Contextualising the meaning of ecotourism

• This paper examines community-based interpretations of ecotourism.
• Local ecotourism agencies perceive ecotourism as only environmental conservation and revenue generation.
• Local communities confused ecotourism with conservation.
• Social and cultural goals are regarded irrelevant in ecotourism interpretation.

Ecotourism is one of the most advocated concepts in tourism studies, yet there remains considerable debate on what the meaning is, or what it should be. Despite this lack of clarity, there is a broad set of ecotourism principles that are clear and widely promoted, including environmental conservation and education, cultural preservation and experience, and economic benefits. Based on these principles, this paper compares local understanding of ecotourism from the perspectives of ecotourism-related agency staff, and local communities adjacent to the Kakum Conservation Area, Ghana. Using a qualitative research approach, agency staff and community residents were involved in interview conversations. Findings indicate a limited agency understanding of ecotourism, and local community confusion between conservation and ecotourism.