Whispering in the Giants Ear by William Powers

Williams Powers, an ecotourist activist wrote in his book, Whispering in the Giants Ear, “That which we allow to exist, to flourish freely according to its own rhythms, is superior to anything our little hands create.” Ecotourism is defined as "responsible travel to natural areas that conserves the environment and improves the well-being of local people."

Economical Impact

Ecotourism plays a vital role in a nations economy. Many factors entail whether a country can be successful economically. Ecotourism has thrived and failed, depending on how it was operated. Once a country accepts money from their government to begin ecotourism, they will be forever in debt. When the governments fronts the money, the government is in control. Often, governments grow impatient as profits do not appear immediately. The government will cut their losses and never be able to see the true potential ecotourism has. These countries will go millions into debt, without seeing a dollar in profit. This exact example occurred in the Philippines. The Philippines government invested millions into ecotourism with large hopes and aspirations. After a few years, the locals found there was steady improvement. Money was beginning to come in, but after half a decade still no profit, only improvement. The government became frustrated and cut their losses. The problem in the Philippines was a miscommunication among the expectations for ecotourism. The Philippines had a verbal agreement with the locals, but nothing was in ink. The government seized the opportunity and cut their losses. The Philippines made the initial mistake of lack of communication and lost faith in ecotourism. Since the start of the 21st century the Philippines have tried to bring...

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...from another culture in order to meet the expectations of foreign visitors and their preconceived notions concerning authenticity. This defeats the purpose of ecotourism. Ecotourism is meant to help enrich the lives of the tourists with new traditions, not to taint the traditions of the host society. Sadly, this also occurred in San Jose Succotz, a formerly Mayan village in western Belize. The primary Mestizo residents reconstructed their distant Mayan heritage, with the help of archeologists, to profit from the popular Mayan ruin of Xunantunich. In the Garifuna of Punta Gorda, Honduras, feel that their culture is being used as a tourist attraction for money, not to educate. The Garifuna culture has no desire to expand the culture, but to make a profit. The main concern to the Garifuna is not the exposure of their culture, but who is making a profit out of it.