Tourism has been a major contributor to the Nepalese economy and has been one of the major sources of foreign exchange and revenue. Tourism has created huge employment opportunities and has helped to uplift the lives of people living in rural areas as well.
Similarly, it has some negative impacts on natural resources, environment, wildlife, vegetation, culture, and tradition as well. Because of unmanaged and mass-flow tourism, many places have lost their natural beauty, and their charm. Unmanaged waste and unnecessary littering have negatively affected wildlife and vegetation. Many beautiful trekking trails have been polluted for eg. the Everest region has been heavily littered in the last decades. Sometimes we can hear news about fires in the forest areas because of unmanaged camping. So, these are some of the negative impacts of unmanaged tourism. This all affects the locals negatively and tourists as well.
So, this is where Responsible Tourism kicks in which was defined in Cape Town in 2002 alongside the World Summit on Sustainable Development, and now it's the widely accepted definition in the world. In simple terms, it can be defined as where all the involved parties like Tourists, Tour Operators, Hotels, Lodges, Teahouses, Restaurants, Local People, and concerned Government Bodies work together toward the sustainability of tourism through the conservation and preservation of the environment and local culture.
In recent years, the Government of Nepal and all the trekking and tour agencies have been working together for responsible tourism to make a low impact on the environment and local culture while helping to generate future employment for local people and to ensure that the tourists can have a better experience. Keeping in mind responsible tourism, our programs are designed in a way that will have minimal effect on the environment and the local culture. We always encourage our clients to follow proper guidelines and respect the local culture. Last but not least, you as a tourist can be a part of sustainable tourism by being a responsible one.
