Strategies to manage human activity in deserts 12A

12A. FINNISH UNIVERSITY NETWORK FOR TOURISM STUDIES (FUNTS) The Finnish University Network for Tourism Studies (FUNTS) was initiated in the autumn of It is based on the agreement between 16 Finnish universities. With its multidisciplinary approach it is considered a pioneer in the field, even in international terms. The coordinating unit of FUNTS is the Centre for Tourism Studies of the University of Joensuu in Savonlinna

Birdwatchers at the Walvis Bay Lagoon Ramsar site, attending the CETN (Coastal Environmental Trust) Winter Bird Count. Some participants of the July 2008 Walvis Bay Lagoon count, holding the sponsor's drinks.

Adding up numbers after the count. Keith Wearne, the late chairperson of Coastal Environmental Trust (CETN), at the "New Bird Paradise" of Walvis Bay. The restricted access location was opened for bird-tourists during the project, in cooperation with WB Sewage Works.

COASTAL BIRD-TOURISM PROJECT Birdwatching is a well-developed sector of ecotourism, with numerous local and international operators. The economical significance of birdwatching as a form of leisure and tourism has, however, only recently been acknowledged. Some sources state that the total global expenditure in bird-watching was more than € 60 billion already in 1998, before a recent “boom”. In the United States alone, 69 million people watch birds and jobs have been created in the field. In Europe, there are millions of birdwatchers, many of whom travel internationally. In South Africa, a close market to Namibia, a single penguin-watching venture at Boulders, Southern Cape, has created an annual income of almost € 2 million. Being a peripheral destination with low human population and ample natural resources, Namibia can be described as a prime destination for specific-interest ecotourism, including birdwatching. Internationally, the most well-known birdwatching region of Namibia is the 160 km long coastal strip between Skeleton Coast (CapeCross) and Sandwich Harbor. During the northern hemisphere winter it attracts, in addition to resident birdlife, hundreds of thousands of migratory birds. On the same strip lie several communities, notably Swakopmund, Walvis Bay and Hentiesbaai, with tourism services but somewhat unrealized tourism potential and problems with seasonality. A combination of increasing levels of unemployment and immigration from rural areas has led the local communities to a situation where new innovations in the tourism branch are urgently needed. The aim of the project is to examine the contradiction between existing bird-tourism potential and lack of development by analyzing the obstacles, discussing the situation with local and international stakeholders and creating an action plan. From the academic point of view, the project attempts to study birdwatching as a form of leisure and business from the viewpoint of postcolonialism. It is suspected that the prevailing inertia is to some degree a result of persisting colonialistic relations. For example, birdwatching as leisure and business has traditionally been ethnically segregated in Namibia, and the situation has not really changed since independency. In fact, Namibia has had no national birdwatching organization but has remained a subsidiary of Birdlife South Africa.

Birdwatchers at Walvis Bay Lagoon, a Ramsar site for bird conservation

NATIKKA - Mapping biodiversity data The establishment of BirdLife Namibia and Namibia Bird Atlas approaching, discussions were had with Namibia Nature Foundation (NNF) on the possibility of adopting HATIKKA, the Finnish Google Earth based biodiversity data collection and presentation system for the needs of Namibia (version NATIKKA). The system could be used as a medium to collect data in national surveys on a variety of biodiversity categories (birds, mammals, plants etc.), and to distribute the information for conservation, leisure and ecotourism purposes. After successful negotiations with the Finnish Museum of Natural History (University of Helsinki), the owner and developer of HATIKKA, and the Finnish Embassy in Windhoek, the partners were guided to continue together. At the moment, there is an agreement on the project content, and negotiations on funding details are going on. Common Terns - Ringing project in Swakopmund In discussions with Mark Boorman, a resident bird ringing specialist, it was learned that Common Terns (Sterna hirundo) ringed in Finland have been recorded in Swakopmund on a regular basis. Common Tern is a European Union Birds Directive Annex I species (most threatened), with major wintering grounds on the coast of Namibia. At the moment, the ecology of the coast is undergoing a major shift to the negative, with disappearance of several fish and severe consequences in the food chain (overfishing/climate change?).Therefore, there is an apparent need of monitoring on the threatened tern species. In Finland, three persons with Common Tern ringing permit, and interest to visit Swakopmund to help in the monitoring work, were contacted. The idea is to capture and measure a large number of Common Terns during the next wintering season, with a possibility for continuity during the following seasons. The Finnish volunteers have been guided to contact the Namibian partners