Medicinal Gardens: Conservation of Natural Captial and Preservation of Culture

The medicinal garden is used as a primary and secondary conservation method that accounts for the economic, social, and environmental aspects of community-based ecotourism. Through a meta-analysis and field study on community-based ecotoruism, it is evident that the medicinal garden creates in-direct benefits beyond the scope of the ecotourism enterprise itself. The medicinal garden supports three of the eight Millenium Development Goals (gender equality, environmental sustainability, and global partnerships) through a synergistic method of economic gain, social equity and cohesion, and environmental protection. Through the field research, nineteen plants were identified by the local population for their medicinal properties, and further research shows that those same plants are actively being used in pharmecautical research today. The medicinal garden serves the purpose of sustainable use, but also enhances the conservation of plants used in drug research and preserves the cultural heritange of the local population.