Volunteer tourism, endangered species conservation, and aboriginal culture shock
We investigated the impact of ecological conservation volunteer tourism on aboriginal culture and ecological conservation. We present herein a case of green sea turtle conservation volunteer tourism at Orchid Island, Taiwan. We used field observations and in-depth interviews with semi-structured and open-ended questionnaires to collect data. Data and method triangulation approaches were adopted to ensure the reliability of the results. We presented that cultural changes resulting from volunteer tourism threaten the survival of endangered species. In addition, the failure of the market incentive mechanism and dysfunctional internal communication within the conservation organization, two issues that have not been reported in previous studies, can guide future studies on volunteer tourism and ecological conservation. We also provided practical recommendations for Orchid Island green sea turtle conservation, i.e., the combination of traditional and modern ecological methods, and the consideration of local norms and taboos during organizational planning. The planning and implementing of conservation activity that respects local customs fosters the support of the local people. Finally, implementing the locals’ initial ecological conservation mechanisms can prevent the conservation activity from causing an undesirable threat to the conserved species.