"Ecotourism is ecologically sustainable tourism with a primary focus on experiencing of natural areas that fosters environmental and cultural understanding, appreciation and conservation. "

The idea behind ecotourism concept is bridging direct economic benefits to local people and contributing to the conservation of nature and culture. In Indonesia, ecotourism practitioners, travel agents, and NGOs in different ways have worked to develop different models of ecotourism. The effort has shown a satisfying result, where in its several ecotourism projects, Indonesia has achieved awards both at national and international level.

The Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the Republic of Indonesia, the Provinces of Yogyakarta and Central Java, and partners from the private sector and environmental NGOs will host a forum under one roof that consists of an International ecotourism conference, pre-tour, business forum, and exhibition. The Forum is a means for Indonesian & ASEAN sellers to meet face to face with international buyers, as well as way to learn to improve their marketing, products, and business models from international ecotourism experts.

This Second International Ecotourism Business Forum will be held on 12-15 November 2006 in Yogyakarta, following the very successful first Ecotourbiz event held in Bogor, West Java in 2005.

Why is Indonesia hosting this event?
Due to its many nature and culture assets spread in all over archipelago, Indonesia has been positioned as the “Jewel of Ecotourism Destinations”. Indonesia has a physical environment and cultural heritage which are its greatest tourism attractions.

Scattered over the equator like string of pearls, the Indonesian archipelago is nothing less than enchanting. No other country offer such a rich diversity of culture, people and landscape. The country has followers of every major world religion, ranging from Islam in North Sumatra and East Java to the ancient Hindu beliefs of the Balinese. Indonesia is blessed with some of the world’s most fertile soils which produce incredibly lush tropical landscapes. It is the largest archipelago in the world, consisting more than 17,700 islands. The terrain of the land ranges from lush tropical rain forests to snow covered mountains, pristine beaches, and shrub lands.

The Government of Indonesia (GOI) recognizes the potential of the country’s natural and cultural resources for ecotourism development, and is trying to assist the development of ecotourism products and marketing. Globally, ecotourism as a concept for sustainable tourism has responded to a significant increase of market demand significantly. Surveys and studies in Latin America and Europe have shown that ecotourism market is increasing in double-digits annually and Asia Pacific is expected to follow.

Over the past five years, ecotourism has been known and adopted by national government as one of priority programs. For instance, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism declared 2002 as “National Ecotourism Year”. In the same year, Indonesia was actively involved in the World Ecotourism Summit held in Quebec City, Canada.