Português
The film will be screaned with the support of Center for Responsible Travel.
The environmental impact of tourism is the main discussion topic, of our 4th session of Cine Café Turistificação (Cine Café Touristification), to take place in May 17 at 21h30, at the bar Lisboa Vadia, in Lisbon.
The Goose With the Golden Eggs, a film produced by the Center for Responsible Travel, examines the environmental impact that resort and cruise tourism brings to the communities living in the Pacific Coast, Costa Rica. With an increasing number of private investments in these areas, as it is the case of the privatization of beaches or the construction of big multinational hotels and gated communities, this documentary’s main goal is to portray the difficulties the population of the Pacific Coast face in order to have access to resources like water (used mainly to “feed” pools and golf courts), access to the beaches and also the forest, increasingly more devastated by the big constructions.
There are many cases of clear disrespect of the surroundings in areas like Guanacaste, Osa Peninsula, or Golfito: cases like Riu Hotels, a resort with 583 luxury rooms, built in 2012, which continues to be tried for its various environmental violations; the new construction plan for an international airport in the South region, developed by the government of Costa Rica; or even the construction of a new marina, all of which continue to deeply affect these regions.
In The Goose With the Golden Eggs, we hear the worries of the communities, as well as the many interviews done to tourist guides, activists, and specialists in the protection of the environment and sustainable tourism. Margarita Penon, deputy of the Parliament, analyses here the ecotourism as one of the most sustainable alternatives facing the problem of the privatizations and foreign entrepreneurships, especially in the Osa Peninsule. As an example, we have local successful cases like Si Como No Hotel, which abide to make a difference, day after day, within these communities and its surroundings.
That’s what ecotourism is all about: always tracing a more positive mark in the local economy, promoting touristic business which is more responsible as well as inclusive.
After the screening, a small debate will take place, counting on the presence of Ana Bento, environment engineer and activist of GEOTA, of Cátia Luís, from the project Lisbon Stories, and Graça Joaquim, professor and researcher in the field of tourism. The session will focus the subject of the impact mass tourism has on the ambiance.
What about you, do you make a difference when you travel?