ecoDestinations Winter Special 2009-2010

Throughout the months of December 2009 - February 2010, ecoDestinations will feature inspiring stories from around the world highlighting mountain destinations and eco-adventure experiences.

ecoDestinations Stories from around the World: Mountains & Adventures

Afghanistan, Albania, Brazil, Georgia, Mongolia, Nepal, Pakistan, Tajikistan... View all articles

An Alpine Melody in Slovenia: A Perfect Nature Tour
Baa baa black sheep, now we have your wool! So say travellers in Slovenia who have had the pleasure of an exclusive Alpine Melody tour with Spin Travel.

The Mountainous Regions of Georgia - Svaneti, Tusheti
Located at the Western Asian / Eastern European frontier and bordered by the Black Sea, Russia, Turkey, Armenia and Azerbaijan, little-known Georgia is the site of the truly off-the-beaten-path mountainous regions of Svaneti and Tusheti, two raw, entrancing and rough-and-tumble provinces of well-established age-old traditions that give real meaning to hospitality.

Along the Golden River: Ecotourism in Zerafshan Valley, Tajikistan
The Zerafshan Tourism Development Association (ZTDA) is a public community-based organisation created in March 2008 under a Community Based Tourism project in the Zerafshan Valley by the local NGO Agency for the Support of Development Processes Nau (ASDP Nau).

Community initiatives for the sustainable development of tourism in Chitral
Chitral, in the extreme north of Pakistan, is home to 40,000 people, settled in more than 300 small villages boasting great cultural and natural diversity. These villages offer unique opportunities highlighting Indigenous arts, crafts and music, traditional sports, cuisine.

Rios Tropicales Story – Planting Seeds of Awareness
From our years of international paddling experience we knew guide school best practices and started our own guide school right away. Our first two Costa Rican guides were local inner tubers from Turrialba, a small town that is now the whitewater guide mecca of Costa Rica.

Bonito, Brazil – The Capital of Ecotourism?
“Welcome to the Capital of Ecotourism” read the sign at the entrance of town Bonito, in Brazil’s state of Mato Grosso do Sul. A rather ambitions statement, I thought, confident I would find only a few great ecotourism establishments among a pool of green-washed want-to-be’s.

One-of-a-kind volunteer 100km race with Mongolia Sunrise to Sunset
Mongolia Sunrise to Sunset – “The World’s Most Beautiful 100km Run” – is an annual event that allows runners to experience some of the most spectacular and pristine trail running in the world as well as a week of discovery and exploration.

Reaching for Vuno’s clean beach at Jal, Albania
About 190 kilometres south of Tirana, Albania, the small town of Vuno isn’t on most tourist radar. However, with a new main road to the southern Albanian coast nearing completion, some people are concerned that these local gems won’t be spared for much longer. One group of such people are the Outdoor Albania Association (OA Association).

Mountain Tourism Resources

The clean air, unique landscapes and wildlife, scenic beauty, culture, history, and outdoor opportunities are attracting an increasing number of travelers to mountain destinations.

UNEP - Tourism and Mountains
Engligh: Tourism and Mountains: A practical guide to managing the social and environmental impacts of Mountain Tours (Source: UNEP)
Spanish: Turismo y Montaña: Guía práctica para gestionar los impactos sociales y medioambientales del turismo de montaña (Source: ATTA News & Resources)

ICIMOD (International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development)
Being labour intensive, having relatively high multiplier effects, and requiring relatively low levels of capital and land investment, tourism can yield significant benefits in remote and rural areas where traditional livelihoods are under threat. More information from: Mountain Tourism information resources

Mountain Forum
Mountain Forum is a global network of individuals and organisations concerned with the well being of mountain people, their environments and cultures. Its mission is to promote global action toward equitable and ecologically sustainable mountain development and conservation through information sharing, mutual support and advocacy. more...

Mealy Mountain Park, North America's Newest National Park

On February 5, 2010, the governments of Canada and Newfoundland and Labrador announced the establishment of a new national park in the Mealy Mountains region.

Approximately 10,700 square kilometres in size, larger than Yellowstone and Yosemite parks combined, the park will be the largest national park in eastern Canada.

CBD Secretariat Welcomes Canada's Decision to Establish North America's Newest National Park (Download letter - PDF)

"The area, which has long been treasured by aboriginal people, shelters threatened woodland caribou herds, moose, black bear, osprey, bald eagles and a species of special concern—the eastern population of the Harlequin Duck. The site features mountain summits reaching up to 1,000 metres in height, the salmon-filled Eagle River, and beaches described in Viking sagas chronicling explorations along the Atlantic coast of North America."

Letter by Chris Montague, President of Labrador Metis Nation, in Support of Mealy Mountain National Park

"We believe the future of this area lies in tourism; where the chief economic benefit will go to the people living in this area, not to those who live along Water Street. We believe that development should be long term and sustainable. We believe in the wonder, the beauty and the grandeur of Labrador. We believe that this area should be show cased to the rest of the world, then maybe the spirit of peace it has given our people for generations can be given to the population of the whole earth."

Nature Canada - Benefits of the Protected Area

Profiles on many of the species that will benefit from the establishment of protected areas in Newfoundland and Labrador: Woodland Caribou, Wolverine, Harlequin Duck, Arctic Tern.