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Selling Paradise, Losing Home: A qualitative case study of tourism-driven land dispossession and its impact on Garifuna women’s cultural identity in Tela Bay, Honduras

Ramos Carranza, Francis Melissa LU (2025) MIDM19 20251
LUMID International Master programme in applied International Development and Management
Department of Human Geography
Abstract
Tourism-driven land dispossession has become a growing phenomenon, where development projects often displace Indigenous communities. The impacts generated by these processes are disproportionately suffered by rural Indigenous women, whose existence depend on access to land and water, and who hold multiple roles within their households and communities. This qualitative case study explores the impacts of loss of livelihoods through tourism-driven land dispossession on the cultural identity of Garifuna women in Tela Bay, Honduras. Using semistructured interviews and focus groups and drawing on Feminist Political Ecology and the concepts of cultural commodification and hybrid cultures, the research shows the significant connection between... (More)
Tourism-driven land dispossession has become a growing phenomenon, where development projects often displace Indigenous communities. The impacts generated by these processes are disproportionately suffered by rural Indigenous women, whose existence depend on access to land and water, and who hold multiple roles within their households and communities. This qualitative case study explores the impacts of loss of livelihoods through tourism-driven land dispossession on the cultural identity of Garifuna women in Tela Bay, Honduras. Using semistructured interviews and focus groups and drawing on Feminist Political Ecology and the concepts of cultural commodification and hybrid cultures, the research shows the significant connection between livelihoods and cultural identity, thereby highlighting how the loss of ancestral land disrupts both material survival and cultural continuity. As women lose access to spaces where livelihoods were practiced and culture was transmitted, the use of their language diminishes, and their music and dance is commodified for tourism. To combat this, Garifuna women have implemented cultural reclamation strategies, creating hybrid forms that combine ancestral traditions and modernity. The findings reveal the importance of recognizing the cultural implications of tourism development policies. Additionally, the research contributes to broader debates on the gendered impacts of tourism development and cultural survival. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Ramos Carranza, Francis Melissa LU
supervisor
organization
course
MIDM19 20251
year
type
H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
subject
keywords
Tourism-driven land dispossession, Livelihoods, Cultural identity, Women, Feminist Political Ecology, Cultural Commoditization, Hybrid Cultures
language
English
id
9194022
date added to LUP
2025-06-11 13:12:58
date last changed
2025-06-11 13:12:58
@misc{9194022,
  abstract     = {{Tourism-driven land dispossession has become a growing phenomenon, where development projects often displace Indigenous communities. The impacts generated by these processes are disproportionately suffered by rural Indigenous women, whose existence depend on access to land and water, and who hold multiple roles within their households and communities. This qualitative case study explores the impacts of loss of livelihoods through tourism-driven land dispossession on the cultural identity of Garifuna women in Tela Bay, Honduras. Using semistructured interviews and focus groups and drawing on Feminist Political Ecology and the concepts of cultural commodification and hybrid cultures, the research shows the significant connection between livelihoods and cultural identity, thereby highlighting how the loss of ancestral land disrupts both material survival and cultural continuity. As women lose access to spaces where livelihoods were practiced and culture was transmitted, the use of their language diminishes, and their music and dance is commodified for tourism. To combat this, Garifuna women have implemented cultural reclamation strategies, creating hybrid forms that combine ancestral traditions and modernity. The findings reveal the importance of recognizing the cultural implications of tourism development policies. Additionally, the research contributes to broader debates on the gendered impacts of tourism development and cultural survival.}},
  author       = {{Ramos Carranza, Francis Melissa}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Selling Paradise, Losing Home: A qualitative case study of tourism-driven land dispossession and its impact on Garifuna women’s cultural identity in Tela Bay, Honduras}},
  year         = {{2025}},
}