Stuart from Travelfish Talks How (and how not) to Help Tourism Recover Sustainably [S7.E14]

Greg and Ed interview their old friend Stuart of Travelfish,
master of all things travel and tourism in Southeast Asia. Greg
begins by reading a quote from an article on the weird duality of
tourism: by sacralizing a location, tourism results in its
'desecration by footprints.' Stuart gives his take and
undoubtedly agrees that this is generally true, hence his take on
'environmental tourism,' or tourism that is very conscious of its
effect on the locations it promotes. He explains that the cons of
tourism for locals (such as crime, drugs, environmental damage,
etc.) can often outweigh the pros of increased income. 


The guys then discuss the overall effect of the COVID pandemic
that more or less shut down tourism around the world. Stuart
notes that he had hoped that the shutdown, which resulted in the
rebirth and reconstruction of some areas hit hard by high volume
tourism, would lead to an increased awareness of the damage and
perhaps a new policy upon re-opening. Unfortunately, most
countries, including Thailand, have reverted to a 'growth at all
costs' approach in an effort to get back to pre-pandemic visitor
numbers. Stuart laments this outcome in great (and grave)
detail. 


The old friends continue with other tourism related issues, such
as the growth of 'secondary tourism,' or alternative destinations
off the beaten path. Stuart notes that this was actually MORE
common in the early days of tourism in Thailand, when backpackers
would essentially wander the whole country. Alas, over the years,
a small number of destinations became so popular that alternative
destinations fell by the wayside. Stuart sees glimmers of hope
that if the Thai government won't limit overall tourism numbers,
at least they will try to spread the tourists to more locations
which could of course limit some of the negative effects of
overtourism.


Tune in next week for Part 2 of our interview with Stuart
MacDonald. 


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