Blue Amazon - Ecotourism Activities

Wildlife Tours

We should take into consideration how best to observe wildlife with the least possible impact on their environment or activities. Observation posts (terrestrial and arboreal) built as 'blinds' are one method - quiet movement through interpretive trails another. Un-motorized canoe or boat movement is great. 'Night spotting' with night vision glasses is excellent. Aquatic tours can sometimes be done with 'drift dives' - where the guests are passively swept by the reef and need not touch or disturb anything. The basics are simple here - protect the environment, keep the guests safe and comfortable. To ensure those basics the tour operators must constantly monitor the impact of their tours on the local environment, and of course, monitor their guests.

Ecology Tours

The first classification, 'Wildlife Tours', is a study of nature in 'parts', whereas in 'Ecology Tours' it is a study of nature 'in whole'. A guide leading an expedition for bird watching would be an ornithological specialist, but an ecologist is a scientist studying something so vast and complex ( definition: a branch of science concerned with the interrelationship of organisms and their environments. 2. The totality or pattern of relations between organisms and their environment) that it is easier to think of ecologists as generalists - not specialists. An ecologist that would be a great ecotour ecology guide would have extensive knowledge covering all the life sciences (micro-biology as well), human sciences ( anthropology, ethnology, archeology) and earth sciences (geology, hydrology, meteorology, paleontology). OK, for bird watching the guide can get by on knowing the local species - and for the ecology tours, the guide can do well by understanding the local environment. But this does point out the potentially vast differences in a tour's quality, dependent on the guide's knowledge. But what about presentation? Same point - the quality of the tour is also dependent on the guide's preparedness and presentation.

Botany Tours

Millions of people have a great passion for plants and will travel the planet to experience the presence of the unusual, strange, or exotic - as well as indulge in their particular specialty, such as orchids or succulents. This can take the form of pure observation, or eating them for pleasure or for their effect on humans. So the two things most obvious here are - how do we protect the plants and the guests? A minimum separate distance is needed with the plants observed in the natural environment - interpretive trails and boating do the job. Hosts can monitor and purchase from the locals the wild collected food stuffs and grow the rest. As for ethnobotany (Ethnobotany is the study of how people of a particular culture and region make use of indigenous plants), we will cover that in the next classification 'Cultural Tours'.

Cultural Tours

For most people, nothing is more fascinating than other humans - especially those perceived as primitive. For the earth's few remaining indigenous peoples - nothing has done a better job in helping them maintain their cultures then ecotourism. There are several reasons for this statement. The foremost reason is the new found appreciation and recognition they get from their respective national governments from the tourist money they bring in and the conservation efforts they make with those dollars. When people from different cultures can peaceably exchange ideas there is a strengthening of understanding, ties, and support. The ecotourist who spends time with native peoples has the opportunity to recognize their common humanity and the value of the unique culture adaptation to the environment that the indigenous people have made. With that understanding it becomes that much more imperative to support the efforts of the native people to preserve their culture and environment.

Spiritual and religious ideas are an important part of all this as well. The world at large seems to have a huge thirst for Shamanistic knowledge and the naturalistic spiritualism that has been lost for a long time to modern society. There is a danger here in one respect - the experimentation of 'visionary plants'. Care has to be taken that guests are not careless in their desire to experience everything exotic as some plants used by Shamans have a powerful effect on mind and body that is not always good. There are many indigenous medicinal herbs worthy of study - so making a tour for that category is often a good idea.

A real treat for many ecotourists is the observation of daily life for indigenous peoples in general and the observance of how they make things (crafts) in particular. Even the preparation of their food can be very interesting and educational.

And last but not least there is the huge interest in past cultures and the artifacts they left behind. Tours of ruins is always popular and can fit in with the whole picture of the region that the guest brings away from their adventure.

For further expansion of these ideas and additional concepts, contact the Ecotourism Consultants - 'Blue Amazon'

ECOTOURISM ACTIVITIES