6 Domestic “Eco” tourism and the
production of a wondrous nature
in the Philippines
Sarah Webb
Introduction
Important attention has been given to the ways eco-branded tourism has been shaped
by flows of neoliberal capitalism and Western consumption, but fewer studies have
acknowledged how domestic consumers in countries such as the Philippines have
powerfully produced certain places as “wonders” of nature. In the Philippines,
“eco”-branded tourism is an emerging market that is certainly oriented toward
attracting international tourists. However, Philippine ecotourism remains a market
that is actually supported predominantly by domestic consumers. What this means
is that ecotourism ventures in the Philippines mediate consumers’ experiences of
nature through significant national influences and markets and are by no means
shaped exclusively or most importantly by Western tastes (see Winter, Teo, and
Chang 2009). Here, I examine a case study of a campaign that successfully resulted
in the Puerto Princesa Underground River (PPUR) becoming inaugurated as one
of the “New 7 Wonders of Nature” (N7WN). I argue that the practices that made
the PPUR into a “wonder of nature” might be situated globally but were always
grounded in the cultural production of daily life in the Philippines.
So, why is it important to consider how efforts to promote such places as globally
significant are realized through the labor of nationals, as they engage in everyday
activities such as text voting in international competitions or circulating photographic
images via social media? I suggest that it is precisely through such practices that
some Filipinos reproduce the social meanings that tangibly and intangibly transform
spaces as they become more broadly valued as places of exceptional nature. In doing
so, I draw on key studies that have examined how places become materially remade
to better conform to the images and ideals that have been created and circulated
elsewhere (Carrier and Miller 1998; Carrier and West 2009). I join scholars who
have suggested that ecotourism is an important entry point for understanding the
relationships between these practices and their resulting transformations (West
and Carrier 2004, p. 485). Key here is the critical notion that researchers cannot
understand ecotourism via an “ecotourism bubble” that extracts ecotourism from
the broader contexts in which it exists (West and Carrier 2004, p. 484; Carrier and
Macleod 2005, pp, 316–18). As Fletcher suggests, “ecotourism is about much more
than just ecotourism... the phenomenon can be understood as a manifestation of