Abstract
Tourism has become a source of income, employment and economic growth for the country members of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC). This paper analyses tourism as a regional economic activity that interacts with the environment, with positive effects such as improving economic competitiveness; and negative effects such as overcrowding and poor management that can destroy the touristic asset on which the activity depends. These issues put the membership of the World Tourism Organization (WTO) of some APEC economies at stake, as well as the future of their local, regional and global economic and tourism competitiveness.
Highlights
Concerns about natural and social resources have generated a series of debates about tourism and its relationship with the environment
Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) was working on the basis of ministerial meetings on sustainable tourism since 2002, it was not until 2004 that the UNWTO announced its Guidebook of Indicators of Sustainable Development for Tourism Destinations (Note 1), where it seeks to achieve a process of planning and management of the tourist sites that are part of this organization, achieving an adequate decision making regarding the sustainable development of tourism
Some researchers, such as Quiroga (2007), consider that for APEC, the planning and management instruments and indicators have increased with the progressive social, institutional and political awareness of sustainability. Others, such as Elliot (2014), identified in UNWTO the concern to find a balance between growth in tourism development and environmental preservation
Summary
Concerns about natural and social resources have generated a series of debates about tourism and its relationship with the environment. Tourism is considerably destructive if not handled properly, as it can wipe out the wealth of the natural, social or cultural assets of any country or region. This reality, and the imminent risk of deterioration in resources or the increase of economic activities that are not environmentally friendly, have led to a strong international, national and local movement interested in turning traditional practices into sustainable uses. In the book Tourism, Planning, Management and Prospects by McIntosh and Shaghikant (1987), numerous opportunities and possibilities are outlined, as well as potential conflicts, aspirations and desires of the host or local communities
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