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Ecotourism, also known as ecological tourism, is a form of tourism that appeals to the ecologically and socially conscious individuals. Generally speaking, ecotourism focuses on volunteering, personal growth, and learning new ways to live on the planet; typically involving travel to destinations where flora, fauna, and cultural heritage are the primary attractions.

Responsible ecotourism includes programs that minimize the negative aspects of conventional tourism on the environment, and enhance the cultural integrity of local people. Therefore, in addition to evaluating environmental and cultural factors, an integral part of ecotourism is in the promotion of recycling, energy efficiency, water conservation, and creation of economic opportunities for the local communities.

If you travel do consider the carbon footprint that you leave. Nature can take a good while to recover - and remember to save money as you book any travel planes by using voucher codes. These discount codes can save you money of many items, including flights and hotels - have a look at the voucher codes here.

Back to EcoTourism - responsible tourism, and sustainable development have become prevalent concepts since the late 1980s, and ecotourism has experienced arguably the fastest growth of all sub-sectors in the tourism industry.

From:
Stephanie Paterik
The Arizona Republic
Mar. 31, 2006 12:00 AM

• The National Geographic Society is mapping Arizona and Mexico in a way that has never been done before.
• The non-profit publisher’s goal is to create a map for travelers that highlights both the traditional tourist stops and the haunts that only locals may know in the Sonoran Desert region, stretching from Phoenix south to Sonora, Mexico.
• The magazine hopes to collect about 1,000 nominations from residents and readers alike by April 10 and will include about 300 attractions in the finished guide. The map will be published online for anyone to access, and in print for tourism officials to distribute next year.
• National Geographic’s MapGuide project began with a guide to Appalachia last year. The Arizona-Mexico region is its second stop.
• The map could include parks, museums and historic sites, as well as community centers and businesses such as kitschy hotels or family-owned restaurants.
• The goal is to promote “geotourism,” defined as travel that sustains or enhances the geographical character of a place, including the environment, culture, aesthetics, heritage and residents’ quality of life. An estimated 55 million geotourists are hungry for this type of information, said Margie Emmermann, director of the Arizona Office of Tourism.
• Jonathan Tourtellot, a National Geographic Society senior editor who coined the term geotourism and pioneered the MapGuides, said he picked the Sonoran Desert for its interesting culture, beautiful landscape and willingness of tourism officials on both sides of the border to participate.
• “The fact I like the area didn’t hurt,” he said.
• Several countries and states, including Arizona, have signed National Geographic’s geotourism charter, agreeing to embrace the concept in their tourism efforts. Tourtellot said international interest is growing, and many will be watching to see how this first binational map goes.
• The Arizona and Sonora offices of tourism are collecting nominations and helping to fund the printing costs, along with the Bureau of Land Management. Joaquin Murrieta-Saldivar of Tucson, a Sonora tourism official, said he hopes the map will drive quality travel rather than quantity.
• “We do not rely on just pumping up the number of tourists,” he said. “Our hope is to bring the most beneficial types of tourists, those with money, who trash the land the least and are nice to have around.”

Arizona Geo Tourism

Painted Desert is the name for a broad area of colorful badlands located in Northern Arizona in the United States. The desert stretches from the Grand Canyon National Park into the Petrified Forest National Park and runs roughly astride and just north of the Little Colorado and the Puerco Rivers. The area within the Petrified Forest National Wilderness is also known as the Painted Desert Wilderness. Much of the Painted Desert region is located within the Navajo Nation. The region is also home to a number of county parks such as the Little Painted Desert County Park found just north of Winslow. The Navajo and the Hopi people have lived in the region for at least one thousand years, however the modern name for the desert comes from the Spaniards who named it “el Desierto Pintado” due to its brightly colored landscape^{[citation needed]}.

The desert comprises stratified layers of mineral and decayed organic matter. Many hardened dunes can be found. These hardened dunes are visually distinct due to the bands of grays, reds, oranges and yellows which are then shaped by natural wind and rain patterns. The area is noted to be especially beautiful at sunset and sunrise when the land appears to glow in hues of violet, blue, red and gold. Other key features include the many mesas and buttes that rise sharply from the desert floor. Sparse desert flora and fauna can also be found.

In the southern portions of the desert the remains of a Triassic Era coniferous forest have fossilized over millions of years. Wind, water and soil erosion continue to change the face of the landscape by shifting sediment and exposing layers of the Chinle Formation. An assortment of fossilized prehistoric plants and animals are found in the region, as well as dinosaur tracks and the evidence of early human habitation.

Much of the region is accessible only by foot or unpaved road though major highways and paved roads cut across the area. Depending on use, location and duration of stay, travelers might be required to purchase permits from the appropriate authorities. The towns of Cameron and Tuba City, both within the Navajo Nation, are two major settlements. One interesting side note about Tuba City and Cameron is that parking lots and yards are often covered by bright red dust that is blown in from the surrounding lands by dust storms. Currently coal and petroleum mining operations are active in the region and red clay is retrieved from the desert by locals. This clay is then used to produce handmade pottery to be sold at roadside stands and souvenir shops