Indigenous ecotourism in the Mayan rainforest of Palenque: empowerment issues in sustainable development

Indigenous ecotourism in the Mayan rainforest has received little research attention. This study examines issues related to the level of empowerment in a Mayan village located near the Palenque World Heritage Site in southern Mexico. An adapted empowerment framework was used to assess community empowerment and its relationship with stakeholders’ participation by collecting the views of internal and external stakeholders in indigenous ecotourism. Using a checklist of 60 empowerment indicators, the study developed a wheel of empowerment tool that graphically illustrates and compares levels of empowerment/disempowerment in local communities. Results indicate that although there is a will from many villagers to participate in tourism, lack of knowledge, limited economic resources and the poor negotiation skills of local leaders have disempowered the community from undertaking ecotourism ventures. Non Governmental Organisations (NGOs) have not supported the community until recently, the private sector has played little part, and while the Mexican government is shaping the course of indigenous ecotourism with support programmes, state agencies have resisted local ecotourism development. Overall, the community fell below the midpoint on the Wheel of Empowerment Scale. These findings show a need for more effective empowerment strategies to maximise community involvement in managing cultural and natural resources for tourism development.     

Making ecotourism sustainable: refocusing on economic viability. Lessons learnt from the “Regional strategic action plan for coastal ecotourism development in the South Western Indian Ocean”

Ecotourism has become the focal point of a wide range of private and public sector development initiatives in the countries of the Western Indian Ocean. The 2008 “Regional Strategic Action Plan for Coastal Ecotourism Development in the South Western Indian Ocean” aimed at both a strategic assessment of current achievements and the development of recommendations for policy action. Drawing on the research data initially gathered for this report, the article demonstrates the importance of fostering criteria for ensuring medium and long-term economic viability in the assessment of sustainable ecotourism development performance, both at micro- and macro-economic levels. The arguments are presented in the form of eight lessons learnt, and the article approaches the question of economic viability at the different levels of enterprises, projects and products, and in terms of public policy and planning.     

Assessing the Role of Ecotourism Training in Changing Participants' Pro-Environmental Knowledge,Attitude and Behaviour

Ecotourism training is usually considered to be undertaken only by tourism practitioners for professional development. However, ecotourism training has a more important role to play, as it could be adopted as a long-term strategy for environmental conservation by altering people's attitudes and behaviours towards greater environmental responsibility. In this study, the role of ecotourism training with respect to pro-environmental knowledge enhancement as well as attitude and behavioural changes is investigated. A questionnaire survey was conducted on participants of an ecotourism training programme. Participants' environmental knowledge, attitudes and behaviours were evaluated using a pre- and post-test method. The results indicated that participants demonstrated a significant increase in environmental knowledge after the training. Moreover, participants' demographic characteristics such as age group, occupation and salary are significantly associated with the improvement in knowledge, change in pro-environmental attitudes and behaviours. Participants tend to adopt environmentally responsible attitudes and behaviours after completion of ecotourism training.     

Does ecotourism contribute to sustainable destination development,or is it just a marketing hoax? Analyzing twenty-five years contested journey of ecotourism through a meta-analysis of tourism journal publications

ABSTRACT

Conducting a periodical systematic review on a given field of study enables to comprehend the conceptual development of a discipline. A decade has passed since the last in-depth systematic review on contemporary ecotourism research has been published. This study is, therefore, executed to systematically analyze ecotourism research articles published in the previous twenty-five years and thereby to reassess the past, understand the present and envisage the future of ecotourism development. 470 articles published in nine top-tier tourism journals are screened and analyzed. Thematic and summative content analyses are employed to examine the contents of each publication. The findings highlight that over the years, researchers have examined myriads of ecotourism research themes. Despite fluctuations over the years, the overall publication trend shows growth. Most ecotourism studies are conducted in developing countries, with Asia taking the lead followed by Africa and Latin America. However, in terms of researchers’ domicile, the USA becomes the first followed by Australia, the UK, and Canada. Despite modest successes, overall, the contribution of ecotourism towards sustainable destination development remains indiscernible. The current study provides up-to-date insight into the ecotourism literature by highlighting the main themes and trends of ecotourism research over the last twenty-five years. Research findings also enhance our understanding of the evolution of ecotourism research and ignite further study in ecotourism by suggesting issues that merit rigorous investigation.     

Environmentally Responsible Behavior in Ecotourism: Exploring the Role of Destination Image and Value Perception

Creating more environmental awareness among tourists and inducing environmentally responsible behavior is an essential precondition for, as well as consequence of, ecotourism. The aim of this study is to explore what role destination image and value perception play in shaping environmentally responsible behavior. A survey involving 332 valid questionnaires was conducted at an ecological area in Southern Taiwan. The results of structural equation modeling show that the cognitive image of the eco-site induces environmentally responsible behavior via its affective image and tourists' perceived value. Affective image and perceived value can subsequently enhance the environmental consciousness of tourists and their specific concern for the ecological environment, thus enhancing their environmentally responsible behavior at the eco-site. With environmentally responsible behavior an essential aspect in ecotourism, this study emphasizes destination image and value perception as important antecedents to environmentally responsible behavior. The study concludes with managerial suggestions.     

森林生态旅游可持续发展评价指标体系的构建

森林生态旅游可持续发展是当今学术界及旅游管理部门关注的热点话题,科学地制定森林生态旅游可持续发展评价指标体系对实施生态旅游可持续发展战略具有重要意义.本文述评了国内外有关生态旅游评价研究的成果.构建了森林生态旅游可持续发展的评价指标体系.     

洞庭湖观鸟旅游发展现状及对策

观鸟旅游是生态旅游重要的表现形式。其经济、社会、环境效益得到了国际国内学术界的关注,洞庭湖丰富的鸟类资源是开展观鸟旅游的良好基础。文章详细分析了洞庭湖观鸟旅游资源及发展现状和面临的主要问题,并提出了相应的发展策略。     

生态文明视角下的生态旅游实践

建设生态文明,使生态文明观念在全社会牢固树立,这是对我国人口剧增、资源短缺、环境恶化的严峻形势进行深刻反省的一种明智选择,也是实现经济社会可持续发展的必由之路。生态文明建设是一个长期的渐进过程,而生态旅游是生态文明观指导下旅游产业发展的具体实践。本文在厘清生态文明与生态旅游的内涵的基础上,分析了我国生态旅游实践中存在的问题与约束性条件,并对生态文明视角下我国生态旅游的实践方式与途径进行了探讨。     

SWOT分析在生态旅游项目中的应用

本文在对生态旅游项目进行研究的前提下,针对生态旅游中有可能出现的问题,结合王朗国家级自然保护区和雪宝顶国家级自然保护区两个实例,讨论SWOT分析在生态旅游项目中的应用,并对分析后提出的解决问题的方案和效果进行了初步研究.     

旅游生态系统及其要素配置结构

旅游生态系统是生态旅游区自然生态要素与旅游经济社会要素复合而成的复杂体系,快速增长的生态旅游需求与自然生态环境供给相对不足的矛盾构成了该系统的基本矛盾.文章认为,为了确保生态安全和促进生态旅游的可持续发展,必须坚持生态旅游利益相关者的互惠共生,创新生态旅游区的"小众旅游"模式,保障区域内自然生态要素与旅游经济社会要素协同运转和实现旅游生态系统的立体网络化布局.