Department of Tourism & Hospitality Management
13th Batch
Term Paper on
Urban and Rural Tourism
Topic: Mountain Tourism: A Sustainable Path of Developing Urban Tourism
COURSE CODE: THM 413
SUBMITTED TO
Jameni Jabed Suchana
Assistant Professor
Department of Tourism & Hospitality Management
University of Dhaka
SUBMITTED BY
Sk. Sadikur Rahman
Section:B; Roll: 75
Date of submission: 5 May, 2024
Mountain Tourism: A Sustainable Path of Developing
Urban Tourism
Introduction:
The mountains - the abode of the gods, the source of life-giving water, the giant
monuments of stone and ice - have for centuries created impenetrable borders,
becoming more and more vulnerable. Vulnerable to human athletic endurance,
to the onslaught of tourists seeking to escapes. Crowded living conditions,
demands on natural resources and cultural institutions exceeded their
capabilities. Ironically, tourism - which has brought commendable economic
opportunities to previously isolated and underdeveloped mountain regions - is
turning the mountains into "the world's highest landfills", into high-altitude
Disneyland’s, distorting and exploiting mountain culture without bringing many
benefits to the people mountain resident. Infrastructure development (roads,
airports, hotels, communications, etc.) opens up mountainous regions to mass
tourism even before full tourism planning or management can be implemented
enough. Tourism plays an important role in the conservation and development
of mountainous areas. Mountain tourism accounts for 15 to 20% of global
tourism, equivalent to 70 to 90 billion US dollars per year. The world's largest
industry, tourism, had annual revenue growth of 4.7% in the 1990s and is
expected to grow at an annual rate of 4.1% over the next 20 years. Mountain
tourism plays an important role in the national economy, compared to the
generally modest contribution of the mountain economy.
However, the impact of tourism on mountain ecosystems and biological
resources is a major concern both locally and globally due to the high level of
biodiversity and environmental sensitivity of the region mountain. Tremendous
changes in altitude and associated climatic conditions lead to great variations in
temperature, precipitation, soil and vegetation, creating a rich diversity of
ecosystems.
Ironically, these same conditions place undue pressure on natural resources,
compounded by uncontrolled human activities and development. Loss of
biodiversity has environmental, ethical, health and economic implications: for
example, many highland plant species have medicinal properties that are
important to the well-being of mountain people and has potential economic
value that can boost the mountain economy. The decline in the health of
mountain ecosystems not only threatens the survival of species and highland
economies but also affects downstream river basin management, water quality
and supply, and agriculture, industry, climate and wildlife migration patterns.
The cultural identity and diversity of mountainous regions are also threatened
by the economic, social and environmental impacts associated with mountain
tourism. Cultures that have long been isolated by rugged, isolated terrain
suddenly become "objects" for tourists with cameras. The knowledge and skills
honed by mountain people over generations are losing value in the face of high-
tech mountain sports and the demand for five-star hotels. Loss of cultural
identity leads to increased social problems related to crime, drugs, and the
deterioration of community values and religious practices that once held society
together. Due to isolation and limited accessibility (i.e. physical accessibility as
well as access to education, markets, communications, etc.), many people living
in mountainous areas do not have enough skills and resources to invest in
tourism and benefit significantly from it. Mountain people tend to be socially
and economically marginalized due to ethnically and politically discriminatory
attitudes, practices, and laws. Tired of the hardships of mountain life and
seeking better economic and educational opportunities, young people are
migrating to the cities, exacerbating overpopulation and poverty in the region
urban areas.
The purpose of this paper on mountain tourism is:
To present the major issues being faced by governments, NGOs,
communities and the tourism industry in the development and
management of mountain tourism, particularly with regard to issues of
sustainability, and conservation of biological and cultural diversity.
To identify examples of tourism in various mountain regions which are
successful at conserving biological and cultural diversity, and to extract
and distill key components of these successes as "Best Practices."
To understand the relationships between mountain tourism and broader
objectives of mountain development and conservation, including gender
and socio-economic equities, empowerment of mountain peoples through
improved access to information and participation in decision making
processes, livelihood diversification, and improved access,
communication, and infrastructure development.
To recommend key actions with targeted outcomes for various sectors to
achieve sustainable mountain tourism that conserves biological and
cultural diversity and improves the well-being of mountain peoples.
2.0 Background and Concurrent International Tourism
Discussions
Chapter 13 of Plan 21 - "Overseeing Delicate Biological systems: Maintainable
Mountain Advancement" was an incredible step forward towards realizing the
centrality of the world's mountains. This chapter, embraced by the UN
Conference on Environment and Improvement in Rio de Janeiro in 1992, states
that the destiny of the mountains may influence more than half of the world's
populace, which specific consideration ought to be paid to mountain assets,
particularly water and biodiversity. It recognized mountain tourism as a vital
component in economical mountain advancement and preservation, and
recognized the part of The Mountain Gathering and others in upgrading the
position of mountains on the worldwide natural plan.
"Challenges of the 21st Century," prepared for the Commission for Sustainable
Development (CSD) and the Special UN General Assembly began to formulate
a direction for addressing mountain tourism issues:
"…Development of policies and plans must be based on a realistic assessment
of the relative social and environmental compatibilities of different tourist and
other economic activities, and involve local communities and other stakeholders
at all stages from initial definition to implementation." (Mountain Agenda 1997)
In spring 1998, Mountain Forum conducted an electronic conference on the
topic of "Community-Based Mountain Tourism: Practices for Linking
Conservation and Enterprise." During the conference, 460 stakeholders and
interested individuals from Africa, Asia, Australia and the Pacific, Europe,
South America and North America participated or provided case studies.
In 1999, the Commission for Sustainable Development held its Spring Session
on Tourism and reviewed case studies and discussed how environmental
protection and sustainable management of natural resources can become integral
components of development in the tourism industry (Mountain Agenda 1999).
Nearby Plan 21 activity plans have presently been underway for about a
decade. A ponder has been carried out, beneath the course of the UNEP
Division of Innovation, Industry and Financial matters to decide how tourism
has been tended to in Nearby Plan 21s as they are drawn up and actualized by
neighborhood specialists (Vourc'h in UNEP 2001). The think about is
prospective (accessible in April 2002). The 2002 World Summit on Feasible
Improvement in Johannesburg will assess the accomplishments and deterrents
in executing Motivation 21 over the final ten a long time, whereas looking at
encourage activity required to attain maintainable advancement. Universal
tourism organizations, counting World Travel and Tourism Committee (WTTC)
and World Tourism Organization (WTO), have a critical part in raising
mindfulness approximately issues of economical tourism and have committed to
that errand. Others, counting UNEP, UNDP, UNESCO and ICLEI address
tourism as a device for feasible advancement and preservation of biodiversity
and social legacy.
Concurrent to the celebration of International Year of the Mountain, this year
2002 has also been designated as the International Year of Ecotourism.
Throughout 2002, and culminating in the Global Summit on Ecotourism in
Canada (May 2002), ecotourism planners will gather around the globe to share
experiences and draw up recommendations on many of the same issues facing
mountain tourism professionals: e.g., how to measure and mitigate impacts of
tourism on biodiversity and indigenous cultures, equity in benefit sharing,
development of industry standards, the roles of various stakeholders in tourism
management, and the importance of the participatory approach in building
sustainability.
3.0 Commonalities and Differences across Mountain Regions
Whereas the nature of mountain tourist destinations and activities varies widely
across the globe, from mammoth ski resorts in the European Alps and North
American Rockies to horse-back riding among the nomads of Central Asia, such
diverse contexts share many common issues of mountain tourism development
and management; variations occur in terms of scale and specifics, reflecting the
socio-economic, cultural, and political contexts, and to a lesser degree, natural
settings. It is useful to recognize commonalities in mountain issues when
looking for other mountain tourism experiences from which to learn, while it is
important to understand differences when prescribing actions. The following
summarizes and generalizes major points of commonality and differences
relevant to planning for sustainable mountain tourism:
Relative Variations and Commonalities across Socio-Economic and
Political Contexts
High intensity vs. low intensity tourism: "High-tech" recreational
tourism activities utilizing motorized equipment or major infrastructure
(such as alpine skiing, snow-moiling, off-road-driving, mountain biking)
generally have more immediate and intensive impacts on the natural
environment than do lower intensity recreational activities (e.g., hiking,
camping, mountain climbing). Many developing countries now strive for
these high-tech, higher-investment, potentially high-return (also high
risk) tourism activities that also have high adverse environmental impacts
(high energy needs, road construction, etc.). Planning for mountain
tourism must assess the short and long term environmental impacts of
development, and give priority to tourism activities that benefit local
people while generating sustainable revenues and support for
conservation.
Monitoring and management: Tourism managers in developed
countries generally have access to better monitoring equipment and a
database for scientific management, whereas tourism management in
developing countries often relies upon good "people skills." Managers in
developing countries have fewer opportunities to training and education
in tourism management.
Local participation and management: The existence of an indigenous
population living within protected areas is common in mountain regions
of developing countries, and presents both opportunities and challenges.
Local people need to be engaged in mountain tourism from planning to
enterprise development, and empowered (legally and communally) to
conserve the mountain resources that tourism depends upon. Local
participation is equally important in developed countries, where multiple
use recreationists and cattle ranchers vie for space in overcrowded open
space lands.
Inaccessibility and remoteness: Remoteness and inaccessibility are no
guarantee of protection from large numbers of tourists: Mt. Everest
suffers from the effects of up to 4-500 mountaineers and local staff in a
single day. Accessibility, both in terms of physical access and
affordability, are important mechanisms for managing tourism's impacts.
Managed access is an important tool for mountain tourism, but needs to
be balanced with maintaining equitable opportunities for benefit sharing
and monitoring of impacts to determine when increases or decreases in
access are warranted.
Absence of mountain tourism plans, regulations and enforcement:
Unfortunately, a commonality across nearly every locale and culture is
the lack of current (or any) tourism development and management plans
for mountain regions. Mountain parks often have resource management
plans that are based on a heavy regulatory process, whereas funding and
staff for implementation are lacking. Guidelines for planning for
sustainable tourism are needed.
How Mountain Tourism Issues Vary among Mountain Cultures
Cultures vary across mountain regions, influencing how local peoples are
affected by tourism, such as:
Tourism in sacred mountain areas: Visitors of any religious
background and both genders are welcome at some sacred mountain areas
while not at others; behavior or dress appropriate at one site may be
inappropriate at another. Tourism plans must respect local beliefs and
practices by consulting with local experts and practitioners.
Home-stays: In some cultures, mountain households were traditionally
open to travelers, serving up free hospitality and a meal, as the forerunner
of mountain tourism. Other cultures have restrictions about people of
other religions or ethnicity staying or taking a meal in their home. Such
issues affect a culture's (or household's) ability to partake in small-scale
enterprises such as home-stays and need to be reflected in tourism plans.
Cultural Vulnerability: Some cultures hold onto their basic cultural
values well in the face of tourism, while others do not. Cultural factors
may be at play, or circumstances such as strong community or religious
leadership or education. It is important to understand the cultural factors
at play in planning for successful tourism management.
4.0 Issues
The following summarizes the major impacts of tourism in mountain areas,
directly and indirectly, related to conservation of biological and cultural
diversity:
Biodiversity Conservation Issues of Mountain Tourism
In appearing differentiate to their forceful pictures and plenteous variety;
mountain environs are greatly delicate and exceedingly helpless to unsettling
influences to their gently adjusted environments. Such defenselessness is
compounded by the truth that tall elevation, a cruel climate, lean soils, soaks
geography and in numerous places moo precipitation, obstructs vegetation
development and re-growth: it takes trees up to 60 a long time to develop at tall
heights. Other than being storehouses of tall concentrations of endemic species
and imperative supplies of hereditary differing qualities, mountain districts to
work as basic hallways for moving creatures and as havens for plants and
creatures whose normal territory have been crushed or adjusted by common and
human exercises.
Thus, unmanaged tourism (including infrastructure and facility development,
and human activities associated with tourism) can exert a high degree of impact
on sensitive mountain environments, here-to-for buffered from disturbance by
remoteness and isolation. These impacts include:
Removal of vegetation both on a large scale (i.e., for roads, land
clearance for ski areas or hotel construction, etc.) or small scale (i.e.,
collection of plants, trampling and disturbance to sensitive vegetation by
uncontrolled tourists), even by well-meaning "ecotourists" watching for
wildlife or studying plant-life.
Disturbance to wildlife and reduction of wildlife habitat area: Mountain
tourism is fast growing: tourists (and tourism infrastructure) are going
further into remote and isolated high altitude areas. Tourism managers
"sell" opportunities to view wildlife, which, unless properly managed, can
interfere with wildlife critical needs and life cycles. Some wildlife may
respond by retreating; others become accustomed to humans and human
food.
Wildlife poaching and trade in wildlife parts is sometimes masked by the
increased presence of tourists in wilderness areas where local people
work as tour guides or porters and smuggle illegal wildlife parts out for
sale.
Increased incident of forest and grassland fires from tourist activities: A
tossed cigarette is all it takes. With increased numbers of visitors,
unaccustomed to high fire dangers, forest fires are a real and serious
impact of tourism in mountain areas.
Degradation of forests from cutting of timber and fuel wood for tourism:
The increasing number of local trekking lodges in the high Himalaya
promotes firewood cutting by the local people, resulting in forest
degradation (Bhattrai 1985, Puntenney 1990). Firewood is used to cook
food and provide hot showers to tourists. Trekking porters uproot high
altitude shrub to burn for cooking and keeping warm, causing serious
damage to the exposed slopes (Byers 1999). The number of tourists, with
porters and staff, visiting the Everest region each year is four to five times
the local population; hence more pressure is exerted on the forest,
particularly outside of park boundaries where forests are unprotected.
Impacts are evident down slope as well, i.e., soil erosion and reduction in
land productivity. Moreover, the villagers are compelled to spend more
time in meeting their own needs of firewood from a rapidly receding
forest.
Improper and inadequate garbage and human waste management:
Tourism generates a high volume of garbage and waste which mountain
communities are unprepared to process. High altitude temperatures
inhibit the natural decomposition of human wastes at base camps.
Improperly sited toilets pollute mountain streams, affecting water sources
downstream as well as the sanctity of sacred lakes and streams. Garbage
piles up outside trekking villages and ski villages alike, and is dispersed
by wind.
Simplification of agro-diversity: Sustainable practices that promote agro
biodiversity become geared to tourism market demands, creating a chain
effect on cropping patterns, loss of soil productivity and soil erosion, and
ultimately destruction of habitats and ecosystems.
Cultural Issues of Mountain Tourism
Societies and conventional ways of mountain life are changing each day due
to the modernizing impacts of instruction, communications, excitement,
travel, business, tourism, etc. It is troublesome to confine the impacts of
tourism on mountain societies, and indeed more troublesome to "endorse
cures" to the weakening of traditions and convictions. Mountain people
groups must have a say and a stake within the state and future of their
societies. Tourism can give them that stake by giving esteem (and salary) to
the upkeep of bona fide social highlights, such as design, move and melody,
nourishment, dress, noteworthy information and craftsmanship aptitudes.
Well-conserved mountain societies can be a one of a kind fascination to
visitors, and the consideration of exterior can indeed advance social pride
and a crave to restore authentic social legacy. There's a fine line, in any case,
between maintainable social tourism and over-commercialization of culture,
requesting nearby interest and commitment to realness, value and cautious
administration. Unless legitimately overseen, tourism can contribute to the
disintegration of mountain societies and related values, such as:
The dissolution of distinctive cultural attributes and features, including
loss of native languages, disappearance of traditional dress, ignorance of
traditional architectural styles and functions, use of legends, beliefs and
rituals, support for holy sites, etc..
Loss of traditional cultural values (e.g., honesty, lack of crime,
reciprocity, importance of religion, importance of family/community,
systems for assuring equity and well-being among the community, etc.)
Changes in gender roles that affect the maintenance of cultural traditions,
e.g. cultural or religious practices that require or are traditionally taken on
by males are now neglected (see below).
Unmanaged tourism also increases exposure and exploitation of children,
creating a culture of begging, which in turn undermines pride and a sense
of economic independence.
Tourism can be deceptive in its message to the poor local communities of
the developing countries. Burch (1984) reflected"… the poor region or
nation sees the tourists as a representative of values and behavior
appropriate to wealthy regions and nations. This model provides no
examples of hard work, but rather the image that laziness and excess
consumption are the practices that lead to improved levels of living".
Sacred mountain sites important to both highland and lowland cultures
are crumbling for lack of care, due to the breakdown of traditional
community support systems and religious beliefs. In many places,
tourism policies are not geared to the special needs and spiritual
characteristics of sacred mountains and their caretakers.
Socio-Economic and Political Issues of Mountain Tourism
Political and legal systems have a strong effect on the way mountain
tourism and conservation is undertaken, both by government and by
individuals. The political "culture" of a country sets forth the mechanisms
and openness by which mountain communities participate in and benefit
from mountain tourism.
Local populations living in and around mountain parks often bear the
burdens of tourism e.g., increased garbage and security risks, inflation,
etc. but receive little benefit from tourists' park entry fees for much
needed local development and conservation.
The breakdown of traditional socio-economic systems, skills and markets
(e.g., cooperative farming, rotating loans, handicraft production and
market demand, etc.) has reduced the viability and opportunities for
diverse livelihoods in mountain areas. As mountain tourism has grown,
and other sources of livelihoods and market demand have declined, some
mountain economies are becoming overly dependent on tourism.
Agricultural communities have given up their sustainable practices and
the cultivation of a variety of products and have converted to growing
single, often exotic crops that tourists buy. If and when tourism declines -
or exotic crops fail -- economies (and agro-diversity) suffer inordinately.
Whereas tourism provides jobs and investment opportunities, it tends to
benefit households and investors who already have significant assets. The
trickle-down benefits from tourism to poorer, uneducated households are
generally limited to menial labor jobs, some farming and food production,
and minimal profits from time-consuming handicraft production. Market
demand, or operator-imposed "quality standards" (e.g., high standard
accommodations, English speaking guides, even environmental
regulations) further restrict involvement by poor households. Likewise,
economies of scale and market connections favor large "chain" hotels and
tourism service providers, who generally come from outside the region.
Small-scale, locally own enterprises find it hard to compete.
Lack of tourism management (e.g., control of the number of lodges or
operators, enforcement of environmental standards, etc.) and an
oversupply of tourism service providers in a limited market, bring about
over-competition and price wars, wherein service quality, labor practices,
and environmental protection measures retreat.
Gender Implications of Mountain
Tourism Gender parts and relations regularly alter when tourism enters the
neighborhood mountain economy. Directing or transport occupations take men
absent from the domestic for long periods of time; a few, such as the Sherpas of
Nepal, confront tall chance in mountaineering work, and never come domestic.
The nonappearance of guys includes impressively to women's as of now
overwhelming burdens of family, child-rearing, agribusiness and resource-
collection errands. The extra duties, combined with a moderately moo socio-
economic status managed ladies, and their need of "financial worth" without
earned compensation, holds ladies back indeed advance from seeking after
instruction, careers and political association, and can have an antagonistic affect
on her wellbeing, life span and in a few ways, her children's welfare. In a few
mountain regions and societies, be that as it may, tourism has profited higher
socio-economic status and autonomy for women. Their aptitudes in
neighborliness, cooking, and caring for travelers are profitable commodities in
tourism. Trekkers in Nepal positioned cleanliness and "invitingness of
entertainers" as the necessary components in selecting a hold up. Ladies,
moreover, have key roles to play in the preservation of characteristic and social
assets .Town ladies in Nepal keep the towns and trails free of litter, recognizing
the significance of a clean environment to tourism. As these uneducated ladies
pick up certainty and financial control, they are getting to be more dynamic in
community life, taking on authority roles, and raising their status within the
communities (Lama 2000).
5.0 Measuring the Impacts and Benefits of Mountain Tourism:
What is known and unknown
Countries throughout the world are developing or becoming interested in
tourism as a tool for biodiversity and cultural conservation and sustainable
development. Yet many are facing the same questions and dilemmas, including:
How to balance the demands of tourism with protection of natural and
cultural resources?
Can sustainable tourism generate the revenues national governments need
and have grown dependent upon from mass tourism, and will the market
support it?
How to build a tourism industry that improves livelihoods of rural
peoples and involves them in conservation?
Their reasons for concern are well founded: there is not little information
readily available, nor case studies from which to learn, that address these points.
A number of international organizations and programs are currently involved in
assisting countries with these challenges. The Biodiversity Planning Support
Program (BPSP) of UNEP/UNDP/GER provides assistance to national
biodiversity conservation planners, and is undertaking a study that looks to
incorporate "global best practices" for integrating biodiversity into the tourism
sector. A compilation of national case studies from 12 countries has been
gathered, including several mountainous countries (Canada, Chile, Kazakhstan,
Mexico, and Peru). The Convention of Biological Diversity has also called for
the collection of best practices in sustainable tourism. (Ceballos-Lascurain in
UNEP 2001) Constraints to better understanding tourism impacts, markets, and
effectiveness as a tool for conservation and development include:
Accurate measurement and assessment of impacts are constrained by
prohibitive costs, lack of technological and human capabilities, time and
accessibility factors, and standardized easy-to-use biodiversity
assessment and monitoring methods. Instead, impacts of tourism on the
environment are commonly measured using qualitative or proxy
indicators; e.g., how local people's attitudes have changed toward
conservation and how much they have reduced their consumption of
forest fuel wood. Such feedback is important in demonstrating progress
toward the objective of biodiversity conservation, but does not tell us how
the biodiversity of the forest has been affected.
As little as is known about tourism's impacts on biological systems, the
effects of tourism on mountain cultures and peoples is much less
understood.
Current market demand for mountain tourism is not well known, in part
due to the variations in the use of terms such as nature, adventure, and
ecotourism, thus skewing polling results. The potential growth in
mountain tourism is high, but again, that depends on how it is measured.
Increasing numbers of domestic tourists in countries like India and China
are just beginning to travel to the mountains, and with such large national
populations, shifting trends can have monumental and immediate impacts
on tourism destinations. Internationally, tourism trends are highly volatile
and sensitive to bad press or security concerns.
A basic precept of sustainable tourism is that stakeholders who benefit
from tourism (e.g., earn income from, or realize other non-economic
advantages) will be motivated to conserve the natural and cultural setting
that tourist pay to see, thereby assuring stakeholders a sustainable
livelihood, tax base, revenue source, etc. This may be working, yet hard
evidence is difficult to ascertain -- success stories need to be collected
and shared.
In short, much remains unknown about the success of mountain tourism in
addressing issues of sustainability, and biodiversity and cultural conservation.
Where studies are underway, the results need to be documented and shared to
inform policy as well as on-the-ground management and marketing decisions.
6.0 Tourism as a Tool for Integrated Conservation and Mountain
Development
Some of the same characteristics of mountains that hinder development and
conservation, such as isolation, limited access, ruggedness, altitude, climate, etc.
are also qualities that make mountains attractive places for tourism, and also
help to protect bio- and cultural diversity. One way to keep mountain tourism
activities within an appropriate scale and impact level is to build upon the
natural strengths and assets of the area and the people living there. This "asset-
based approach" also reinforces the concept of promoting a "unique (tourism)
selling point" or UPS. By learning to value mountain tourism assets as the basis
for a mountain tourism economy, tourism stakeholders come to realize the
importance of conservation of those assets and of proper tourism management.
In this way, tourism serves as a "tool" for conservation and development, that is,
mountain tourism can provide livelihood opportunities and income which serve
as economic and other incentives to conserve the natural environment and
traditional cultures that tourists come to see.
Planning for Sustainable Tourism
The issues outlined above, assessing the critical impacts of unmanaged
mountain tourism, with the serious repercussions of a loss of bio- and cultural
diversity, suggest a pressing need to identify steps for attaining sustainable
mountain tourism. Measures of sustainability look at:
Does tourism contribute to sustainable mountain development?
Who benefits, in economic terms, from mountain tourism?
Are biophysical resources of mountains degraded due to tourism
activities?
Does tourism affect mountain communities and societies positively or
negatively3
Mountain Agenda 1999 (CSD)
Another important factor in planning for sustainable mountain tourism is
stakeholder participation - particularly by mountain peoples, but also by
government policy makers (in tourism as well as tourism-related issues), NGOs,
the private sector, and ideally, the mountain tourist (or mountain tourism
market). Experience has now shown that strong stakeholder participation
throughout the planning, implementation, and management of mountain tourism
and equitable benefit sharing will affect a more positive result in terms of
sustainable practices, and well-conserved biological and cultural resources.
During the international electronic conference on "Community-Based Mountain
Tourism: Practices for Linking Conservation and Enterprise," successful
practices were those that: "…Appear to be creating a more equitable distribution
of tourism opportunities and benefits. All are based on the principles of local
control, partnerships, sustainable development, and conservation. Although
these practices are derived from specific case studies, many of them have the
potential to be applied globally in mountain areas."4
4 "Community-Based Mountain Tourism: Practices for Linking Conservation
with Enterprise" Synthesis of an Electronic Conference of the Mountain Forum,
April 13-May 18, 1998 Conference participants also identified and described
various actions that policy makers and practitioners can implement to facilitate
sustainable and equitable mountain tourism.
"The case studies provided indicate that community leadership and a
favorable national or regional policy environment are two central
components of successful community-based mountain tourism initiatives.
Policies and actions that link conservation, enterprise development and
community control in mountain tourism have the potential to address one
of the most important challenges facing the 21st century-sustainable
management of mountain resources and a sustainable future for mountain
populations."5
These experiences and components of sustainable mountain tourism are also
reflected in the sampling of Best Practices from around the world.
7.0 Best Practices for Mountain Tourism
In the first draft of this paper on mountain tourism for circulation and
review, examples of Best Practices are drawn primarily from the Himalayan
region, as well as from Sichuan (China) and Kyrgyzstan. During the email
conference review of this paper, examples from other mountain regions will
be made added, enabling the final paper to present a more balanced
geographic perspective. Best Practices are organized in the following
headings. Issues of scale are addressed within these three main sections, e.g.,
local level implementation practices are isolated from national level.
I. Best Practices in Policy Development and Implementation
II. Best Practices for Practical Implementation
III. Existing and Potential Partnerships in Mountain Tourism Please see
Appendix A for the description of Best Practices.
8.0 Linkages with Other Mountain Development and
Conservation Themes and Initiatives
Infrastructure and Access Needs of Tourism and Sustainable Mountain
Economies
Mountain tourism is clearly linked to the development of sustainable
mountain economies as well as global concerns of biodiversity and cultural
conservation, as laid out in the above sections. One factor only minimally
addressed, however, which is critical to both to the development of mountain
tourism and economies and conservation, is the issue of infrastructure
impacts and capacities. Infrastructure comprises the basic physical facilities
necessary for mountain tourism to function, including buildings,
transportation, communications, energy, water and waste management
systems. New tourism infrastructure can, however, cause harm to mountain
communities, as well as to mountain environments both during construction
(e.g., earth movement) as well as subsequently (e.g., an increase in
population and related resource needs, pollution, etc.) Paradoxically, new
infrastructure that initially supports tourism can bring enough negative
cultural and environmental changes so that mountain regions are no longer
desirable to tourists (Mountain Forum/The Mountain Institute 1998).
Lack of accessibility is a defining characteristic of mountain locations. In
market terms, however, roads are the means for linking the tourist to the
product. Therein lays the paradox. The negative impacts of road
development on mountain environments can be considerable. Poor planning
for road development can cause serious impacts on mountain ecology and
water regimes (Dasmann and Poore 1992 in Mountain Forum/The Mountain
Institute 1998). With access to the outside world, communities may be faced
with rapid and often negative cultural and social shifts. Short-term
profiteering, an alienation from the traditional land base, and increased
economic marginalization are common negative effects experienced by
communities newly reached by roads (E. Byers 1995 in Mountain
Forum/The Mountain Institute 1998).
One pitfall in tourism planning is when tourism capacities are determined by
road and infrastructure engineers and not by tourism planners. All too often,
roads are built with assumptions of much larger needs than the mountain
environment and socio-cultural components of mountain communities can
handle. Instead, roads and infrastructure should be developed to serve the
capacity required by well-planned mountain tourism, with protection of the
mountain environment and communities in mind. Infrastructure should avoid
sacred sites and areas that local community members wish to keep private
(Mountain Forum/the Mountain Institute 1998) and should be planned and
sited to protect important scenic resources of mountain areas.
Tourism's Role in International Conventions on Mountain Development
and Conservation
It is evident that tourism will remain one of the fastest developing industries
in the world, with significant, direct and mounting impacts on the sensitive
ecological and cultural values of mountain areas. Such concerns are driving a
growing interest in the concepts and practices of sustainable and eco-
tourism. As such, tourism plays a major role in the implementation of
international conventions on environment, human rights, trade and benefits,
and indigenous knowledge and cultural heritage protection. A number of
international organizations mentioned above (see Background) are actively
engaging governments and civil society organizations, and developing
guidelines for sustainable tourism in mountain areas. Issues of awareness,
education, institutional capacity and willingness, socio-economics, cultural
and gender perspectives, and above all, political will at local, national and
global levels remain as issues to be addressed. Whereas each of these
organizations and conferences has its own specific responsibility and
objectives, it is important that all communicate and collaborate in the
formulation and implementation of remedial actions to complementary
tourism needs.
9.0 Key Actions and Targets
I. Sustainability of Mountain Tourism
National or Provincial Level Governments Actions
Planning for mountain tourism should be undertaken by governments, with
the aim of producing a five to ten year sustainable mountain tourism plan
that addresses national/provincial level policies and strategies, as well as
regional and local action plans for tourism development and management.
Local plans should be developed by communities, assisted by NGO or
government as needed, and coordinated with neighboring localities. Such
plans should build upon the uniqueness and assets of individual sites, with
the aim of spreading visitors throughout the area in order to share
opportunities for benefits and to minimize impacts, while collaborating to
promote regional destinations for repeat or longer-stay visits. Domestic and
regional tourism markets should be recognized and cultivated. Tourism
development planning should be integrated with other community
development and conservation plans in order to promote a diversification of
livelihood opportunities in mountain areas, rather than an over-dependence
upon tourism. Stakeholder participation in tourism planning should involve
every sector, including key government officials (in tourism and related
offices, at national to local levels), NGOs, trade associations, private sector,
community members and organizations. A policy of decentralization of
decision-making is needed to support the participatory approach, giving legal
authority and responsibility to various stakeholders for tourism management
and plan implementation. Policies should promote full opportunities for
women, and broad representation of stakeholders from socio-economic, and
ethnic or cultural sectors, in planning, decision-making and benefit sharing.
Mountain tourism planning and decision-making should take into account
the true value and full economic and environmental costs and benefits of
mountain resources in calculating the economic returns of development
initiatives in mountainous areas. A portion of tourism revenues should be
invested in the conservation and restoration of natural and cultural mountain
resources, and to benefit communities affected by tourism impacts.
Mountain tourism policies and development regulations should promote
equitability in tourism development opportunities (such as tourism taxes,
conditions of development linked to local employment or responsibilities for
community development, etc.) that are transparent and achieve widespread
benefit sharing from tourism. Local investment opportunities should be
protected through government policy and regulations, financial and technical
assistance, training and skill development, etc. to promote small-scale,
locally owned tourism enterprises. All mountain tourism development
should meet sustainability standards, in terms of minimizing impacts on
biological resources and ecosystems diversity, while promoting conservation
of mountain cultures and improving the well being of mountain peoples.
Infrastructure (including roads and other transportation means, electricity,
water, etc.) should be phased over time to serve planned mountain tourism
and other mountain development needs while staying within environmental
and social capacities as determined by comprehensive community
development plans and environmental assessments of individual
development proposals. Infrastructure should be sited, scaled, and designed
to be compatible with the natural and cultural environment, and to protect
scenic views. A regulatory system should be developed that coordinates the
review and approval of tourism development proposals among relevant
government offices to assure that tourism concerns are addressed.
Government tourism planners should work with neighboring jurisdictions
where appropriate to promote Trans boundary tourism as a unique attraction
with opportunities for tourism development and benefits in remote regions.
Development Agencies and Non-Governmental Organizations
Dissemination of good examples (e.g., of Local Agenda 21 implementation),
Best Practices and legal instruments for sustainable mountain tourism
development through information exchanges, establishment of sustainable
tourism site networks, guidelines, etc. Formulation of sustainable tourism
standards for mountain regions, and guidelines (developed with stakeholder
input) for assessing and monitoring impacts of mountain tourism on
biodiversity and culture, dissemination of examples of labeling, certification,
incentive-based and other options for monitoring and maintaining
sustainable mountain tourism standards.
Enhance the conceptual and practical capabilities of mountain tourism
stakeholders through education and training, learning exchanges, awareness
raising, skill-based training, and by valuing local knowledge and traditional
systems of social and environmental management and development of
educational materials for the public, decision-makers and stakeholders to
promote better understanding of sustainable mountain tourism. Through
education, example, and role modeling, NGOs should promote the equitable
involvement of women and all socio-economic and cultural sectors in
planning for mountain tourism. Development organizations should work in
partnership with local NGOs, and should provide institutional strengthening
training and opportunities, to enhance local NGO capacities and skills in
sustainable tourism management, while valuing indigenous knowledge and
relationships.
Research Organizations
Research organizations should work with national governments,
development agencies, private sector and local communities to identify and
prioritize research needs related to sustainable mountain tourism. Priority
should be given to developing systems for monitoring and evaluating the
biophysical and cultural impacts of tourism, and in cost-benefit analysis of
sustainable tourism vs. mass tourism as well as the valuation of nature and
cultural conservation in various mountain contexts. Such information is
needed for convincing governments, financial institutes, investors, tour
operators, etc. of the viability of sustainable approaches.
Marketing research specific to mountain tourism is needed, in particular
addressing issues such as willingness to pay (e.g., for sustainable and
conservation practices) and demand for sustainable services and products.
Market research guidelines should be developed to help isolate issues of
mountain tourism. Research should be conducted by and with mountain
communities; findings should be made available to mountain tourism
communities, operators and managers through appropriate networks and
information channels, assisted by NGOs and trade associations. Researchers
and practitioners from different mountain regions should come together
(with financial and practical support) to facilitate exchange of experiences
and know-how regarding the challenges of including tourism in strategies for
sustainable mountain development.
Tourism Industry
Codes of Conduct are effective means of educating visitors and users of
mountain tourism areas of appropriate behavior that minimize impacts on the
environment and culture, while contributing to improved local livelihoods.
The mountain tourism industry (e.g., local or national tourism trade
associations) and international tourism organizations should work with local
communities to develop codes of conduct to address local issues and needs.
Working with NGOs and government bodies (see above), tourism businesses
and associations should contribute expertise to the development of
sustainable tourism standards and integrate such concepts and practices of
sustainability, both environmental and socio-cultural, into practices and
development design in mountain regions.
II. Equitable Distribution of Benefits and Opportunities among
Mountain Tourism Stakeholders, and Improved Well-Being of
Mountain Peoples
Distribution of benefits and economic opportunities from mountain tourism
seeks to achieve two primary goals: to serve as incentives for stakeholders to
conserve mountain resources as the basis for sustainable mountain tourism
(and therefore must be widely shared in order to motivate widespread
conservation action); and to improve the well-being and provide livelihood
opportunities of mountain peoples in an equitable way, also helping to stem
out-migration.
Benefit and opportunity sharing should be linked to concrete conservation
actions that beneficiaries commit to undertake, e.g., beneficiaries who reduce
fuel wood use can receive tourists booked through the local tourism
management committee. Benefit sharing should be planned and implemented
as a part of all mountain tourism development. Benefit sharing systems that
are founded in indigenous practices may be most appropriate, and should be
planned in an open participatory manner.
Legal and customary practices that limit certain populations' access to
information, education, financial assistance, skills development
opportunities, etc. and therefore opportunities for participation in mountain
tourism - particularly for women and minority ethnic sectors - should be
reviewed and revised, with full participation of local communities and
relevant NGOs. Mountain tourism that values the skills and knowledge of
mountain peoples and the attributes of mountain settings should be
encouraged and given priority in order to promote local cultural values and
employment opportunities. Technical assistance should be given appropriate
to the skills and technology available in mountain regions. Use of locally
made products should be promoted in mountain tourism over use of
imported products to stimulate local economies and highlight indigenous
products. Mountain economies should be diversified with new sustainable
livelihoods that increase the benefits retained by mountain communities,
recognize the land and resource rights of indigenous peoples, and carefully
blend indigenous knowledge and appropriate technologies.
Conservation of the Biodiversity of Mountain Regions
Through policy and practical means (e.g., training, partnerships, institutional
capacity and awareness building) management systems and capabilities for
conserving mountain biodiversity in tourism areas should be strengthened.
Raise awareness among stakeholders and decision-makers about the linkages
between sustainable mountain tourism development and conservation of
mountain biodiversity. (See above) Assess the adequacy of laws, policies,
national environmental action plans, and other legal and institutional
structures for implementation of the biodiversity conservation standards and
conventions, and for specific needs to address local issues. Prescribe
environmental impact assessments and on-site mitigation as mandatory for
all projects in mountain tourism areas, and support the development of the
necessary capabilities, science and legal mechanisms, including
enforcement. (See above). Alongside regulation and incentives for
conservation of mountain biological resources, develop and support the
availability of low-cost appropriate technological means of conserving
resources, including subsidy or assisted availability of alternative fuel,
development and sale of low-cost, low-fuel using stoves, development of
prototype construction designs that feature insulation and passive heating
systems, training in conservation practices, etc. Educate tourists and tour
guides on how to conserve energy and resources through codes of conduct,
production and distribution of visitor information, and in educational
opportunities as an integral part of the tourism experience. Train mountain
tourism operators in eco-friendly practices. Recognize and strengthen the
cultural and religious values and restrictions on areas of biodiversity
associated with sacred sites. Empower local communities with management
responsibilities.
Conserving Cultural Diversity and Heritage of Mountain Peoples
Mountain cultural heritage and diversity must be recognized as a valid basis
for conservation, on par with biological diversity, with regard to mitigating
impacts of mountain tourism in both policy and practice. NGOs working
with local communities should play a greater role in facilitating this task.
"International NGO Consultation on the Mountain Agenda Summary"
Report and Recommendations to the United Nations Commission on
Sustainable Development, April 1995
National policies should be reformed to better represent the interests of
mountain communities, and to establish protocols to recognize and empower
the most local forms of representation. Systems of recognizing intellectual
property rights of indigenous knowledge and cultural attributes, in terms of
managing and developing mountain tourism (e.g., protection of access or
guiding rights to certain sites, publication of materials, displays of cultural
activities or events, etc.) should be developed and enforced. Generate
educational materials for students, young people, and tourists to recognize
the cultural heritage value of mountain sites and respect the spiritual and
cultural norms of local cultures.
Assess the vulnerability of sacred sites to the impacts tourism, and develop
appropriate plans for tourism development and management (or closure to
tourists if need be) to be carried out by local communities with support from
government and NGOs, and user fees. Consider different impacts and needs
of international and domestic tourists. Mountain sites of cultural and spiritual
significance should be respected as cultural heritage sites, including for
example, as cultural landscapes under the World Heritage Convention.
Pilgrimage sites with heavy use need special care and may need control to
prevent damage to the spiritual values.8 While giving broader recognition to
such important cultural sites, respect local needs (for access) and strengthen
traditional management systems; involve local caretakers and communities
in planning for conservation of such sites.
Reference:
Lama, W. B. (2002). Mountain tourism and the conservation of biological and cultural
diversity . [Link]
