Regenerative Potential and Problems in Nature-based Tourism: The Case of Private Game Reserves in South Africa
(2023) EKHS35 20231Department of Economic History
- Abstract (Swedish)
- The importance of sustainable development has been firmly acknowledged worldwide. This is no less apparent than in the context of tourism, which despite its promise as a driver of development in low-income countries has produced a number of negative externalities for local communities, ecologies, and the environment at large. Popular conceptions of sustainable tourism like that from the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) claim to support a triple bottom line of economic vitality, social inclusion, and environmental sustainability. However novel approaches like that of regenerative tourism criticize the above for not challenging the underlying adherence to economic growth and for not being ambitious enough in producing a... (More)
- The importance of sustainable development has been firmly acknowledged worldwide. This is no less apparent than in the context of tourism, which despite its promise as a driver of development in low-income countries has produced a number of negative externalities for local communities, ecologies, and the environment at large. Popular conceptions of sustainable tourism like that from the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) claim to support a triple bottom line of economic vitality, social inclusion, and environmental sustainability. However novel approaches like that of regenerative tourism criticize the above for not challenging the underlying adherence to economic growth and for not being ambitious enough in producing a positive environmental impact instead being satisfied in solely maintaining and mitigating existing practices' impacts.
This thesis, based on the case of private game reserves in South Africa, explores the qualitative implications of shifting towards regenerative models based on in-depth interviews with relevant stakeholders to highlight its strengths and limitations. By performing a discourse analysis, this thesis finds that private game reserves consider and problematize sustainability in tourism largely through neoliberal terms of supply and demand, which misses an opportunity to produce a more substantive impact on surrounding communities and the environment. Regenerative tourism, by virtue of its living system and place-based approach, provides an opportunity for reserves to address some of the challenges they face, yet is unlikely to manifest this to the fullest extent due to its relatively immature formulation in literature at this moment in time. If the concept can ground itself in the practical conditions and capabilities of all relevant elements of the tourism system, perhaps by reconsidering its inherent radicalness, it can serve as an important to tool for producing truly sustainable outcomes in the context of tourism. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
http://lup.lub.lu.se/student-papers/record/9129202
- author
- Mackenzie, Elliot LU
- supervisor
- organization
- course
- EKHS35 20231
- year
- 2023
- type
- H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
- subject
- language
- English
- id
- 9129202
- date added to LUP
- 2023-06-22 12:30:17
- date last changed
- 2023-06-22 12:30:17
@misc{9129202,
abstract = {{The importance of sustainable development has been firmly acknowledged worldwide. This is no less apparent than in the context of tourism, which despite its promise as a driver of development in low-income countries has produced a number of negative externalities for local communities, ecologies, and the environment at large. Popular conceptions of sustainable tourism like that from the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) claim to support a triple bottom line of economic vitality, social inclusion, and environmental sustainability. However novel approaches like that of regenerative tourism criticize the above for not challenging the underlying adherence to economic growth and for not being ambitious enough in producing a positive environmental impact instead being satisfied in solely maintaining and mitigating existing practices' impacts.
This thesis, based on the case of private game reserves in South Africa, explores the qualitative implications of shifting towards regenerative models based on in-depth interviews with relevant stakeholders to highlight its strengths and limitations. By performing a discourse analysis, this thesis finds that private game reserves consider and problematize sustainability in tourism largely through neoliberal terms of supply and demand, which misses an opportunity to produce a more substantive impact on surrounding communities and the environment. Regenerative tourism, by virtue of its living system and place-based approach, provides an opportunity for reserves to address some of the challenges they face, yet is unlikely to manifest this to the fullest extent due to its relatively immature formulation in literature at this moment in time. If the concept can ground itself in the practical conditions and capabilities of all relevant elements of the tourism system, perhaps by reconsidering its inherent radicalness, it can serve as an important to tool for producing truly sustainable outcomes in the context of tourism.}},
author = {{Mackenzie, Elliot}},
language = {{eng}},
note = {{Student Paper}},
title = {{Regenerative Potential and Problems in Nature-based Tourism: The Case of Private Game Reserves in South Africa}},
year = {{2023}},
}