Dear MEL Topic Readers,
Canary Islanders call for hunger strike to protest against overtourism
they say is pricing them out
With a population of 2.2 million, the Canary Islands are a Spanish archipelago
off the coast of Northwestern Africa. In its year-round mild climate, the
Canary Islands are a popular tourist destination where visitors can enjoy stunning
natural landscapes, beautiful beaches, cultural heritage, and more. Since the
islands are well-connected by air and sea, with international airports and
regular ferry services, they used to attract as many as 12 million visitors per
year. However, the number has increased to around 16 million in the last decade,
over seven times the islands’ population. Residents feel there are too many tourists
for limited space, water resources, and housing supply and are now protesting
against excessive tourism for raising housing prices and causing environmental damage.
Local government is pushed to hold meetings to design more environmentally and
economically sustainable strategies. After the Covid pandemic, many popular
tourist destinations, such as Venice and Barcelona, have been visited by way more
tourists than they can sustainably manage, and have introduced restrictions on
number of visitors or hotel development. Indeed, tourists spend money and support
the local economy as long as there aren’t too many for the local community and environment.
Read the article and learn about what over-tourism has brought about in
the Canary Islands.
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