Go green ... or stay home.Green remains controversial, and the report Tourism and Biodiversity biodiversity: see biological diversity. biodiversity Quantity of plant and animal species found in a given environment. Sometimes habitat diversity (the variety of places where organisms live) and genetic diversity (the variety of traits expressed : Mapping Tourism's Global Footprint" by Conservation International (CI) and the United Nations Environment Programme paints a decidedly mixed picture (see "Taking The Natural Path," cover story, July/August 2002). According to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. the report, the tourism industry has swelled from 25 million travelers in 1950 to over 450 million today. Travel to ecologically sensitive areas has risen more than 100 percent in the past decade, with good and bad results. The best thing about ecotourism e·co·tour·ism n. Tourism involving travel to areas of natural or ecological interest, typically under the guidance of a naturalist, for the purpose of observing wildlife and learning about the environment. , says the report, is that it can simultaneously quench quench, v to cool a hot object rapidly by plunging it into water or oil. quench to put out, extinguish, or suppress; to cool (as hot metal) by immersing in water. travelers' thirst for adventure and benefit local people and wildlife. Costas Christ, a senior director at CI and the study's head author, says, "By linking tourism development with biodiversity conservation and the well being of local communities, we can develop strategies that both conserve Earth's most endangered en·dan·ger tr.v. en·dan·gered, en·dan·ger·ing, en·dan·gers 1. To expose to harm or danger; imperil. 2. To threaten with extinction. ecosystems and help make a significant contribution to alleviating poverty." CONTACT: Conservation International, (800) 406-2306, www.conservation.org; United Nations Environment Programme, (011)(254-2)621234, www.unep.org. |
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