Cultural Tourism

 Characteristics of Culture:  Language  Dress  Food  Music  Sports  Art  Architecture  Religion

Language  There are an estimated African languages  Afro-Asiatic (NE)  Nilo-Saharian  Niger-Saharian (Niger- Congo)  Khoisan (Western)

Dress  Often vibrantly colored

Religions  "Africans are notoriously religious, and each people [society in Africa] has its own religious system with a set of beliefs and practices.  Religions Video Religions Video Religions Video

Music  Sample - Vocals Sample  Sample - Folk Sample

Cultural Tourism  Cultural tourist sites can be either physical or man-made, as long as the site holds some type of meaning to a culture.  Many tourists believe that the heart of cultural tourism is viewing the past to learn a culture. ie. Museums / Art Galleries

Cultural Tourism  Appreciating Culture:  High Culture  Pop Culture

High Culture  High culture tends to have an elitist stereotype attached to its attractions.  Ex. opera, theatres, museums and architecture ***specialized knowledge of art or architecture is often needed

Popular (Pop) Culture  Attractions are targeted for the masses  music, theme parks, festivals, dances ***Any specialized knowledge is usually not needed.

Threats to Cultural Sites  Destruction of cultural sites - tourists wanting pieces of Rome's Coliseum or the Great Barrier Reef as souvenirs  Overcrowding  Vandalism  Human lifestyle - acid rain destroys historic landmarks  Increased crime rates

Conservation Programs  Many programs have been initiated to preserve cultural and environmental sites  AKA: Heritage Conservation  EX: International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS)

ICOMOS  Purpose: safeguard and conserve important heritage sites and ensure that people are educated about the importance of maintaining monuments  The ICOMOS uses a variety of methods to spread the word on the importance of preserving significant sites for future generations

ICOMOS  What they do:  Awareness campaigns  The development of training programs  Architectural library in Paris's ICOMOS Documentation Centre  Advising UNESCO on possible World Heritage Sites  Publication of newsletters  Conferences

Culture   “A Source of exchange, innovation and creativity, cultural diversity is as essential for humankind as biodiversity is for nature.” -UNESCO

Examples of Cultural Preservation  Where is it?  What is it’s cultural significance?  Who built it?  What characteristic of cultural is it?  What happened to the original site?  Who is helping to restore it?