Ecotourism Courses

Less than 100 years ago, tourism meant robbing a locale of its plant-life, artifacts and culture. Later, well into the later half of the 20th century, tourists inadvertently left their unwelcomed footprint on places they visited with noxious diesel bus fumes, trampled garden paths and souvenir shops seemingly on every corner, even inside of churches. Ecotourism was born to prevent that conscience and inadvertent excess.

Travel and tourism, in its best sense, is an opportunity to explore new cultures, listen to new ideas and meet new people who may be a lot different from you. Ideally, travel opens one's mind to the possibility that there is more than one way to look at something, more than one valid ideology and more than one way of doing things. It is rare to find a well-traveled bigot.

Here is a multimedia lesson used throughout some of our Ecotourism modules.  We hope that it will provide you with a little insight into what you can expect from each module of your desired learning program:

What is ecotourism?

Ecotourism was developed in the 1980s as a solution that allows people to travel the globe and reap the extraordinary knowledge and wisdom to be gained from other cultures without destroying the places they visit. Ecotourism seeks to limit, if not eliminate, the environmental impact of tourism. Although ecotourism is often associated with adventure travel, the principles of ecotourism can be applied to any type of travel.

What you will learn

When you study ecotourism courses online, you'll learn how to organise and lead travel groups that leave a minimal impact on the places you visit. Much of your study will be about how to plan and lead wilderness and adventure trips that conserve water and energy, recycle and find multiple uses for items brought on the trip and dispose of trash responsibly. You'll learn ways to maximise the group's enjoyment of a site, while not leaving a lasting negative impact on it.

Although ecotourism is most often associated with wilderness travel and conserving resources, there is also a social aspect to ecotourism. Ideally, travellers should view a culture without imposing their values, their dress or their food upon the people they encounter. One needs merely to look at the number of McDonald's outlets around the globe to know that this practice was not always followed in the past.

Are your ready for the challenge that organising travel groups in the 21st century brings? Do you enjoy seeing new places and meeting new people? Are you open to new ideas and new ways of doing things? Does the probability that no two projects in your ecotourism career will ever be alike enthrall you? If so, then join us to learn more about the dynamic and exciting field of ecotourism.