Regenerative Tourism: Mindful and Respectful Travel
Tourism involves all activities related to travelling and exploring new places for education, business, pleasure or other reasons. Tourism has become a significant source of income for many countries and an essential part of global economies. Many “types” of tourism have been adopted, ranging from sports to culinary and wellness tourism.
In light of how climate change impacts our planet, people have begun to embark on tourism adventures that seek out experiences they won’t have a chance to see again in their lifetime because they are at risk of disappearing. Examples include polar bear viewing in the Arctic, visits to the Great Barrier Reef or the Galapagos, and more.
While all these different types of tourism may help tourists learn about the impacts of climate change on tourism locations, they don’t necessarily help the communities or environments at risk. Ecotourism goes one step further, as it intends to support conservation efforts and observe wildlife. Similar to ecotourism is another form of tourism called sustainable tourism. Sustainable tourism focuses on tourists prioritizing eco-hotels and reducing carbon emissions.
The type of do-good tourism that is gaining popularity is regenerative tourism. Regenerative tourism focuses on making trips more immersive and experiential. It goes beyond ecotourism and sustainable tourism because tourists are travelling to destinations to help heal the planet and its habitants by returning resources where they came from. Regenerative tourism also involves providing activities for visitors that will allow destinations to heal and counterbalance tourism’s social, economic and environmental impacts.
Participating in regenerative tourism involves staying at a local home, eating local food, learning about the destination’s history, volunteering within the community and taking tours to learn about the environment. Regenerative tourism is also well received by locals because tourists are directly giving back to communities. Traditional forms of tourism could damage the local environment, and some destinations end up experiencing “over-tourism.”
A few examples of regenerative tourism include working with farmers to restore degraded lands, working with local communities by conserving pristine rainforests with ecolodges or restoring biodiversity by stopping livestock grazing and reintroducing wild animals. In Hawaii, for example, tourists can visit the island of Kaua’i and plant native tree species to offset the carbon footprint produced by flying to Hawaii. Tourists are also invited to help remove invasive plant species off hiking trails and work in a taro patch to experience the Hawaiian culture firsthand.
The key to regenerative tourism is treating places as individuals and valuing resources differently. In addition to financial capital, social, natural, cultural and experiential capital are equally important in this new field of tourism.
Tourism is always going to exist in some form. People will always search for new adventures and cultures to experience. Mindful and respectful travellers who desire to learn and contribute are essential to this regenerative cycle. These travel experiences that are meaningful, engaging, and informative will create deeper connections with the local community, the land, and our overall environment.
