinations outside of the Western World are also experiencing growth in terms of numbers of visitors. The UN’s Tourism Agency found the number of tourists to Columbia, for example, increased by 18% between 2022 and 2023. However, in developing countries, a lot of travel experiences are resort based, so travelers have little to no contact with the local communities.
UM sophomore Will Charlop, who visited Colombia for this recent spring break, explained that tourists need to know their place while traveling abroad. “Tourists should consider how what they plan on doing impacts the people and the environment and what role they have as a tourist from a different country or from a wealthier country.”
Moreover, Charlop emphasized the necessity of integrating yourself into the local culture and community, which can be accomplished in part by attempting to speak the local language. “it’s very important when I travel somewhere to speak the language of where I’m going, just know a little bit, even if it’s a language that I don’t know. Just being respectful of the local culture,” said Charlop.
However, according to Charlop, there are a couple of things that tourists should absolutely not do. “Not going in with an entitled mindset. Not having the mindset of, ‘I’m paying money to be here, so I can treat it however I want.’ Not treating people like they are your servants,” said Charlop.
Residents of host communities in developing countries often suffer from the number of resources that tourists drain from the cities they visit. Roy explains, for example, that a lot of the locals cannot get into restaurants because they are just booked forever, or the prices are so high that it just is not attainable for residents.
“Some negative impacts are pressure on the infrastructure, traffic jams, shortage of resources, and rentals that have gone up, along with prices of other goods,” said Roy.
When asked what the goals of sustainable tourism are, Dr. Roy explained that there are three. The first is meeting the needs of the host community and what their needs are, especially in developing countries that many Western tourists are out of touch with.
However, it is important that host communities provide tourists with a good time. Dr. Roy explains that the second portion of sustainable tourism is what communities are doing to keep up with the needs of tourists.
“If we don’t keep it up, [tourists] won’t come back, and many communities need those tourism dollars. The final part is protecting the environment, protecting the human heritage sites, the environment and diversity,” Dr. Roy said.
Next time you find yourself impulsively booking a flight in the middle of a lecture, make sure you’ve done your research into where you’re going and understand these tourist destinations are more than simply idyllic scenes for your enjoyment. There are living and breathing communities with living, breathing people who deserve to be treated as such.
words_veronika valia. illustration&design_uyanga erdenebayar.
This article was published in Distraction’s Summer 2024 print issue.
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