In pursuit of ecotourism

Ecotourism is expected, by the tourism industry and academics, to grow rapidly over the next 20 years. Much has been written about ecotourism, often with missionary zeal, but there is little consensus about its definition. It is argued here that conservationists and protected area managers should adopt a definition of ecotourism which contributes to the maintenance of biodiversity and an appropriate definition is suggested.Ecotourism is not merely an alternative to mass tourism, nor is it the only alternative. The literature on nature tourism and the environmental impacts of the industry dates back to the late 1970s. Tourism is now the world's largest industry and it has an increasing impact on protected areas. Our understanding of these mechanisms, their ecological impacts and our capacity to manage tourism in protected areas lags behind the growth of tourism to protected areas.A rapid growth in nature tourism and tourism to protected areas has coincided with a shift in protected area management strategies towards integrated development. Tourism is one means available to protected area managers seeking to increase the economic value of a protected area and to offer sustainable opportunities for economic development to local people.This paper argues that potentially conflicting commercial, protected area and development interests all contribute to the emergence of ecotourism and have been doing so for many years. Ecotourism needs to be tightly defined if it is to benefit conservation. Protected area managers should consider how they can take control of nature tourism to the parks they manage and convert it into ecotourism for the benefit of conservation and the livelihoods of local people.     

国外生态旅游对当地社区生计的影响研究综述

生态旅游因具备实现生物多样性保护和减轻贫困双重目标的潜力,成为全球学术界关注的焦点。鉴于生态旅游在影响社区生计方面的研究争议,论文综览国外大量相关文献,在界定生态旅游内涵的基础上,从经济影响、社区参与、能力建设、社会文化和公共设施4个方面系统梳理国外生态旅游对目的地社区生计的影响。研究发现旅游发展对目的地生计的影响存在不确定性,社区资源控制权、旅游收益规模、地方介入旅游产业供应链能力、自身能力、旅游管理等因素对旅游扶贫效应起着关键性作用。最后,对当前研究展开评述并对未来研究提出三点展望,以期为中国未来生态旅游影响研究和生态旅游开发提供借鉴和指导。     

North-South benefit sharing arrangements in bioprospecting and genetic research: a critical ethical and legal analysis

Most pharmaceutical research carried out today is focused on the treatment and management of the lifestyle diseases of the developed world. Diseases that affect mainly poor people are neglected in research advancements in treatment because they cannot generate large financial returns on research and development costs. Benefit sharing arrangements for the use of indigenous resources and genetic research could only marginally address this gap in research and development in diseases that affect the poor. Benefit sharing as a strategy is conceptually problematic, even if one, as we do, agrees that impoverished indigenous communities should not be exploited and that they should be assisted in improving their living conditions. The accepted concept of intellectual property protection envisages clearly defined originators and owners of knowledge, whereas the concept of community membership is fluid and indigenous knowledge is, by its very nature, open, with the originator(s) lost in the mists of time. The delineation of 'community' presents serious conceptual and practical difficulties as few communities form discrete, easily discernable groups, and most have problematic leadership structures. Benefit sharing is no substitute for governments' responsibility to uplift impoverished communities. Benefit sharing arrangements may be fraught with difficulties but considerations of respect and equity demand that prior informed consent and consultation around commercialisation of knowledge take place with the source community and their government.     

石漠化治理过程中农民参与意识与响应——以广西壮族自治区河池地区为例

基层农民在石漠化治理中有着不容忽视的作用,但对其态度及参与意愿的了解相对较少。基于参与性调查方法,按不同石漠化程度,对广西河池地区环江县、都安县、大化县33个屯154户居民石漠化治理过程中参与意识与响应进行了调查。结果表明,了解石漠化的农民所占比例较小,且随石漠化程度的增加反而减少。影响农民石漠化治理参与意识的主要因素是农民的文化程度和年龄,但生态示范区内农民参与意识要远好于非示范区。生态农业模式能被多数农民所接受,但因存在成本、农产品销路、技术等问题而实施难度大。政府支持的经济发展模式往往具有经济生态双重效益,但实施过程复杂;农民自发形成的发展模式通常具有收益高及操作简单等特点,但规模往往较小,且受市场影响较大。因此,石漠化治理过程中,一方面需要加强对重度石漠化地区农民的宣传教育,同时充分发挥生态示范区的作用,增加示范区的辐射范围;另一方面,在支持已有发展模式的同时,应重点支持种桑养蚕、手工品加工等农民自发形成的发展模式,并开拓农产品市场。总之,在石漠化治理过程中,政府加大支持力度,科研单位提供技术指导,农民群众积极配合,形成政府-科研单位-基层农民共同参与的石漠化治理模式。     

Notes on Costeño cultural politics

The article fundamentally endorses Schroeder’s findings that Augusto Sandino failed to develop a significant base among the peoples of the Atlantic Coast. This article also places Schroeder’s argument in a comparative perspective, as it discusses the early 1930s rural mobilization in El Salvador, outlining how the Salvadoran left’s social egalitarian appeals compensated for a degree of cultural insensitivity and lack of knowledge regarding the indigenous peoples of the western part of the country. The article also questions the placement of the mining area as outside of the Atlantic Coast region. It suggests the historical connections of Miskitu Indians and the mining communities and in so doing modifies, to a degree, Schroeder’s argument about the desencuentro between Sandino and the indigenous people.     

杭州西溪国家湿地公园生态旅游环境容量

综合旅游生态容量、旅游空间容量、旅游设施容量、旅游管理容量、旅游心理容量5个因素,对杭州西溪国家湿地公园的旅游环境容量进行了测算.结果表明:其旅游环境容量为4145～6450人次.d-1.本研究首次将人鸟间的合理距离应用于湿地生态容量的确定,有效地解决了在充分保证鸟类活动与栖息安全的前提下适度开发湿地旅游的问题.基于游客满意度的旅游心理容量的估算较客观地反映了旅游区(点)在规划建设和经营管理方面满足旅游者需求的程度.这种基于人鸟距离和游客满意度的综合测算方法对于湿地公园的规划和管理具有较实际的指导意义.     

The Biodiversity Discourse: Categorisation of Indigenous People in a Mexican Bio-prospecting Case

Indigenous knowledge is often portrayed as static and traditional, while indigenous people are considered victims of exploitation. In the name of development and empowerment NGOs as well as scientists may run the risk of representing indigenous communities that fit their definition of the “correct” way to be indigenous. However, for indigenous people knowledge is not necessarily a static condition in a binary position to science or the ‘modern’ world. Rather, it is a dynamic condition that draws from experience and adapts to a changing environment. The perspective advanced in this paper is that all forms of knowledge, including indigenous knowledge(s), are situated and hybrid. Our argument draws from research carried out in Chiapas, Mexico, regarding the ICBG-Maya bio-prospecting project that was initiated in the 1990s and later terminated due to accusations of bio-piracy.     

Quantitative calculation of eco-tourist's landscape perception: Strength,and spatial variation within ecotourism destination

Landscape perception is usually described through questionnaires according to the visitors' response. So it is difficult to describe the spatial variation of landscape perception, and the landscape perception factor is rarely involved in the ecotourism planning. In this paper, the authors propose a calculation method for the eco-tourists' perception degree on ecotourism destination according to landscapes' quality and quantity based on raster and grid data, which is very different to the angle of the tourists. The method includes a series of impact factors such as the landscape resource type, landscape resource grade, landscape visual range and its best viewing distance and orientation, ecological perception sensitive area etc. This calculation method can quantitatively describe ecotourists' perception degree at any location in the ecotourism destination, so it can also be used to identify the spatial variation of visitors' perception on landscapes. A case study is done, which is in Qixiagu scenic region, Wu'an national geological park in China. Based on Digital Elevation Model (DEM) and high-resolution satellite images, the authors build the virtual 3D landscape for the region. Using the tools of view-shed analysis, spatial overlay analysis, buffer and other methods on the GIS platform, eco-tourists' perception degree is calculated. The result shows that the value of perception degree varied from one location to another. Regions with higher perception value will be the gathering areas of eco-tourists, so the spatial differences for landscape perceptions should be taken into full consideration during the process of ecotourism destination planning.     

Understanding Power in Indigenous Protected Areas: the Case of the Tla-o-qui-aht Tribal Parks

This article draws on concepts of power from political ecology and political sociology to describe the ways that the Tla-o-qui-aht First Nation (a Canadian indigenous people) have attempted to realize their goals under the broad rubric of their Tribal Parks initiative. Like some other Indigenous peoples’ and Community Conserved territories and Areas (ICCAs), the Tribal Parks example features de facto legal pluralism, lack of clear tenure and/or legal recognition, oppositional and/or cooperative relationships with other actors, and situations where local actors are influenced by intersecting global discourses on conservation and indigenous rights and culture. Globally, ICCAs are a form of protected area and are potentially critical in terms of meeting ambitious global protected area targets as well in addressing issues related to the rights and well-being of indigenous peoples. As such, understanding the ‘customary law or other effective means’, or the dynamics of power through which indigenous groups are able (or not) to realize their protected area goals is of global significance. This article illuminates the contours of power through two specific Tribal Parks case studies: the first involves contestations over industrial logging, while the second focuses on the establishment and implementation of what came to be called an ‘ecosystem services fee’ paid by ecotourism outfitters operating within a Tribal Park. Results highlight that the Tla-o-qui-aht have drawn power from different sources and exercised it by different means including turning to the Courts in a context of legal uncertainty, protest and direct action coupled with appeals to public opinion, developing and drawing on relationships with both local and non-local interests, and by strategically ‘tapping into’ prominent discourses.     

西双版纳勐宋哈尼族的传统文化与生态系统多样性管理

世界各地的原住民族 (ｉｎｄｉｇｅｎｏｕｓｐｅｏｐｌｅ) ,在悠久的历史发展过程中 ,与当地的动植物和森林结成了极其密切的关系 ,他们之间互相作用、互相影响 ,形成了多样化的原住民知识体系 (ｉｎｄｉｇｅ ｎｏｕｓｋｎｏｗｌｅｄｇｅｓｙｓｔｅｍ)和传统文化信仰 (ｃｕｌｔｕｒａｌｂｅｌｉｅｆｓ)。这些知识体系和传统文化包含着丰富的认识、利用与保护动植物以及生态系统的知识与实践 ,因而也就成为这些原住民族与当地生态环境、生物多样性相互协调和持续发展的社会基础和技术保障[3 ,8,1 0 ,1 1 ] 。在全球性环境变化和生物多样性迅…     

保护地旅游公路的野生动物通道设计原则与技术参数

保护地以其丰富的生物多样性和优美的自然环境为生态旅游的开展提供了基础条件。近年来, 保护地的生态旅游与旅游道路建设得到了飞速发展。旅游公路的修建, 在促进经济发展的同时, 也带来了野生动物致死、基因隔离、栖息地丧失、生境破碎化等一系列生态问题。因此设立合适的野生动物通道作为一种有效方式, 成为缓解公路对野生动物负面影响的主要途径。本文基于动物通道相关研究, 提出通道设计应遵从针对性、科学性、持续有效性、可行性四条原则, 道路生态学与保护生物学相关理论、保护地管理法规与管理规划、关键物种或类群生态学特性与栖息地现状以及沿线地形地貌特征都应作为通道设置的参考依据; 并从通道建设的数量、位置、类型、尺寸、表面设计、配套设施以及后期监测等方面提出了通道建设的技术参数。为长期有效地发挥野生动物通道的生态功能, 建议制定通道建设技术规范, 细化通道技术参数, 积极开展科研监测, 以缓解道路对野生动物的影响。     

湿地保护、生态旅游与农民增收——以云南拉市海湿地为例

生态保护与经济发展之间的矛盾是发展中国家普遍存在的问题。近年来中国开展了大规模的生态保护行动,但对于这些行动的经济效应评估主要集中在森林和草地保护,而对湿地保护鲜少关注。选取云南一个典型的高原湿地,基于当地实施的退耕还湿政策,运用倾向得分匹配(PSM)和双重差分法(DID)检验了退耕还湿对农民收入和生态旅游的长期动态影响,并进一步讨论了政策效果的异质性以及补偿资金在湿地保护中的作用。研究发现：(1)退耕还湿具有显著的增收效应,使人均收入提高了约40%,并促进了生态旅游的发展;(2)随着时间推移,退耕还湿对农民收入和生态旅游的促进作用不断增强,在多重因素的综合影响下,农民通过生计转型实现长期增收;(3)退耕还湿存在明显的异质性影响。在不同收入群体中,低收入和高收入群体的增收效应最明显,而对生态旅游的影响则主要体现在高收入群体中;此外,距离湿地资源越近的地区,农民越倾向于通过开展生态旅游实现增收;(4)补偿资金在湿地保护中具有双重作用,不仅在保护行动前期作为安全网维持农民收入不降低,而且作为启动市场和吸引民间资本参与的种子资金,进一步支持了生态旅游的发展。研究结果能够为湿地保护与社会经济协...     

生态旅游资源非使用价值评估——以达赉湖自然保护区为例

以达赉湖自然保护区为例,使用条件价值法对达赉湖自然保护区生态旅游资源的非使用价值进行了研究,并探讨了在虚拟情景和真实情景下被调查者支付意愿的差别。采用实地调研方式,进行支付意愿问卷调查,共发放调查问卷700份,回收有效问卷551份。同时,引入8个变量,并采用logit模型分别在虚拟和真实情景下建立各变量和支付意愿之间的关系。结果显示:(1)在真实情景下被调查者的支付意愿(47元/a)要小于虚拟情景下的支付意愿(59元/a),可见,在虚拟情景下评估结果会夸大被调查者的支付意愿。(2)达赉湖自然保护区2010年生态旅游资源非使用价值从4634×104元/a到12765×104元/a。该值仅是根据呼伦贝尔市人口来估计的支付意愿值,其总价值是有限的。但如果用全国总人口进行估计,其内在价值将成倍增加。研究表明:对于达赉湖自然保护区生态旅游资源的保护不仅从生态学角度是非常必要的,而且它对人类也具有巨大的经济价值。对其资源无序的开发既会降低达赉湖自然保护区生态系统的质量也会减少其经济价值。研究结果使得达赉湖自然保护区的开发和保护的价值对比成为可能,并为该保护区制定保护管理策略提供理论基础与科学依据。     

Primate Conservation and Local Communities—Ethical Issues and Debates

Hunting and habitat destruction and alteration threaten the existence of many primate species. However, the conservation of these primates has significant costs, as well as benefits, for people living alongside them. Conservation policy now recognizes that people should not suffer impoverishment from wildlife preservation and that, instead, conservation programs should make a significant contribution to alleviating rural poverty. Ethical consideration requires that local communities have greater control over natural resources, and that conservation programs contribute to these people's livelihood security. Nevertheless, this conservation on the basis of potential economic value may not protect primates adequately and may render them still vulnerable to extinction, given their sensitivity to human activities. This presents an ethical dilemma: primates have intrinsic moral value so should be conserved for their own sake, yet conservation policies should not cause harm to local human populations. This article explores ethical issues that arise when primates and people live in close proximity. [Keywords: primate conservation, ethical issues, human–wildlife conflict]     

世界生态旅游区划

生态旅游区划是揭示全球尺度生态旅游资源与生态旅游业空间布局的重要手段,有助于从整体上把握世界生态旅游的发展。本文在探讨生态旅游区划定义与理论依据的基础上,提出生态旅游区划的理论基础是地域分异规律与生态学原理,并根据全局谋划、综合分析、主导因索、与行政区协调、兼顾自然区划等原则。将世界生态旅游地域系统划分为6个生态旅游洲、29个生态旅游大区、71个生态旅游区以及若干生态旅游地。文章还对各洲的生态旅游特点进行了阐述。     

湿地生态旅游开发模式

生态旅游的迅速发展和湿地资源的特殊性使得湿地生态旅游活动备受关注.本文提出不同类型的湿地应采取不同的开发模式,并从历史文化底蕴、生态系统的完善性、市场竞争力以及区域经济社会条件等4个方面构建湿地生态旅游开发模式分析图,在此基础上构建了16个二级指标用以具体分析评价.并将此分析图运用到江苏盐城丹顶鹤湿地自然保护区的案例研究中,及时发现生态旅游开发的优势条件和限制因素,明确今后生态旅游发展的方向.     

Invisible impacts but long-term consequences: hypoplasia and contact in central Australia

The dental casts taken of Aboriginal people resident at Yuendumu, Central Australia, between 1950-1970 preserve a unique historical record of defects of the dental enamel (DDEs) among people born from 1890-1960 (n = 377). These data are used, in comparison with precontact data, to trace the chronological changes in childhood development that occurred among Aboriginal people from the point of initial engagement with white settlers to a period of overwhelming government control. The results demonstrate very little change in the frequency of DDE from the precontact period to 1929 but increases after that time, particularly after the forcible settlement of people on a government establishment at Yuendumu in 1946. Apart from the absolute increase in frequency, it is also clear that population variation decreased markedly, with growing numbers of children experiencing multiple defects in early childhood (ca. 0.8-1.5 years of age). The results also indicate that an early onset of DDE constituted a risk for further episodes. These changes in DDE correspond to periods of increasingly intense contact between Aboriginal people and Europeans and with changes to government policy aimed at assimilating the indigenous population. Such policies had marked costs for childhood development. The lack, however, of a visible marker of initial contact demonstrates the importance of the intensity of and motives behind interactions between indigenous and colonial populations in determining the health consequences of colonial encounters.     

基于适宜性分析的黄河首曲地区生态旅游功能区划研究

黄河首曲地区具有突出的生态功能和较高的旅游价值,研究选取距水域湿地距离、草地覆盖情况、森林覆盖情况、海拔高度、坡度和偏远程度6个表征地区自然性的标准,采用GIS技术与层次分析法相结合的方法对黄河首曲地区生态旅游适宜性进行了分析,并结合首曲自然保护区要求对研究区进行了旅游功能区划。研究区生态旅游适宜性可划分为五级,Ⅰ级适宜度最低,适合开发一般的生态旅游或大众旅游,V级地区适宜度最高,原生态景观价值突出,但环境敏感性也高,宜发展严格生态旅游,以最大化保护生态环境。出于协调旅游功能与生态功能的统一以实现地区生态景观可持续利用的目的,研究区被划分为3类功能区、8类功能亚区,且均具有各自特殊的主导和辅助服务功能。研究最后根据各功能区、亚区的特殊服务功能提出了相应的调控措施,以促进生态旅游的合理性规划及未来可持续发展。     

An estimate of the number of white sharks Carcharodon carcharias interacting with ecotourism in Guadalupe Island

The aim of the present study is to provide an estimate of the number of white sharks Carcharodon carcharias that seasonally interact with ecotourism boats in Guadalupe Island using Schnabel's mark–recapture method and 6316 records of white sharks during 2012–2014. The results of the estimation highlight an abundance of 78 white sharks 95% C.I. (62.1, 105.6) interacting with ecotourism. The regulations regarding the number of tourists, boats and the monitoring of white sharks should be assessed to improve management decisions regarding the conservation and sustainable use of this threatened species.     

Community-based Monitoring of Fog Capture and Biodiversity at Loma Alta,Ecuador Enhance Social Capital and Institutional Cooperation

Monitoring of fog capture and bird communities helped to build social capital for conservation at Loma Alta, Ecuador and encouraged the local community to protect 3000 hectares of tropical forest. Data collected during monitoring were used to facilitate action and cooperation at local, regional, national, and international levels for conservation of biodiversity in western Ecuador, including the designation of an Important Bird Area in the region. Through involvement with the monitoring efforts, local people became more aware of the value of ecosystem services, learned about local birds and their conservation status, became familiar with ecotourism, and began to include conservation of biodiversity with sustainable development planning in their community. The context of monitoring, the objectives and participants, field methods, impacts in terms of conservation action, and the costs and benefits of the two monitoring initiatives are described.