Overtourism: What lessons do we learn?
Prof. Taddeo Rusoke, Ph.D, MSc, BSc, CEPA, CNbS
Adjunct Professor of Conservation & Sustainability Sciences | Visiting Professor of Cultural Tourism Anthropology | Executive Director | Multi-Award Winning Conservationist | Ecotourism Enterprise Dev't | Tour Operator |
Before COVID-19 hit, the biggest problem in the world of travel was overtourism. Crowds threatened to spoil natural environments and make daily life unbearable for residents of popular travel destinations. Then, seemingly overnight, tourism nearly ceased. Yet there is no question that travel will resume; the only question is, when it does, what will it look like? Will we return to a world of overrun monuments, littered beaches, and gridlocked city streets? Or can we do things differently this time?
Overtourism: Lessons for a Better Future charts a path toward tourism that is truly sustainable, focusing on the triple bottom line of people, planet, and prosperity. Bringing together tourism officials, city council members, travel journalists, consultants, scholars, and trade association members, this practical book explores overcrowding from a variety of perspectives. After examining the causes and effects of over-tourism, it turns to management approaches in five distinct types of tourism destinations:
1. historic cities; 2. national parks and protected areas; 3. World Heritage Sites; 4. beaches and coastal communities; and 5. destinations governed by regional and national authorities.
While each location presents its challenges, common mitigation strategies are emerging. Visitor education, traffic planning, and redirection to lesser-known sites are among the measures that can protect the economic benefit of tourism without overwhelming local communities. As tourism revives around the world, these innovations will guide government agencies, parks officials, site managers, civic groups, environmental NGOs, tourism operators, and others with a stake in protecting our most iconic places.
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Bibliography
Overtourism: Lessons for a Better Future Paperback – May 27, 2021 - Dr Martha Honey PhD and Kelsey Frenkiel
About the Author:
Adjunct Professor Taddeo Rusoke, PhD is a Ugandan Conservation Scientist, Researcher, and Conservation Leader passionate about influencing change in communities through Education for Sustainable Development. Taddeo has fifteen (15) years of experience in Conservation Leadership at the Executive Level and is a senior Faculty in Uganda's Higher Education Sector. He has consulted for the United States Forest Service, UNDP, UNEP, AWEI, UWA, PEDRR, ATIM, CUNCR and several other local, national and international organisations on areas of community engagement in conservation, ecotourism, policy, climate adaptation, governance, resilience and nature-based solutions.