This thesis looks at how ecotourists can become aware of biocultural diversity (the intersection of biological and cultural diversity) and help contribute to sustainable development, which considers the needs of both present and future generations. The thesis will address the ecotourism industry and how people who travel with companies that cater to ecotourists can contribute to biocultural diversity and sustainable development. It will utilize a sustainable development framework and a critical theory approach for considering biological and cultural perspectives including human rights and social justice, the contribution of traditional knowledge, community involvement, and the effects of human impact and globalization. The primary audience of my research is people who travel the globe in search of the earth’s natural wonders. I highlight issues related to minimizing environmental impact, respecting local cultures, building environmental awareness, and providing direct financial benefits for conservation. My central research question is: How can travelers help to preserve the environment, be sensitive to local cultures, and contribute to a sustainable future? I ask: By understanding the distinct correlation between biological and cultural diversity, how can we utilize both traditional (and local) knowledge combined with scientific knowledge to help sustain and preserve our natural ecosystems? I conclude with findings that point to the need for shared community authority, management, and decision making; mutual benefits; recognition of the rights, values, norms, power structures, and dynamics of local populations; respect for belief systems as well as traditional and local ecological knowledge; and the importance of contextual adaptation.

ВКР (магистерская диссертация) состоит из введения, трех глав, заключения, библиографического списка, включающего 55 наименований. Работа включает 17 таблиц и 12 рисунков. Общий объем ВКР (магистерской диссертации) – 84 страницы. Актуальность – развитие экотуризма входит в перечень стратегических задач эколого-экономического развития Российской Федерации. Объект исследования – территория туристско-рекреационного кластера «Гора Белая». Предмет исследования – действующая система туристических услуг. Научная новизна – совершенствование концепции экотуризма на примере разработки проекта по созданию кемпинга на территории «Гора Белая». Цель магистерской диссертации – обоснование проекта по созданию кемпинга на Горе Белой в рамках развития экотуризма в Свердловской области. / The WRC (master's thesis) consists of an introduction, three chapters, a conclusion, a bibliographic list including 55 titles. The work includes 17 tables and 12 figures. The total volume of the WRC (master's thesis) is 84 pages. Relevance – the development of ecotourism is included in the list of strategic tasks of ecological and economic development of the Russian Federation. The object of research is the territory of the tourist and recreational cluster "Mount Belaya". The subject of research is the current system of tourist services. Scientific novelty-improvement of the concept of ecotourism on the example of the development of a project to create a camping site on the territory of "Mount Belaya". The purpose of the master's thesis is to substantiate the project to create a camping site on Mount Belaya as part of the development of ecotourism in the Sverdlovsk region.

South Africa and the rest of the world currently face an exacerbating threat of environmental degradation, which can be partly ascribed to the fact that some parts of society still place economic growth as a priority over environmental conservation. This study shows that such an approach is only profitable over the short term and actually causes more harm than good. On the other hand, the world is still recovering from the major 2008 global financial crisis. To tip the scale back into balance, it is crucial that economic -, social -, and environmental development be sustainable; from now and into the future. This study recognises that, to achieve sustainable development at all three levels, a transition to a green economy is needed. In essence a green economy requires investment in the environment for the benefit of both society and the economy. This study then goes on to show that ecotourism can be used as a manner to invest in the environment, whilst at the same time uplifting society and improving the economy. Subsequently it is identified as a key driver of a green economy. However, a daunting reality is that ecotourism developments and - activities also threaten the environment. This study therefore argues that ecotourism has to be regulated effectively; otherwise it will not live up to its purpose and may, as a result, curtail South Africa’s efforts of a transition to a green economy, instead of positively contributing to it. This study asks the question: Does South Africa’s environmental legislation provide for the effective regulation of ecotourism? This question is answered by considering whether various relevant pieces of national environmental legislation measure up to certain criteria that is inherent to the effective regulation of ecotourism. Finally this study serves to show that; from an environmental law perspective, and to the extent that this study investigated the ecotourism environment, ecotourism as a phenomenon is regulated effectively in South Africa. However, it appears that there still remains tremendous scope for improvement. / LLM (Environmental Law and Governance), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

There remain vast knowledge gaps in the global south as to how tourism will affect climate change and vice versa. Recent extreme weather events in southern Africa attributed to climate variability and change have led to speculation that, the Victoria Falls, is under threat from climate change. This research was aimed at examining the two-way linkage between tourism and climate change. The research adopted a pragmatism paradigm in a mixed-method case study. A number of research techniques were used to investigate the problem, namely: an online survey (n=427), secondary data analysis, field observation and interviews. Data analysis was done making use of Mann-Kendall Trend Analysis, QuestionPro analytics, Microsoft Excel Analysis Toolpak, Tools from ArcMap 10.3.1 and SPSS 24. Content analysis and thematic analysis was used to analyse secondary and interview data respectively. It emerged that the Victoria Falls is experiencing climate change, which resulted in statistically significant increase in temperature over the past 40 years of between 0.3°C and 0.75°C per decade. However, no significant changes in rainfall were noted, although there has been a seasonal shift in average rainfall onset. Weather extremes and annual rainfall point to increased occurrence and severity of extreme years of droughts and wetting which has in turn also affected waterflow regime at the waterfalls. The changes have a negative impact on wildlife, tourists, and tourism business in the area. The study also revealed that tourism is an equally significant driver of climate change through carbon emissions throughout its value chain. Carbon emissions from tourism value chain are set to increase in the foreseeable future despite efforts of going green by the industry owing to exponential growth of the industry. There is, therefore, a need for the industry to adapt, mitigate and intensify green tourism efforts to achieve sustainability. The study further suggests that there is a need for better communication and education to build resilience and capacity for the tourism industry to deal with climate change. Further research is suggested to ascertain the tourism threshold for the area, impact of climate change on wildlife and basin changes that led to water flow increase in the Zambezi River. / Environmental Sciences / Ph. D. (Environmental Management)

South Africa and the rest of the world currently face an exacerbating threat of environmental degradation, which can be partly ascribed to the fact that some parts of society still place economic growth as a priority over environmental conservation. This study shows that such an approach is only profitable over the short term and actually causes more harm than good. On the other hand, the world is still recovering from the major 2008 global financial crisis. To tip the scale back into balance, it is crucial that economic -, social -, and environmental development be sustainable; from now and into the future. This study recognises that, to achieve sustainable development at all three levels, a transition to a green economy is needed. In essence a green economy requires investment in the environment for the benefit of both society and the economy. This study then goes on to show that ecotourism can be used as a manner to invest in the environment, whilst at the same time uplifting society and improving the economy. Subsequently it is identified as a key driver of a green economy. However, a daunting reality is that ecotourism developments and - activities also threaten the environment. This study therefore argues that ecotourism has to be regulated effectively; otherwise it will not live up to its purpose and may, as a result, curtail South Africa’s efforts of a transition to a green economy, instead of positively contributing to it. This study asks the question: Does South Africa’s environmental legislation provide for the effective regulation of ecotourism? This question is answered by considering whether various relevant pieces of national environmental legislation measure up to certain criteria that is inherent to the effective regulation of ecotourism. Finally this study serves to show that; from an environmental law perspective, and to the extent that this study investigated the ecotourism environment, ecotourism as a phenomenon is regulated effectively in South Africa. However, it appears that there still remains tremendous scope for improvement. / LLM (Environmental Law and Governance), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014

Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements of the Degree: Doctor of Technology: Quality, Durban University of Technology, 2012. / There is extensive focus on the practical performance of ecotourism in respect of environmentally invasive activities and the satisfaction of ecotourists in South Africa. Therefore, the purpose of the study was to evaluate the impact of quality management practices on service quality in the accommodation sector serving ecotourism destinations in KwaZulu-Natal. The study was conducted at 58 hotels within a 50 kilometre proximity to ecotourism development regions of KwaZulu-Natal province. Two separate self-administered questionnaires were designed for the hotel managers and for their guests. A quantitative approach and a census of 58 managers were conducted and the guest response of 587 was obtained using convenience sampling. The results revealed that there are mismatches in guests’ actual experience on the variables of interest for customer service quality and the importance they attach to each variable. The experience-importance findings show that most guests rated their experiences above the importance they attach to those experiences. Little attention has been paid to hotel service quality research pertaining specifically to quality-related performance. This study fills this gap by identifying congruent hotel service quality attributes and relating these to management performance by analysing the importance of these attributes for hotel-guests seeking experiences of the natural environment. The results of the study offer measures for ecotourism service quality enhancement for the ecotourists experience at the hotels and a starting point for hotel managers to optimise the service quality growth and development while protecting the resources on which they are based. Quality function deployment has emerged as a significant tool to guide hotel managers in ecotourism destinations to attain planned levels of guest service quality and formulate a well-informed and systematic framework that will advance strategies for service quality enhancement.

L'écotourisme est souvent perçu comme une panacée capable de concilier le développement économique, la protection de l'environnement et le bien-être des communautés autour des aires protégées des pays en développement. La réalité sur le terrain est cependant tout autre, car son caractère complexe, politique et transcalaire est trop souvent négligé lors de la mise en œuvre des interventions. Le but de ce projet de recherche est de jeter un nouvel éclairage sur le développement de l'écotourisme dans les aires protégées des pays du Sud à travers une analyse critique des pratiques et des discours qui lui sont associés. Adoptant un cadre conceptuel dérivé de l'écologie politique, nous avons cherché à comprendre comment l'écotourisme affecte l'accès aux ressources naturelles pour différents acteurs sociaux. L'approche méthodologique s'appuie sur une étude de cas essentiellement qualitative qui s'attarde à un projet spécifique amorcé à Chi Phat, dans une forêt protégée des Cardamomes, au sud-ouest du Cambodge. Elle fait appel à l'analyse documentaire et discursive, à l'observation participante ainsi qu'à plus de 80 entretiens semi-directifs auprès d'acteurs clés. Nos résultats montrent d'abord qu'en matière d'écotourisme au Cambodge, il y a absence de lignes directrices claires et on observe très peu de collaboration, et ce, à tous les niveaux. Cela n'est pas étranger au fait que le gouvernement actuel accorde en général la priorité au développement devant la conservation. Ensuite, le projet d'écotourisme permet à Wildlife Alliance de justifier le maintien de la forêt protégée. Cette ONG se démarque par ailleurs des autres organisations au pays par son approche plus musclée. Le pouvoir dont elle jouit et les résultats qu'elle obtient sur le terrain tiennent en sa capacité à mobiliser, en temps opportun, l'ensemble des moyens disponibles pour contrôler l'accès. Globalement, nous pouvons affirmer que les principaux acteurs qui voient leur accès aux ressources naturelles touché négativement sont les paysans. Finalement, nous proposons deux ajouts au cadre conceptuel, soit la considération de l'aspect géographique de l'exclusion et l'introduction de modalités d'exclusion, qui permettent à notre avis une analyse plus juste de la situation. / Ecotourism is often seen as a panacea for reconciling economic development, environmental protection and well-being of communities around protected areas in developing countries. However, the reality on the ground is different, because its complex, political and transcalar character is too often overlooked in the implementation of interventions. The purpose of this research project is thus to shed new light on the development of ecotourism in protected areas of the less developed countries through a critical analysis of practices and discourses that are linked to it. Adopting a theoretical framework derived from political ecology, we sought to understand how ecotourism affects access to natural resources for different social actors. The methodological approach is based on a qualitative case study that focuses on a specific project initiated in Chi Phat, located next to a protected forest in south-western Cambodia. It uses literature review, discourse analysis, participant observation as well as more than 80 semi-structured interviews with key actors. Our results show first that there are no clear guidelines for ecotourism development in Cambodia, and we observe very little collaboration at all levels. This is not unrelated to the fact that the current government is generally prioritizing development over conservation. Then we showed that the ecotourism project allows Wildlife Alliance to justify the existence of the protected forest. This NGO also stands out in the country by its more radical approach to conservation. The power it has and the results it obtains on the ground come from its ability to mobilize, in a timely manner, all available means to control access. Overall, we can say that the main actors whose access to natural resources are adversely affected through the ecotourism project are local farmers. Finally, we propose two additions to the conceptual framework, namely the consideration of the geographical aspect of access and exclusion, and the introduction of degrees of exclusion, which allow a more accurate analysis of the situation.

Concept à la mode depuis quelques décennies, l’écotourisme s’est érigé comme le produit phare des parcs nationaux en régions forestières. Avec la création en 2007 du «Parc Amazonien de Guyane », les Wayana, comme les autres communautés traditionnelles autochtones, n’ont pas échappé au discours lié au développement durable de leur territoire ainsi qu’à la question de l’écotourisme. Mais quelle est la réalité d’un tel concept dans le contexte du tiers sud guyanais, enclavé, dominé par des identités culturelles fortes et marqué par une activité aurifère clandestine et criminelle ? Cette étude s’intéresse particulièrement à la dynamique culturelle et aux tentatives de maintien d’une identité culturelle, dans une société en pleine transition. Afin d’étudier le changement social et culturel, j’ai observé le mode de vie des indiens de l’intérieur de la Guyane tel qu’il se présente aujourd’hui en référence à ce qu’il était hier. Il ressort de notre étude que bien qu’attirés par la modernité, les indiens dépendent toujours des ressources de la nature et se préoccupent de maintenirleur identité. Les moyens de prélever les ressources ont certes évolué, mais ils demeurent au fond non agressifs àl’environnement et à la biodiversité parce que, ces sociétés ont opéré elles-mêmes des choix qui leur permettent de minimiser leur impact négatif sur l’environnement. Il y a donc dans ces sociétés une préoccupation de gestion durable des ressources. On le perçoit aisément dans l’agriculture itinérante, dans la pêche à la nivrée où, après exploitation et prélèvement de la ressource, la zone exploitée est laissée à l’abandon pour sa régénération. La recherche d’un compromis endogène entre un mode de vie traditionnel et un mode de vie moderne est significative à l’observation et à l’analyse de l’évolution de la structure de l’habitat amérindien. Optant aujourd’hui de plus en plus pour un habitat avec parois, cloisonné et recouvert non plus d’une simple toiture végétale mais de tôles ondulées, les Wayana ne renoncent pas pour autant au carbet-hamac, ni à la prohibition des déjections en terre ferme, c’est-à-dire le lieu où vivent les hommes. Les Indiens, dans leur tradition, utilisent les cours d’eau comme des lieux d’aisance. Notre étude montre que cette coutume est répandue chez tous les indiens de l’intérieur de la Guyane parce qu’elle va au-delà d’une simple préoccupation hygiénique et physiologique. Dans ce système culturel, cette coutume n’est pas déterminée systématiquement par l’environnement naturel. Elle obéit avant tout à une logique écologique propre à ces microsociétés, puis à une nécessite de distinguer nettement deux univers : l’univers des animaux et l’univers des hommes. Ainsi, dans lalogique interne des Wayana, ce sont des animaux sauvages qui font leurs déjections à même le sol, tandis que l’homme pour se distinguer a choisi de faire des cours d’eau ses lieux d’aisance privilégiés. Mais, face au changement imposé par le monde extérieur (sédentarisation, croissance démographique, prestations sociales..), la cohérence interne du modèle social et culturel des Wayana est plus que menacé. Dès lors, la mise en oeuvre de l’écotourisme s’apparente à une confrontation de logiques ; un ensemble de logiques exogènes, véhiculé par ses développeurs et ses promoteurs, et unensemble de logiques endogènes véhiculé par les populations autochtones traditionnelles en cohérence avec leur vision holistique du monde, aboutissant soit à des formes de compromis, soit à des formes d’antagonismes objectant toute forme de négociation. / A fashionable concept for some decades, « ecotourism » has been selected as the leading product for National Parks and large forests areas. With the opening, in 2007, of the “Amazonian park of Guyana “, the “Wayana”, like other local traditional communities, have not escaped from theories related to sustainable development as well as the “ecotourism”. But what reality stands behind such a concept in the southern part of Guyana, geographically isolated, and under the influence of strong cultural identities and a clandestine and criminal gold extraction activity. The current study tries to understand the cultural movement and their ambition to maintain a cultural identity, in a society in complete transition. In order to study the social and cultural changes, the author has observed the Indians way of life in the heart of Guyana today, as opposed as to how it was yesterday. Our study points out that, although very interested by the modern world, Indians still depend on natural resources and are concerned with the preservation of their identity. Their ways of using resources have certainly evolved, but they remain basically respectful of the environment and biodiversity because these societies function in order to minimize any negative impacts on their environment. These societies are therefore concerned with the management of their resources in a durable way. It’s easily perceivable in the itinerant agriculture, also in the fishing “à la nivrée”, where the area is left unexploited for regeneration after resources have been used. The search for an endogen compromise between a traditional way of life and a modern one is quite significant when one observes and analyzes the evolution of the Amerindian habitat. Opting more and more for buildings with partitions and separations, not just covered with basic vegetable roofs but with metallic material, the “Wayana” have not abandoned the use of “carbet-hamoc”, nor of open air toilets where the population live. Indians, traditionally, use streams as toilets. Our study shows that this custom is the same for all Indians living in the interior territories of Guyana, because it goes beyond a simple hygienic and physiological concern. In their cultural system, this rule is not systematically imposed by the natural environment. It’s governed above all by an ecological logic, pertinent to these micro societies, followed by the necessity to clearly identify two different worlds: the animal world and the human world. According to internal “Wayana” logic, it is only wild animals that use the ground for their excretions, whilst human beings, in order to distinguish themselves, use streams. But, facing changes brought about by the external world (sedentary life, demographic expansion, social care…), the internal coherence of the social and cultural model of the “Wayana” is in jeopardy. Installing a culture of “ecotourism” therefore seems to confront logics: one set of exogenous logics brought on by its promoters and another set of endogenous logics maintained by the autochthon traditional populations fitting with their holistic vision of the universe, leading either to some form of compromise or to antagonist attitudes opposed to any type of negotiation.

Com o crescimento do ecoturismo no Brasil, iniciaram a ser implantados vários empreendimentos turísticos na Amazônia, principalmente nas proximidades da cidade de Manaus, este acontecimento fez com que a utilização de recursos naturais disponíveis na região, como folhas de palmeiras nativas e espécies de madeira, voltassem a ter grande emprego como material de revestimento nas coberturas destas edificações. E em contrapartida, raros são os estudos das variáveis que interferem no projeto, na aplicação e na manutenção destes materiais na construção civil. Em vista disto, este trabalho tem o objetivo de fazer um resgate sistemático das técnicas construtivas das coberturas de alguns Hotéis de Selva visitados no Estado do Amazonas. Entrevistas com construtores locais, observações das construções \"in loco\" e a análise das bibliografias levantadas, ajudaram a identificar os principais problemas encontrados, propondo a partir daí alternativas de detalhes projetuais e de execução, diretrizes de manutenção e reparos para garantir um maior desempenho destas envoltórias frente aos impactos da agressividade da Floresta Amazônica, tendo como parâmetros fundamentais a Exeqüibilidade e a Durabilidade do sistema escolhido garantindo assim uma maior adequação da edificação ao meio-ambiente em questão. / With the increase of the Brazilian ecotourism start to be implantated many ecolodges in the Amazonian Forest (especially nearby Manaus City), this happening brought back the large utilization of natural resource disposables on the region, like native palm leaves and several wood species, for the roof sheathing of these tropical hotels, on the other hand, there are very few technic studies about the variables that interfere on the architectonic project, the aplication and the maintenance of these constructive materials. In this aspect, this work has the purpose to make a systematic ransom of the vernacular constructive technics that were used on some hotels existing in the Amazonas State. From the bibliographies that were consulted, the interviews made with the constructors and from the observations of the lodges\' roofs on site, helped to identity the main problems that were found, proposing from then alternatives of projectual and constructive details, maintainable and treatment directives to ensure a better durability of the roofs against the impacts of the environment\'s aggressiveness, having as fundamental parameters the buildbility and the durability of the constructive system chosen and assuring a greater adaptation of the edification at the Amazon too.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-26T20:25:10Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 DIR - Wendell L Lopes Medeiros.pdf: 8732269 bytes, checksum: d39242b6f88b971eb8f5102f57cc2dbd (MD5) Previous issue date: 2006-10-16 / This monograph studies the Ecotourism activity which realization based on sustainability criterion, results in an important instrument of economic and social development, joined to the environment quality in benefit of the human dignity as it works to guarantee to all a healthy life with quality, fundamental premises in a modern society and in the Democratic State of Law. Now that we know, world has become awake to the environment issue, each and all activity carried on should be concerned about the environment , trying to be developed in a sustainable way. Through this work we intended to arise the Environment law importance in a modern society, showing the main points related to the environment context, as its appearance and evolution, its aspects concerned to the environment wealth and its protective order in our own and international jurisdictional field. As fauna, flora and hydric sources are instruments which make the Ecotourism activity possible and important goods which compound the Environment , we also talked about its main aspects as the environment damage and its consequent responsabilization in the civil, penal and administrative sphere. Besides these initial approaches , we talked about the specific area of Ecotourism Activity, focusing the activity and its development in the world and in the national context, we show the main constitutional principles that steer the activity, as well as, the infraconstitutional aspects that make its realization possible mainly in relation to the Units Conservation and the environmental license. At the end, we present the Ecotourism Activity, as an important instrument to make the environment protection possible as it looks for economic development in an harmonic way preserving and keeping the environment conversation, carrying on sustainable development, we also show that besides the environment issue, the activity helps human progress development too, turning the population involved life worthy, healthy and with quality / O presente trabalho monográfico traz um estudo sobre a atividade do Ecoturismo, cuja realização alicerçada em critérios de sustentabilidade, resulta em um importante instrumento de desenvolvimento econômico e social, aliado a manutenção da qualidade ambiental em prol da dignidade da pessoa humana por viabilizar e garantir a todos uma vida mais sadia e com qualidade, premissas fundamentais numa sociedade moderna e no Estado Democrático de Direito. Assim, sabendo que o mundo despertou para a questão ambiental, toda e qualquer atividade a ser realizada, deve levar em consideração o meio ambiente, buscando efetivar-se de forma sustentável. Procuramos evidenciar com esse trabalho, a importância do Direito Ambiental numa sociedade moderna, destacando os principais pontos referentes ao contexto ambiental, como seu surgimento e evolução, os aspectos concernentes ao bem ambiental e sua ordem protetiva na seara jurisdicional interna e internacional. A Fauna, a Flora e os Recursos Hídricos, por serem instrumentos de viabilização da atividade do Ecoturismo e importantes bens que compõe o Meio Ambiente, também mereceram abordagem em seus principais aspectos, assim como a questão do dano ambiental e de sua conseqüente responsabilização na esfera civil, penal e administrativa. Após estas abordagens iniciais, remetemos nosso trabalho a nuance específica da Atividade do Ecoturismo, enfocando a visão sobre a atividade e seu desenvolvimento no mundo e no contexto nacional, destacando também os principais princípios constitucionais que norteiam a atividade, bem como, sobre os aspectos infraconstitucionais que viabilizam sua realização, principalmente no que diz respeito às Unidades de Conservação, sendo abordado ainda a questão sobre o licenciamento ambiental. Por fim, evidenciamos a Atividade do Ecoturismo como um importante instrumento viabilizador da proteção ambiental, por buscar o desenvolvimento econômico de forma harmônica com a preservação e conservação do meio ambiente, efetivando o desenvolvimento sustentável, sendo ainda destacado, que além da questão ambiental, também age a atividade como potencializador do desenvolvimento e progresso humano, viabilizando uma vida mais digna, sadia e com qualidade para a população envolvida