Lindsey Johnson Bahamas Study Abroad

 This past summer I attended a study abroad to the Bahamas with Dr. Tweedt where we studied business ethics and sustainability. I learned so much about the tourism industry there that I did not know before. We explored the effects of large resorts on the Bahamian culture, environment, and economy. While we were there, we stayed on two different islands, which were New Providence and Andros. These islands were very different in how tourism played a role in the lives of the people who lived there. New Providence contained large-scale resorts and tourism practices, whereas Andros focused on ecotourism. The focus of ecotourism is to bring people to a relatively undisturbed area and teach them about conservation. Tourists through this practice are able to enjoy nature without having a harmful impact on the environment while also becoming educated on how to better the environment. 

On the trip, we visited Atlantis on the island of New Providence, which is one of the largest resorts in the Bahamas. The Aquarium Husbandry Manger gave us a behind the scenes tour of the Blue Project, which is an organization funded by Atlantis that focuses on research, rehabilitation, and conservation of marine wildlife. I learned that coral reefs in the Bahamas are critically in danger due to coral reef bleaching. The Blue Project is currently working on coral reef rehabilitation, but it did not seem like they were making much progress.  We were shown one of the coral reef nurseries, but all of them appeared as if they were dead. I find this very sad because the coral reef bleaching is a result of higher water temperatures likely caused by water pollution and climate change, which are exacerbated by tourism on the island.

In comparison to my experience on New Providence, the island of Andros is much less populated. For part of our time there, we stayed with Peter Douglas, who is the executive director of Andros Conservancy and Trust (ANCAT). ANCAT works at the local level to manage ecosystems and natural resources. One of the projects that ANCAT is working on is cleaning out trash and debris from blue holes. We visited and swam in several blue holes where I was able to witness the beauty of them first hand. This organization is important because they wish to maintain the natural beauty of the Bahamas and protect it from the harmful effects of the tourism industry. 

Ecotourism should be practiced in more places because the focus of it does not center around making profits like the tourism industries of large resorts, but rather focuses on preserving the environment.

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