Exploring community sustainability potential in nature based tourism: The far south coast nature tourism and recreation plan

Often nature tourism development is viewed as a path to changing the economic industry base, security, and by implication towards creating community sustainability in rural areas. This paper argues that a sole focus on economic growth is too narrow a representation of the linkages between the tourism industry and host communities. It asserts that community sustainability is better seen as an integrating, encompassing concern for the cultural, social, economic and environmental sustainability potential of the community in a particular locality. The objectives of the 2004 Far South Coast Nature Tourism and Recreation Plan are presented as a means of illustrating the challenge in developing a sustainable future for Australian rural communities

The Nature of Aesthetics: How Consumer Culture has Changed our National Parks

Tourism is essentially a modern Western social and cultural phenomenon, the analysis of which has evolved from premodernism through to postmodernism. Tourism differs significantly from nonWestern and historical forms of travel, being closely related to the emergence of modernity with the emphasis on economic viability and consumer culture. The massive growth of tourism over the 20th century and the emergence of a multibillion dollar global tourist industry have impacted on national parks as tourists increasingly seek nature-based experiences. This has occurred in conjunction with increases in leisure time, disposable income, technological improvements in communication and transportation, demographic changes, and a shift in the axis of personal identity and meaningful social action from production to consumption. This article examines how aesthetics fits into this evolution and the current role of national parks with a focus on the emergence of their production through the mass media to a consumer market. Finally, we propose more reflexivity in regards to tourism and place image production

Whale Watching as Ecotourism: How Sustainable is it?

Australia has long tried to portray itself as an environmentally responsible state and has consistently been a strong supporter of Whale Watching as an alternative to the practice of commercial and ‘scientific’ whaling. This paper explores whale watching in an effort to determine the economic and social viability of it as a sustainable marine tourism activity —and whether in the future the whale and the tourist can coexist or will the latter as with previous human activities such as whaling yet again create a ‘tragedy of the commons’ and displace the former. As an ecotourism product, whale watching holds the potential for sustainable practice, one that is both ecological and profitable. Responsible whale watching is seen as a clean, green industry that simultaneously supports local economies and promotes whale education and conservation. The question is can it live up to these expectations

Understanding track/trail experiences in National Parks: A Review

This desktop project aimed to draw attention to the various factors associated with track usage and visitor experience in national parks. The results will help to inform park managers how best to develop a strategic position on tracks and trails based on visitor experiences. This advice will be of assistance to managers for ongoing work regarding visitation planning and policy. The Blue Mountains National Park (BMNP), Kosciuszko National Park (KNP), and the Central Eastern Rainforest Reserves (CERRA) are employed as case studies to examine best practice research into track/trail experiences. The technical report series present data and its analysis, meta-studies and conceptual studies, and are considered to be of value to industry, government and researchers. Unlike the Sustainable Tourism Cooperative Research Centres Monograph series, these reports have not been subjected to an external peer review process. As such, the scientific accuracy and merit of the research reported here is the responsibility of the authors, who should be contacted for clarification of any content. Author contact details are at the back of this report

Understanding Tourism Experiences and Behaviour in Cities: An Australian Case Study

This study aims to enhance the understanding of tourist experiences and behaviour in urban destinations by analysing the spatial movements of tourists, identifying the key attributes they are seeking in urban destinations, determining how important these attributes are to their experiences, evaluating how two urban destinations performed in relation to these attributes, and assessing whether there are key differences between different types of visitors to urban destinations. The ultimate aim of this project is to inform and guide the future governance and improved functioning of urban tourism destinations by developing a better understanding of the tourist in such settings

Coal seam gas and its impacts on destination image assessment: An investigation of wine tourism in the Hunter Valley, NSW

This project investigates the impact that media coverage of Coal Seam Gas (CSG) exploration in the NSW Hunter Valley is having on tourist perception of the wine tourism industry. We argue that the inclusion of social values methodologies (specifically Personal Construct Theory based repertory grids) in destination image assessment may provide a structured approach for measuring tourist sense of place. In this paper we report on the rationales behind the study, as well as outlining the ways in which repertory grid methodologies are being used to measure the impact of coal seam gas on tourist's sense of place

Sustainable tourism development and rural community values in Australia's forest regions

University of Technology, Sydney. Faculty of Business.BACKGROUND The purpose of this inquiry is to assess the role of tourism as an agent of sustainable change in rural Australia. In many parts of rural Australia, tourism is a relatively new economic activity. Traditionally regional economies have relied on primary industries, such as agriculture, fishing and mining to sustain their populations. For a host of reasons many of these activities have been in decline or have ceased altogether in recent years. This may be due to the depletion of the resource, changes in the environmental ethic of the broader Australian population, or government policies such as Regional Forest Agreements (RFA). Whatever the reason, the consequences of a decline in, or loss of a region’s economic base may have a profound impact on a rural community. There is thus pressure to find an alternative or supplementary economic base so that the community can be sustained. A review of the literature pertaining to sustainable tourism, tourism planning and the socially constructed nature of “place” illustrates some of the complexity in using tourism as a means of societal renewal in rural Australia. Rural Australia is not a homogenous entity. The existence of complex/ localised landuse histories, combined with a diverse range of environmental ethics amongst residents mean that community members can variously accept or reject economic arguments made in favour of nature tourism development. While governments and other regional tourism stakeholders often position nature tourism as a more environmentally, economically and socially sustainable use of rural Australia’s unique natural environments; the fact that nature tourism development often necessitates a fundamental re-organisation of a community’s economic and social structure means that it can be both positively and negatively perceived by local community stakeholders