Cook: Tourism: The Business of Travel, 3rd edition (c) 2006 Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River, NJ, All Rights Reserved Chapter Eleven: Environmental and Social/Cultural Impacts of Tourism

Cook: Tourism: The Business of Travel, 3rd edition (c) 2006 Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River, NJ, All Rights Reserved Learning Objectives Describe how tourism can aid as well as harm the preservation of nature Describe how tourism can benefit as well as undermine a culture Explain the factors that determine an area’s carrying capacity Explain the concepts of ecotourism and mass tourism and their differences Explain ways to fulfill the five principles of ecotourism Describe the benefits that may be achieved through use of ecotourism principles

Cook: Tourism: The Business of Travel, 3rd edition (c) 2006 Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River, NJ, All Rights Reserved Introduction Economic Impacts are not the only important impacts tourism can have Nature, peoples and cultures also affected

Cook: Tourism: The Business of Travel, 3rd edition (c) 2006 Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River, NJ, All Rights Reserved Tourism and the Environment Tourism can be used to help preserve the environment Through education and appreciation To help finance preservation Creation of National Parks Defining carrying capacity Physical capacity Environmental capacity Ecological capacity

Cook: Tourism: The Business of Travel, 3rd edition (c) 2006 Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River, NJ, All Rights Reserved Tourism and the Environment, continued Determine carrying capacity by considering Number of visitors Amount or type of use by average visitor Quality of resource management and facility development/design Number of area residents and their quality of life needs Number of other visitors Carrying capacity changes when any one or more of above variables change

Cook: Tourism: The Business of Travel, 3rd edition (c) 2006 Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River, NJ, All Rights Reserved Environmental Impacts of Tourism Tourism development requires a foundation of infrastructure Also requires development of superstructure Pollution and other damage can develop with increases in visitors Efforts are being taken to reduce impacts

Cook: Tourism: The Business of Travel, 3rd edition (c) 2006 Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River, NJ, All Rights Reserved Social and Cultural Impacts of Tourism Society is a community, nation or broad grouping of people who have common traditions, institutions, activities and interests Culture is the practices of a society Host community concept Resource 1: The local residents who serve and interact with guests Resource 2: Community's economic system Resource 3: Community's infrastructure and government services Resource 4: Natural resource of the community and its outlying area

Cook: Tourism: The Business of Travel, 3rd edition (c) 2006 Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River, NJ, All Rights Reserved Social and Cultural Impacts of Tourism, continued Social and cultural benefits of tourism Learn about each other Sharing of tastes and different ways of thinking Can generate “critical mass” of interest Improved standard of living Preservation of area’s natural and historical sites Using culture to attract tourists Material goods Daily life activities Special expressions of culture

Cook: Tourism: The Business of Travel, 3rd edition (c) 2006 Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River, NJ, All Rights Reserved Unintended Consequences of Tourism on Culture Social carrying capacity Number of people that a society can bear without substantial damage to its culture Consequences to industrialized, high-income cultures Overcrowding Clash of unfamiliar behaviors Resentment of residents from need to share resources with visitors

Cook: Tourism: The Business of Travel, 3rd edition (c) 2006 Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River, NJ, All Rights Reserved Unintended Consequences of Tourism on Culture, continued Consequences to less developed, lower income cultures Demonstration effect Disproportionate wages from tourism compared to traditional occupations Problem of Crime Due to increase in number of potential victims Due to resentment and envy of visitors Correlation between number of visitors and amount of crime Increases in cost of police protection raises fear Effect on native language Decline in moral conduct of local people

Cook: Tourism: The Business of Travel, 3rd edition (c) 2006 Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River, NJ, All Rights Reserved Mass Tourism vs. Ecotourism Explosive growth in tourism Quicker, cheaper and safer transportation Increase in number of world’s citizens who can afford to travel Longer lives and better health Global communications Destinations are proposed to go through a set of stages from exploration to decline

Cook: Tourism: The Business of Travel, 3rd edition (c) 2006 Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River, NJ, All Rights Reserved Mass Tourism vs. Ecotourism, continued Criticism of mass tourism Architectural pollution Herding of tourists Disruption of traditional events and occupations Diminished natural beauty and environment Low priority paid to local needs Economic gains short-lived but damage long-term Developers abandon area when growth ceases Ecotourism- need to develop tourism that minimizes environmental impacts and maximizes economic and cultural benefits

Cook: Tourism: The Business of Travel, 3rd edition (c) 2006 Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River, NJ, All Rights Reserved Mass Tourism vs. Ecotourism, continued Ways to Develop Ecotourism Tourism should blend with the environment and local culture Tourist experience should focus on host community’s existing scenic and activity opportunities Local should own and manage all or most services A high proportion of local materials should be used in fulfilling tourist’s needs Ecotechniques should be used to conserve techniques

Cook: Tourism: The Business of Travel, 3rd edition (c) 2006 Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River, NJ, All Rights Reserved Mass Tourism vs. Ecotourism, continued Ecotourism 21 st Century Has been used as a marketing term for a number of tour attractions Covers a range of tourism experiences from “hard to soft” Sustaining Tourism Benefits Sustainable tourism: does not threaten the economic, social, cultural, or environmental integrity of the tourist destination Formal planning processes are being used to guide future development operations