Stumbled upon a very interesting article about the increasing role of tourism in achieving peace in the world.
I got permission from Dr. Craig Zelizer to publish the first few paragraphs of the article.
There are quite a few people who believe that one of the key aspects to promoting increased peace and understanding in the world is through facilitating positive interaction between individuals and communities from diverse backgrounds. The assumption is by learning about each other’s cultures, languages, lives, that people can do discover what they have in common, as well as explore their differences and possibly build long-term friendships that can have a positive impact on the world.
In recent years, there has been increasing discussion about the role of peace tourism, as well as voluntourism (where individuals visit other countries and engage in community service projects in addition to seeing the sights), and eco-tourism (trying to minimize the impact on the environment).
As with any activity, travel has both potentially negative and positive impacts. The negative impacts include significant environmental impacts through plane and other high-carbon forms of travel, destruction of local environments, sometimes contributing to exploitation of locals who are not treated fairly in the service economy, lack of respect for local traditions and cultures and more. On the other hand tourism conducted in partnership, that seeks to develop a sustainable form of economic development, minimizes negative environmental impacts and facilitates true learning and exchange between cultures can have a life-long impact.
Continue reading this article on the Peace and Collaborative Development Network
I like to point out to groups of international visitors on my walking tours of Toronto, that it’s hard to bomb a country you’ve had a great trip to. If there are Germans, Japanese, Russians, or other nationalities Canada has been at odds with in the past (i.e. the World Wars) I like to talk about how much the world can change within a person’s lifetime, and that there can be hope for more peace in the world. The fact we can travel together as friends when we were once enemies is a truly great thing.
Posted by Jason Kucherawy (Toronto Tour Guy) | April 26, 2010, 12:05 pm“It’s hard to bomb a country you’ve had a great trip to.” I like that quote!
Posted by Bart van Poll | April 27, 2010, 9:30 amHi,
Thanks for this post! We are working on such a project called Abraham’s Path — a cultural route that follows the footsteps of Abraham/Ibrahim through many countries in the Middle East. The project is a people to people effort and it is non political and non religious in nature. We are in the early stages of the project but the local families are really taking ownership of it — as it is theirs and they will nurture it into the future. Homestays, meals, cooking classes are all part of the experience. You can read more at http://www.abrahampath.org or email us at travel@abrahampath.org
Best,
Josh Weiss
Posted by Josh Weiss | April 27, 2010, 2:22 pm