Empirical studies have established that tourism is a major determinant of economic growth and that international air services have a beneficial effect on the growth and development of an economy. It has also been argued that trade and public enterprise reforms in the service sectors, undertaken to a greater extent in high income countries, have had a positive impact on the sectors performances. This study analyses several hypotheses relating to Fiji’s tourism and air transport service industries. First the study examines the contribution of tourism exports to economic growth in the case of Fiji. Second, the study analyses whether the tourism reform adopted by Fiji in 1999 under the World Trade Organization’s General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) has impacted on total tourism export performance. Third, the aviation-service growth nexus is investigated. Lastly, the effect of the aviation public enterprise reform activities on the export performance of air services is evaluated. Using time series annual data from 1968 to 2006, the Auto Regressive Distributed Lag. methodology has been utilized to estimate the contribution of each service sector to Fiji’s total service output. The results show that the tourism is a major determinant of growth in Fiji and that the aviation service-growth hypothesis is also valid for Fiji. The empirical results show that both the trade reforms in tourism and the pro-competitive measures undertaken in the airline industry, amongst other determinants, have not significantly created an impact on the respective export performance of tourism and air services. These findings provide key policy implications in the light of capitalizing on services exports as a major source of growth, particularly in developing island countries such as Fiji and the need to facilitate the strengthening of the market to boost the export performance of tourism and air services.

Empirical studies have established that tourism is a major determinant of economic growth and that international air services have a beneficial effect on the growth and development of an economy. It has also been argued that trade and public enterprise reforms in the service sectors, undertaken to a greater extent in high income countries, have had a positive impact on the sectors performances. This study analyses several hypotheses relating to Fiji’s tourism and air transport service industries. First the study examines the contribution of tourism exports to economic growth in the case of Fiji. Second, the study analyses whether the tourism reform adopted by Fiji in 1999 under the World Trade Organization’s General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) has impacted on total tourism export performance. Third, the aviation-service growth nexus is investigated. Lastly, the effect of the aviation public enterprise reform activities on the export performance of air services is evaluated. Using time series annual data from 1968 to 2006, the Auto Regressive Distributed Lag. methodology has been utilized to estimate the contribution of each service sector to Fiji’s total service output. The results show that the tourism is a major determinant of growth in Fiji and that the aviation service-growth hypothesis is also valid for Fiji. The empirical results show that both the trade reforms in tourism and the pro-competitive measures undertaken in the airline industry, amongst other determinants, have not significantly created an impact on the respective export performance of tourism and air services. These findings provide key policy implications in the light of capitalizing on services exports as a major source of growth, particularly in developing island countries such as Fiji and the need to facilitate the strengthening of the market to boost the export performance of tourism and air services.

While much of inland rural and regional Australia in the early 21st Century is struggling to survive through a tough restructuring period and significant population decline with its associated impacts on local services, many coastal locations are experiencing unprecedented development including non-urban population growth and coastal subdivision. There is an urgent need for a more holistic approach to future development in coastal communities around Australia that recognises the contribution of past land uses and the implementation of sustainable policies and practices that link the environment, people and the economy. Many of these coastal locations share a similar post contact history of a constant effort to create and maintain sustainable communities. Most have experienced several different dominant land uses since European occupation as various political and ideological forces have promoted new ideas and technologies to exploit the available natural resources. Remnants of these past activities, including pre European land use, still remain and have now become an important component of the cultural heritage and tourist product in these coastal regions. The Leeuwin-Naturaliste Region occupies the extreme south western corner of Western Australia approximately 250km south of the city of Perth and is one location that shares this experience. The region is presently one of the fastest growing areas in Western Australia outside of the metropolitan area. Between 1991 and 2001 the population of the Leeuwin-Naturaliste Region increased by 65% to 31, 911 (ABS 2001). Although the region has been experiencing unprecedented growth since the late 1980s, it had previously comprised mostly small rural communities struggling to maintain their populations and economic viability. The Leeuwin-Naturaliste Region has been ‘discovered’ no less than seven times since European occupation in 1830. It has been ‘invaded’ by a series of different people from both the public and private sectors who have initiated diverse land uses for different objectives. Each new land use activity was initiated from outside the region as people reappraised the environment with little consideration of the knowledge of the local environment obtained through past land use activities. These new land uses were usually politically or demand driven and related to the broader development of the state rather than the long term viability of the local region. Whilst the phenomenal development associated with tourism constitutes the most recent land use activity, tourism was preceded by Early European agricultural Settlement from the 1830s; the timber Industry from the 1850s; the Group Settlements and establishment of a dairy industry from the 1920s; the alternative lifestylers from the 1960s and the viticultural industry from the 1970s. This thesis will explore both the historical and contemporary processes which have played a significant part in shaping the region’s cultural landscapes and underpin the current development issues it is experiencing. It is argued that much of the land use history of this region has been framed by a consistent frontier ethos and that it is only relatively recently the concept of sustainable development has begun to be implemented even though ironically its principles were effectively guiding land use practices for centuries before European settlement. This thesis concludes that for the most recent land use activity of tourism to achieve the long term sustainability that has eluded so many past land uses, development must facilitate multiple land use management and encourage the continued incorporation of past land use activities to maintain the region’s cultural, social and economic diversity rather than tourism overpowering them to become the dominant activity. At the same time, of course, these multiple land uses must themselves be managed by contemporary and evolving principles of sustainable development. All stakeholders both within and outside the region need to adopt a more holistic sustainable approach to managing the region’s resources learning from both past land use attempts and the principles of Indigenous cosmology including the importance of the interconnectedness of people, environment and economy. If this is achieved then it is more likely that both current and future generations will have a high quality of life with long term economic security that also ensures the long term maintenance of their socio-cultural and environmental resources.

Wildlife tourism, the viewing of wildlife in their natural environment, is a growing sector of tourism world wide. The presence of diverse and unusual wildlife is a major influence on visitors choosing Australia as a destination. Little is currently known about the short and long term impacts on the wildlife on which such tourism depends. This has resulted in management agencies making decisions on the suitability of human-wildlife interactions based on insufficient data. Given the diversity of possible impacts and responses, plus concerns surrounding sustainability, it is essential that good empirical scientific research is available to inform management. Therefore, the aim of this study was to understand and hence improve the use of science and monitoring in the management of wildlife tourism. This study, using surveys, interviews and case study analysis, drew on tour operators, managers and scientists’ perspectives and understandings of the role of science in the management of wildlife tourism. From tour operators’ perspectives, accessed through a mail-based survey, insight into features of the wildlife tourism industry in Australia today was provided. It was identified as an industry characterised by diversity in destinations, activities and expectations. Furthermore, the levels of engagement by scientists with tour operators are low, raising concerns about the industry’s sustainability, if science is regarded as an essential component of sustainability. From managers’ and scientists’ perspective, accessed through personal interviews, several barriers were identified as hindering scientists from engaging in wildlife tourism science. These included scientists’ perceptions of power, their normative beliefs of science, and difficulties with transdisciplinary work. Today’s culture tends to show a shift away from scientific research. In the past researchers were able to receive funding by appealing to society’s faith in science. However, this is not the case today. Through being disengaged and objective scientists have experienced decreased power over funding allocations and in turn decreased funding. Another barrier was the dominant normative view of many biologists and ecologists that wildlife tourism science was not ‘real science’ because it is subjective. The final barrier was difficulties with the actual research due to the transdisciplinary approach needed. The case study analysis, of science and wildlife tourism science in the Antarctic region, illustrated how these barriers can be overcome under certain circumstances. Using actor-network theory and the broader sociology of science, this part of the study described the power relationships and potential transformations between scientists, wildlife and managers, which allowed the development of research into humanwildlife interactions. By highlighting the use of principles from the natural sciences, wildlife tourism scientists were able to enrol actors into their network. However, this actor network was not permanently ‘black boxed’ due to scientists’ adverse perceptions of the significance and necessity of wildlife tourism science together with their normative beliefs on science, with the network ultimately disbanding. Key findings from this study included the importance in recognising the epistemological and ontological position that scientists occupy. A broadening of training of natural scientists is required so that they can reflect on their paradigmatic position. Wildlife tourism scientists need to acknowledge and understand different scientific paradigms exist and be able to work across them. Furthermore, wildlife tourism scientists need to emphasise their affinity with the normative beliefs of the biological sciences in their research activities. As the scientific community is subject to values and bias just the same as any other human enterprise, wildlife tourism science would be more readily achieved and accepted by the use of methodologies developed by wildlife biologists to give scientific validity to wildlife tourism science. Only with the employment of the biological principles tied in with the social sciences (i.e. transdisciplinary) will the scientific community have higher regard for wildlife tourism science. Finally, there is a need for scientists to become more politically and socially engaged. Given the importance of science for managing wildlife tourism, mechanisms for increasing the use of science in human-wildlife interaction research are critical for the long-term sustainability of this industry.

Thesis (M.Arch.)--University of Maryland, College Park, 2006. / Adviser: William Bechhoefer. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.S.)--University of Nevada, Reno, 2006. / "May, 2006." Includes bibliographical references (leaves 58-59). Online version available on the World Wide Web.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Indiana University, 2006. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 95-104). Also available online (PDF file) by a subscription to the set or by purchasing the individual file.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Indiana University, 2006. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 95-104).

Thesis (M. D. U.)--University of Hong Kong, 2007. / Also available in print.

Thesis (M. Env. St.)--University of Adelaide, Mawson Graduate Centre for Environmental Studies, 1994. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 44-46).