GlobeRovers Magazine, Dec 2019

Overtourism
The Earth
is calling us to action
For billions and billions of
years our planet Earth has
whizzed quite happily around
the sun. Sure there’s been
tectonic collisions, ages of ice, volcanic
eruptions, but that’s how ecosystems and
diversity have evolved over millions of
years - very slowly. Yet in the last 70 years
all that has changed - the hand of man has
brought about radical and unprecedented
transformation.
By Fuchsia Sims, Adventure Junky
Fuchsia is the co-founder of Adventure Junky, an app
that makes a game of sustainable travel practices,
awarding you points for completing or contributing
low-impact experiences and showcasing destinations
and travel operators that offer them. Friends can play
against one another, or you can compete globally for the
Eco bragging rights of #1 Adventure Junky on earth.
In 1950 only 25 million people crossed
international borders, and being an explorer
was seen as a risky career not hobby nor
luxury. Last year 1.4 billion people crossed
international borders. That’s almost 4 million
people going on a holiday every single day!
Today mass and mainstream exploration
has officially erupted, stretching
far and wide across the globe. Thanks to
cheaper air fares, rising incomes, social
media’s ability to fuel ‘Instagramable” locations
and FOMO - who knows how much
longer you’ll be able to see a Polar Bear in
the wild, or visit the Maldives while they’re
above water.
What’s even more frightening is that
by 2030 today’s travellers are set to double!
Even today, many places can no longer
cope or escape their own popularity, so we
must ask the hard questions - are our environments
and cultures resilient enough to
withstand the stampede?
There are plenty of examples to show
they are not - from overtourism, cultural
erosion, plastic waste, rapidly rising C02
emissions, wildlife exploitation to mass
and irreversible habitat loss. All of which
negatively impact the lives of locals and the
authenticity and quality of your experience
as a traveller.
78 Globerovers · December 2019
Adventure Junky - adventurejunky.earth
Now it’s not all doom and gloom, when
managed well travel is an incredibly powerful
force - it creates jobs, attracts investment
and drives infrastructure development.
Sustainable and regenerative travel
practices improve livelihood, education
levels and quality of life for local people. It
can also refocus energy and action towards
conservation, helping preserve cultural
traditions and protect wildlife.
Travel must contribute as much to the
wellbeing of the people and places we visit
- as to our own.