The Thoughtful Travel Podcast · Tuesday, July 28, 2026
James Ward highlights the critical role of ecotourism in preserving biodiversity, using Madagascar as an example where forest destruction threatens species found nowhere else. He argues that ecotourism creates local jobs, incentivizing communities to protect natural resources rather than exploit them, thereby making biodiversity more valuable intact than extracted.
“If ecotourism doesn't increase there, and it doesn't become more, those forests are disappearing.”
“And then 90% of the species on Madagascar are only found on Madagascar. And I think 70 to 80% of those are endangered.”
“What we designed, we want to have that biodiversity worth more intact than extracted. That is done through ecotourism creating jobs in those areas.”