SERVICE LEARNING, SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT, AND THE TOURISM SECTOR IN CONFLICT-AFFECTED BAMYAN, AFGHANISTAN

Widespread consensus among the tourism and development studies literature suggests that higher education plays a key role in the achievement of sustainable tourism development. However, discussions on approaches to teaching sustainability in tourism at the higher education level are underdeveloped, especially in conflict-affected contexts. To address this gap, this study combines an examination of tourism stakeholders’ perceptions of inclusive and sustainable tourism development for a small tourism sector in Bamyan, Afghanistan, with an innovative approach to teaching sustainability in a tourism higher education program. Using mixed qualitative methods, this dissertation first examines tourism stakeholders’ perceptions of inclusive and sustainable tourism development, where I identified the importance of hospitality, gender empowerment, cultural heritage, and nature in tourism planning and education. Secondly, I document findings from a 2-year-long case study of a service learning (SL) course designed to teach sustainability and values-based competencies for tourism students at Bamyan University. This dissertation is conceptually informed by the theoretical literature on inclusive tourism, sustainability education, values of respect, and conflict-affected contexts. Chapter 2 assessed tourism stakeholders’ experiences and perceptions of sustainable tourism development to provide recommendations for tourism implementation strategies and teaching sustainability in tourism higher education programs. Chapter 3 discussed the key design elements of the SL curriculum for tourism students at Bamyan University. Chapter 4 evaluated the impacts of SL on teaching tourism students sustainability competencies. Our results showed how the SL experience led students to self-discovery and strong conceptualizations of sustainability and built students’ social relationships with community stakeholders. Chapter 5 expands on the impacts of the SL course discussed in Chapter 4 to assess how the instructional approach of the SL course contributes to students’ values-based learning outcomes and building students’ relationships within the community. Results showed how the teachers and students shaped the course and defined their own values-based learning outcomes founded on themes of respect for autonomy, equality, and culture. In sum, this dissertation provides valuable information for developing effective tourism education programs, relationships of respect between teachers, students, and community stakeholders, and the empowerment of students to contribute to local solutions which serve a role in stabilization efforts in conflict-affected contexts

Identifying Afghanistan’s Extraordinary Natural Sites for Ecotourism: A Review of Ideal Ecosystems

Ecotourism is a type of nature-based tourism that supports conserving the natural environment. Afghanistan, at the crossroads of Central, West, and South Asia, is a beautiful and diverse nation that could be the best place for ecotourism. Afghanistan's unique geography and rich history make it an ideal ecotourism destination. The study aimed to understand potential ecotourism sites in Afghanistan and the environmental and economic impacts of ecotourism activities. Afghanistan's major ecotourism sites include biodiversity reserves, wildlife, rangelands, forests, lakes, wetlands, tourism sites, valleys, natural caves, deserts, natural springs, and cultural sites. Additionally, food tourism and medicinal plants play a significant role in ecotourism development. The Lonely Planet travel book highlights Afghanistan's appeal as "vastly appealing" due to its former popularity for hiking and nature sightseeing. In the 1970s, Afghanistan attracted over 100,000 tourists annually. Post-Soviet invasion, it experienced a decline. The Ministry of Information and Culture is supporting the growth of foreign tourism in Afghanistan, which rose from 691 visitors in 2021 to 2,300 in 2022. Sustainable ecotourism in Afghanistan demands effective management and planning to overcome misconceptions and bureaucratic obstacles. Afghanistan's ecotourism sites, like the Minaret of Jam, face threats from natural disasters and climate change, including landslides, earthquakes, and heavy snow, exacerbated by climate change. Afghanistan's ecotourism industry, despite its remote location, requires conservation and management, requiring collaboration among private, public, host community, and international organizations for sustainable development

Irrigation Potential and Levels of Agricultural Development in Afghanistan

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Development as a Battlefield

Development as a Battlefield is an innovative exploration of conflict and development, phenomena that are often regarded as ostensibly antagonistic. It invites readers to reconsider socio-political and economic developments in the MENA region and beyond. Readership: Academic libraries and institutional libraries, scholars and post-graduate students, development and policy specialists and practitioners interested in the development-conflict nexus, global security, international relations, development cycles, development policy and practice, citizens’ role in society, anthropology, history, political sociology and political economy, globalisation, migration, women, the Middle East and North Africa

The Future of the Bamiyan Buddha Statues

This Open Access book explores heritage conservation ethics of post conflict and provides an important historical record of the possible reconstruction of the Bamiyan Buddha statues, which was inscribed in the UNESCO World Heritage List in Danger in 2003 as “Cultural Landscape and Archaeological Remains of the Bamiyan Valley”. With the condition that most surface of the original fragments of the Buddha statues were lost due to acts of deliberate destruction, this publication explores a reference point for conservation practitioners and policy makers around the world as they consider how to respond to on-going acts of destruction of cultural heritage. Whilst there has been an emerging debate to the ethics and nature of heritage reconstruction, this volume provides a plethora of ideas and approaches concerning the future treatment of the Bamiyan Buddha statues. It also addresses a number of fundamental questions on potential heritage reconstruction: how it will be done; who will decide; and what it should be done for. Moreover when it comes to the inscribed World Heritage properties, how can reconstructed heritage using non-original materials be considered to retain authenticity? With a view to serving as a precedent for potential decisions taken elsewhere in the world for cultural properties impacted by acts of violence and destruction, this volume introduces academic researches, experiences and observations of heritage conservation theory and practice of heritage reconstruction. It also addresses the issue not merely from the point of a material conservation philosophy but within the context of holistic strategies for the protection of human rights and promotion of peace building

Cultural Heritage and Development in Fragile Contexts

This open access book discusses cooperation strategies for safeguarding cultural heritage in nations facing diverse forms of fragility. Through case studies and a critical analysis, it explores preserving cultural heritage to spur regional socioeconomic development and community empowerment, focusing on the Middle East and Pakistan, with an in-depht exploration of the World Heritage site of Bamiyan, Afghanistan. The first section offers an overview of cultural heritage protection efforts since UNESCO designated Bamiyan Valley as a World Heritage Site in 2003, reflecting on challenges and successes before Taliban rule. The second section turns to the present situation, analysing the inerplay between heritage preservation, community involvement and policies addressing urban and demographic growth. The third section provides a review of relevant examples of cultural heritage preservation in the Middle East and Pakistan by the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation, UNESCO, and international NGOs. It highlights the relationship between heritage protection, sustainable development and the mitigation of social and economic fragilities. In the concluding section, the book synthesizes research findings and operational approaches, providing a nuanced understanding of the cultural heritage, development, and fragility in the Middle East. Concluding, in the fourth section, the book offers a comprehensive report on main methodological findings, also conferrable to other contexts both in terms of future research and operational activities