A Letter To The Editors At Maui News

There was a lot of chatter and concern on Maui last week about the impacts of potential new county regulations on the future of coastal tourism business there. You can read the cover story from last Sunday's edition of the Maui News that framed the current situation. Following the story, several concerned letters and editorials were also published (some with dubious authorship) on both sides of the issue. I've submitted my own response to the editors of Maui News, but just in case they don't choose to run it I thought I'd use my own bloggy bullhorn as well:

Letter to the Editor/ViewPoint:

People want to protect coral reefs for a multitude of reasons. Some simply because of their innate beauty and a sense of responsibility toward nature. Others have a much more practical outlook. Many people, especially those in the tourism sector, are dependent upon coral reefs for their livelihood. So for them, the continued health of coral reefs—particularly the ones right outside their door—is a very important and practical matter.

Those responsible for running tourism-related businesses, while not uncaring, have as their first duty keeping their doors open. To them, everything else must be a secondary consideration. While environmentalists, businessmen and resource managers may have the common interest of protecting coral reefs, the lens through which they each view the world can be vastly different. This is neither good nor bad; it’s simply a fact that we must understand and factor into any conservation effort aimed at coral reefs.

Traditionally, people have viewed conservation and business as incompatible; one progresses only at the expense of the other. But this view is counterproductive, as well as basically wrong. The truth is that there can be no marine tourism without a healthy resource. Therefore, taking steps to assure that local coral reefs are as healthy as possible is perhaps the most important step that any marine tourism business can take to succeed. Conservation and business are not contradictory but complimentary. Without healthy reefs there can be no business; but without healthy businesses, a primary motivation and mechanism for conservation cannot exist.

Conservation shouldn’t be viewed by entrepreneurs as something you do solely for the “greater good” because, when marketed properly, a conservation ethic can be as important to the success of a tourism business as anything else done to bring in customers. No conservation program or goal is achievable unless it’s economically viable; and the voluntary marine recreation standards development process underway on Maui is designed to show the nexus between protecting Hawaiian reefs, enhancing business success, and demonstrating social responsibility to the broader community. A triple bottom line that spells success for all stakeholders.