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Sustainable Tourism

To many, sustainable tourism might be interpreted as sustaining attractions just to ensure there is a continuation of visitors and tourists coming in. However, this understanding is too juvenile. According to a 1987 report, Our Common Future, sustainable development is define as development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs’ (WCED, 1987). Fundamentally, sustainable development ‘advocates the wise use and conservation of resources in order to maintain their long-term viability’ (Elber, 1992).

At the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, popularly known as the Earth Summit and held in Rio de Janeiro in 1992, the sustainable development approach was further elaborated and expressed in the plan, Agenda 21 (UNCED, 1992). The World Tourism Organisation (2004) has then retune the concept of sustainable development into the tourism industry by defining as, ‘Sustainable tourism involves meeting the needs of visitors and the local community while protecting and boosting the tourism attraction for the future concurrently as part of a national economic supply. It is envisaged as leading to management of all resources in such a way that economic, social, and aesthetic needs can be fulfilled while maintaining cultural integrity, essential ecological processes, and biological diversity and life support systems.

Principles of sustainable tourism can be broaden as the following five points mainly the natural, historical, cultural and other resources for tourism are conserved for continuous use in the future while still bringing benefits to the society; Tourism development is premeditated and managed so that it does not produce severe environmental or socio cultural problems in the tourism area; The overall environmental quality of the tourism area is preserved and made better where needed; A high level of tourist satisfaction is maintained so that the tourist destinations will...