tourism in three Central American countries, among other worthwhile projects. Growing out of a July 2015 Think Tank on Climate Change and Coastal/Marine Tourism in the Caribbean, CREST’s current projects include a two-volume book on this subject and a new 45-minute documentary film. The film, “Caribbean ‘Green’ Travel: Your Choices Make a Difference” looks at socially and environmentally conscientious alternatives to traditional big box/big cruise tourism on four islands – Aruba, Grenada, Jamaica, and the Dominican Republic. The film and the books are scheduled to be released in late spring 2016. For the film’s trailer, go here: responsibletravel.org/news/films.html
Some of the realities that have driven CREST’s decisions to target coastal and marine tourism are:
Coastlines are highly susceptible to impacts of climate change, including sea level rise, extreme storm events, flooding, and loss of ecosystem services (especially those we use for recreation, relaxation, and inspiration). Balancing the desire for greater economic activity with protection of the resources that attract visitors is a constant challenge for coastal communities everywhere.
Yet the majority of tourism takes place on coastlines and at sea:
o We live on or near coasts: More than half of the world's population lives within 50 miles of the coast. This is predicted to grow to 75% by 2025.
o We vacation on coasts: 80% of all tourism takes place in coastal areas, particularly beaches and reefs.
-Globally, 12 of the 15 top international destinations are countries with coastlines.
-High volume, large scale resort tourism has been growing unsustainably, often destroying mangroves, sea grasses and coral reefs; draining limited fresh water aquifers; and polluting beaches and coastal waters.
-High value ecotourism and sustainable tourism is competing with, and being crowded out, by high volume cruise & all-inclusive resort tourism.
o We vacation at sea: Numbers of cruise passengers jumped 40-fold from 1970 to 2012.
-Over 50% of cruise passengers visit the Caribbean, but the nations of the Caribbean receive less than 5% of the industry’s earnings.
-Both the size and number of ships, as well as ports-of-call, continue to grow. At the same time, tremendous amounts of waste and pollution are generated.
Cruise tourism profits are expected to double from 2008 to 2018, making this the most profitable sector of the tourism industry.
-Yet ports-of-call are routinely required to foot the bill for cruise terminals, shopping malls, security, and other infrastructure. St. Maarten, for instance, invested $400 million in cruise ship infrastructure, but earns only $9 million/year from cruise tourism. St. Maarten's repayment time is 138 years, without interest.
All too often, tourism developments on the coasts and oceans are contributing to the degradation of the environment upon which they rely. While these realities are sobering, CREST is convinced that there is real potential for reform. Unlike many other industries, we do have the tools, including eco-certification programs and green technologies, to do tourism in ways that are environmentally, socially, and economically sustainable. The rise of responsible travel in the last quarter of the 20th century is challenging the way conventional tourism operates by providing the principals and practices for tourism businesses to be designed, built, and operated in ways that bring benefits to the environment and host communities. And today both consumer and industry demand for sustainable tourism are strong. As CREST’s annual publication, The Case for Responsible Travel: Trends and Statistics has found, “Green travel is here to stay” and “The tourism sector is embracing responsible tourism not as an option, but as a condition for its continuous growth.”
For more information about CREST’s work and upcoming film and books, visit responsibletravel.org.
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