EDUCATING AND INFORMING TOURISM CONSUMERS IN THE CONTEXT OF SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

Abstract

This article addresses aspects of environmental behavior in tourism issues, in the context in which, sustainable development has become increasingly important, due to preservation of natural and cultural heritage,upon which the very existence of future tourism depends. Mass tourism is declining in favor of individualized forms of tourism such as ecotourism, where Romania, especially Bukovina area, has a great potential. Responsible environmental behavior is addressed to all actors involved in tourism, suppliers, consumers and authorities. Necessary initiatives are those of spreading awareness and good practice, and to this end, we chose to present a significant initiative from Bukovina zone, shaped in the form of a project, from which people working in tourism have been trained in the spirit of environmentally friendly behavior and will disseminate it among tourists with which come into contact. What we consider important in the future, in such tourism projects, regardless of their essential objective, is the inclusion of issues related to sustainability and ecological behavior.