The development of tourism resources is a complicated progress of economic, social and environmental effect, which largely relies on resources and environment. The deteriorating tourism environment and pollution from green industries make the sustainable development of tourism a focus. This paper, based on the scientific concept of development, combines the poverty theory with sustainable development theory of tourism, presents a concept of tourism ecological poverty, and gives its definition, expands its connection to the sustainable development of tourism that the unsustainable development of tourism will lead to a tourism ecological poverty, and that the tourism ecological poverty is a consequence of the unsustainable development of tourism.

This paper reviews the ecological poverty progress, discusses the background where the ecological poverty was presented firstly, gives a definition of ecological poverty, analyzes the features and causes, and presents approaches to ecological poverty.