Fuck my life

Ground shaking

• 2010 Haiti Earthquake

  • 250,000 houses collapsed

  • 220,000 people were killed

Soil liquefaction

• 2010-2011 Christchurch New Zealand

  • lies on a former swamp

  • >60,000 residential buildings & infrastructure

Farming with fertile soil

• Best rice-growing regions in Indonesia are near volcanoes such as in Bali, Mount Agung

Extracting precious minerals

• Locals living on Mount Merapi are employed to mine volcanic sand as constructing materials

Harnessing geothermal energy

• Iceland’s electricity

Tourism activities

• The Hawaiin Islands

Land use planning

• 1933 Tsunami in Japan

• Tuoni-hongo village

• tsunami caused by the 2011 Tohoku Japan earthquake

Hazard-resistant building designs

• Taipei 101

• 2011 Tohoku earthquake → bullet trains

Conducting evacuation drills

• 2011 Tohoku earthquake

• 3000 students of Kamaishi city survived

(Employment opportunities) * (Enforcing regulations)

• In Bhutan, tourists can only enter the country by organising their trip with licensed tour operators.

• They are tasked with ensuring tourists adhere to laws and regulations to minimize the negative impacts of tourism, such as ensuring tourists only trek on designated trails.

Income generation

• Singapore has many world-class attractions, such as the Marina Bay Sands, Sentosa Island,

  and the Mandai Wildlife Reserves and is as an exciting travel destination. Money earned

  from these attractions contribute 3-4% of Singapore’s annual gross domestic product (GDP)

Economic leakages

• Phuket, Thailand, is one of the most famous and popular tourist destinations, but yet much of the tourist revenue is captured by foreign owned businesses (international hotels, tour operators, etc). 60% of tourism related revenue is leaked due to foreign ownership, and profits from tourism are sent abroad.

VDTO - Natural disaster

• In 2017, parts of the Caribbean Islands were struck by a succession of powerful hurricanes which brought widespread devastation to the region.

• 95% of the buildings were destroyed and the infrastructure was severely damaged.

• Overall, the hurricanes resulted in one million fewer tourists with a loss of tourism revenue estimated at over US$700 million.

• This was a devastating blow to countries heavily dependent on tourism such as Barbuda, where 91% of GDP is derived from tourism.

VDTO - unfavorable political situation

• E: Protests in Thailand (2020).

• Protests in Thailand that stemmed from a demand for a reform to the ruling military and the removal of key authority figures have had a significant impact on the tourism industry, which contributes to 11 to 12% of the country’s GDP.

VDTO - economic downturn

• Global economic crisis (2008-2009).

• The Maldives, which is highly dependent on tourism, suffered a drop of 4% in tourism arrivals in 2009 due to the global economic crisis then.

VDTO - Outbreak of diseases

• COVID-19 (2019)

• The COVID-19 pandemic infected over 205 million people and caused over 4 million deaths.

• Many countries responded by going into ‘lockdown’, causing international travel to shut down. Many businesses including airlines, hotels and travel companies were closed, significantly reducing employment.

• In the Maldives, tourism arrivals in 2020 was only about a third of arrivals in 2019.

Enhance cultural ecosystem services

• New Zealand Maori cultural integration.

• The restoration and protection of the Whanganui river, which was granted legal personhood in 2017, was partly driven by the Māori spiritual and cultural values.

• The river was considered an ancestor by the Māori and this approach has reinforced cultural values and tourism. Making the river a site of spiritual, cultural and recreational importance.

Cultural preservation

• The Sanctuary of Truth in Pattaya, Thailand

• an attraction featuring an ancient city with intricate wood carvings that depict Thai mythology, Eastern spirituality, and Buddhist beliefs. TMESBB

• Built entirely from wood, it showcases exceptional woodworking skills.

• Tour guides fluent in various languages lead visitors through the museum, highlighting its wonders.

Commodification of culture

• In Vancouver, Canada, totem poles have been commodified and are widely available for tourists to purchase as souvenirs.

• However, most of these souvenirs are inauthentic pieces created without any collaboration with native tribes.

• This creates tension between locals who sell souvenirs for a living, and locals who feel that their culture is being diluted.

Cultural clashes

• Inappropriately dressed tourists (2023) In Bali

• 136 offenders were deported for offences including tourists walking naked into temples, posing nude on sacred banyan trees, and arguing with locals because a religious procession diverted traffic and broke visa guidelines.

Rise in crime

• On 6th of March 2025, hundreds of foreign tourists left the UNESCO heritage site, Hampi shortly after two women were gang raped, and one man was murdered at Sanapur Village (about 28km from Hampi) on Thursday.

• Almost 90% of the tourists vacated homestays and left the area after Thursday.

Conservation and preservation

• Galapagos island

• only a limited number of people allowed

• entrance fee of USD$100

• The revenue earned from these fees are then used to hire park rangers and is re invested various projects such as

  1) invasive species control

  2) research and scientific monitoring

  3) marine and habitat conservation

  4) park infrastructure

  5) training and employment

  aimed at conserving the environment and wildlife at the park thus bringing about positive impacts.

Restoration of degraded ecosystems

• In Bali, Indonesia, 2010, the Nusa Dua Coral Restoration Project was launched to revive damaged coral reefs.

• Funded by the government, locals were hired to build artificial reef structures to promote coral growth

• This initiative helps sustain marine biodiversity and supports tourism, benefiting the local economy

Pollution

• San Francisco international airport

• high volume of aircraft traffic contributes to air pollution, including release of harmful gases, which can harm the environment, affecting local ecosystems and wildlife as some ecosystem and wildlife would be living near the area.

Depletion of natural resources

• Bali

• experiencing severe water shortages due to extreme tourism.

• The hotels require at least 250 litres of water daily, with some even using up to 800 litres of water.

• Moreover, theme parks and water for consumption contributes further to the worsening problem.

Threats to wildlife habitats

• San Francisco international airport

• high volume of aircraft traffic contributes to air pollution, including release of harmful gases, which can harm the environment, affecting local ecosystems and wildlife as some ecosystem and wildlife would be living near the area.

Governments

1. Establishing policies and plans

2. Enforcing rules and regulations

• In Sentosa, Singapore, the authorities bring together different stakeholders to develop a series of plans to enable the island to become more sustainable.

• These plans include:

  • Conserving Sentosa's rich heritage.

  • Protecting the island's biodiversity.

  • Achieving carbon-neutral status by 2030.

1. Poor enforcement

2. Decision to priorities economic development

International organisations

• In handicraft villages in Ha Tay Province, Vietnam, the United Nations World Tourism Organisation, an IGO, provided the following support:

• Consultancy and technical assistance:

  • A marketing plan was developed with the villagers to encourage independent travellers and tour operators to visit the villages.

  • Locals received handicraft skills training for them to create handicrafts to be sold to tourists.

• Financial assistance:

  • Financial aid is given to carry out small-scale infrastructural improvements, such as a public toilet and a village information board to support tourism development.

1. Lack of understanding of local contexts

2. Lack of funding

Businesses

1. Seeking advice from other stakeholders regarding sustainable tourism practices

2. Participating in decision making for sustainable tourism development

• Quicksilver Cruises in Australia specializes in tours of the Great Barier Reef

• A research team of marine biologists to observe and monitor the marine ecosystem, which helps the planning authorities in managing the Great Barrier Reef.

1. Prioritizing profits to survive and neglecting sustainble practices

2. Differing understandings of measuring sustainability

Locals

1. Seeking advice from other stakeholders

2. Participating in decision making

• In Singapore, locals and seek advice from the National Environment Agency 

1. Lack of financial or technical assistance

2. Economic benefits or sustainability 

Tourists 

1. Developing a genuine interest in the tourist destination and seeking to help enhance its environment, economy and culture

2. Interacting responsibly with tourists and the environment when travelling

• Tiger top Elephant camps in Nepal

• ethical elephant camp where they can walk around freely without routine and tourists can observe them in their natural state 

• revenue from this tourism is then used for conservation and upkeep

1. Lack of clear information

2. Sustainable tourism options are out of budget! :(