AEN comprises a network of leading eco-tourism experts and stakeholders both from the public and private sectors. They come from government agencies, academics, entrepreneurs, and NGOs. AEN member economies comprise Japan, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Thailand, China, South Korea, Mongolia, India, Laos, Pakistan, Bhutan, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Pakistan, and the Philippines.
On Tuesday, the Asian Ecotourism Network (AEN) officially launched in Bangkok, Thailand. AEN decided to open an office in Bangkok, because Thailand’s Designated Areas for Sustainable Tourism Administration (DASTA), a public organisation, is a co-founder of AEN.
A report conducted in 2012 showed that eco-tourism, nature, heritage, cultural and “soft adventure” tourism would grow rapidly over the next two decades. Global spending on eco-tourism is expected to increase at a higher rate than the tourism industry as a whole. Such tourism could grow to 25 per cent of the global travel market within six years and account for US$470 billion per year in revenues.
