Ecotourism Is Empowering Rural Women Worldwide

Sustainable Travel

• Bookmark
• Add to queue

Rural women around the world are finding empowerment through ecotourism. This episode tells the stories of several women who have succeeded in this rapidly growing industry.

For too long, the tourism industry has benefited from the exploitation of marginalised communities and the natural environments they live in. Often, it is the local women who end up feeling the brunt of these toxic enterprises. Unfortunately, even when large-scale tourism companies claim to do good by bringing troves of wealthy tourists into “exotic” rural areas, only a very small percentage of the profits are ever shared with the communities that support these trips. Plus, the environmental damage can be severe. However, a new and more gender-inclusive wave of tourism is on the rise. Its focus is placing women into empowering roles that promote education, financial growth, and a more equally dispersed allocation of traditional gender roles.