J. Strickland-Munro

Indigenous involvement and benefits from tourism in protected areas: a study of Purnululu National Park and Warmun Community, Australia

For many protected areas, sharing benefits with local indigenous communities is an important management requirement. This paper explores indigenous involvement in and benefits from tourism, using a study of Australias World Heritage–listed Purnululu National Park and the nearby Warmun Aboriginal Community. Interactions between the Community, the Park and tourism were explored using semi-structured interviews. The results illuminate an ongoing cultural connection to the Park providing indigenous people with intrinsic, non-financial benefits. Significant financial benefits are possible through art sales to tourists but are currently limited. Physical difficulties in visiting the Park, issues related to skills, resources and motivation, and problems with joint management all contribute to this limited benefit accrual, as well as fostering a sense of separation from the Park. The findings have broader relevance to efforts elsewhere to engage indigenous people in meaningful ways in the benefits accruable from protected areas and associated tourism. Identifying and further enhancing intrinsic benefits and addressing perceptions of separation are promising areas for attention as part of efforts to progress sustainable tourism. The paper also raises the important fact that some indigenous people may not wish to engage in tourism and that underengagement may be a part of the achievement of sustainable tourism.

Identifying conflict potential in a coastal and marine environment using participatory mapping

Planning for coastal and marine environments is often characterized by conflict over current and proposed uses. Marine spatial planning has been proposed as a way forward, however, social data are often missing impeding decision-making. Participatory mapping, a technique useful for providing social data and predict conflict potential, is being used in an increasing number of terrestrial applications to inform planning, but has been little used in the marine realm. This study collected social data for an extensive coastline in northwestern Australia via 167 in-depth face-to-face interviews including participant mapping of place values. From the transcribed interviews and digitized maps, we inductively identified 17 values, with biodiversity, the physical landscape, and Aboriginal culture being most valued. To spatially identify conflict potential, values were classified in matrices as consumptive or non-consumptive with the former assumed to be less compatible with other values. Pairwise comparisons of value compatibilities informed a spatial GIS determination of conflict potential. The results were overlaid with the boundaries of nine marine protected areas in the region to illustrate the application of this method for marine spatial planning. The three near shore marine protected areas had at least one third of their area exhibiting conflict potential. Participatory mapping accompanied by conflict potential mapping provides important insights for spatial planning in these often-highly contested marine environments.

The impacts of tourism on two communities adjacent to the Kruger National Park, South Africa

This paper explores the socioeconomic impacts of tourism associated with the Kruger National Park, South Africas flagship national park, on the neighbouring villages of Cork and Belfast. Case study research, where the study area was characterised as a social–ecological system, was used to investigate the impacts of Park tourism on these communities. The findings offer a micro-scale, local community perspective of these impacts and indicate that the enclave nature of Park tourism keeps local communities separate from the Park and makes it hard for them to benefit from it. The paper concludes with reflections on this perceived separation, and suggests the need to make the Park boundaries more ‘permeable’ so as to improve relationships with adjacent communities, while also pragmatically managing community expectations.

What fosters awe-inspiring experiences in nature-based tourism destinations?

ABSTRACT Awe, an intense, and usually positive emotion often experienced by individuals visiting nature-based tourism destinations, has the potential to nurture strong connections between individuals and their environment. Despite this, awe research has been neglected in the tourism literature, especially in relation to the aspects or features that foster awe-inspiring experiences. This study sought to rectify this by focusing on such experiences in the remote, unique Kimberley region in north-western Australia. A total of 49 tourist interviews were conducted to ascertain their responses to the question “what has been your most awe-inspiring experience and why?” Responses highlighted five distinct facets contributing to respondents’ awe-inspiring experiences: marine fauna, aesthetics, ecological phenomena, vast geological landscapes and reflective/perspective moments. Future research should focus on exploring the applicability of these facets to other nature-based tourism destinations.

Valuing the wild, remote and beautiful: Using public participation gis to inform tourism planning in the Kimberley, Western Australia

The remote Kimberley region in Western Australia presents a unique nature-based tourism destination. One of the world’s last wildernesses, the Kimberley is one of the least-impacted marine environments in the world. Tourism in the region is growing rapidly, driven by stunning natural landscapes, unparalleled nature-based experiences and a vibrant indigenous culture. Despite this, there has been virtually no research into how stakeholders value the Kimberley and spatially explicit investigations are lacking. State marine protected area planning, currently in a formative stage in the region, requires such spatially explicit social data to complement existing biophysical information. This paper reports on findings from a Public Participation GIS survey with 206 stakeholders undertaken in 2015 as part of a broader research project into socio-cultural values and management preferences for the Kimberley coast. Stakeholders’ spatially linked values were collected via an internet-based mapping survey for the purpose of supporting future planning and management in the region. Stakeholders mapped over 4,100 value locations, with values relating to scenery/aesthetics, recreational fishing, Aboriginal culture and nature-based tourism being most prominent. Analysis identified a clear spatial clustering of values across the region with a number of value ‘hotspots’ evident. Tourism planners and managers can analyse these hotspots to identify areas of potential congruence and conflict, thus assisting in retaining the qualities of the region that support ongoing tourism. By generating spatially explicit information on stakeholder values and areas of importance, this research makes an important contribution to tourism planning and management in the Kimberley.