As tourism that links communities and PAs develops, many different models of tourism management are emerging. This chapter identifies and describes a number of these and illustrates some case studies that follow. The models have been grouped into three broad categories: Community managed; Private Sector/Non-Governmental Organization (NGO)/
Government managed, and Joint Ventures. The last is a model that combines management among communities, the private sector, government, and NGOs or a combination of these.
The various joint venture types are further explained below.
These three groups are identified as the most common models of PA-based tourism management. Private sector, government and NGO-managed tourism interests are grouped together because they are considered external to communities, and are often external to PAs as well. These operators may have tremendous vested interests in conserving PAs, and can have a positive impact on local communities such as providing employment and training.
However, many may also have non-tourism interests and responsibilities in a specific PA, such as scientific and other research; track and road maintenance; vegetation and animal management; native and exotic species assessment; bush regeneration; maintaining ecological integrity, the legislative regime, and compliance.
Table 1. Tourism management models and local communities Facets of the
relationship between indigenous and other local communities and protected areas Governance
Economic benefits/livelihood security
Cultural, spiritual and educational values
TOURISM MODELS
Community-based
At community level
Mostly returned to community
Increase when community feels sense of ownership
At corporate, government or NGO level
Minimum contribution to the community, benefits leaked via staff from outside area or non-local companies
Generally decrease as community well-being not a management priority
Collaborative management, community and other stakeholders Shared
May increase or decrease,
depending on power sharing
arrangements and other factors Private sectore/
Joint venture Government/NGO
78 Tourism, Indigenous and Local Communities and Protected Areas in Developing Nations First, we describe the categories of models, and then explore some facets of the relationships between indigenous and other local communities and PAs, as previously described (governance; economic benefits and livelihood security; and cultural, spiritual and educational values) as they manifest in those models. Table 1 provides a framework for the analysis.
Community-based management models
For the purpose of this chapter, community-based ecotourism is defined as:
'Ecotourism activities where the management, decision-making and ownership is in the hands - partially or totally - of the communities in or adjacent to natural areas appropriate for ecotourism, in which the community, and not individuals, receive an important percentage, or all, of the benefits generated by ecotourism. The communities must assume responsibility to conserve cultural and natural resources, and provide appropriate service to visitors in order to guarantee their satisfaction' (Rodriguez, 2004).
An increasingly common approach to tourism management in and around parks is for communities to hold complete, or nearly complete, ownership. This is the case of community-owned lodges, guiding, concessions, and other tourism services. Often the community operates these enterprises via an existing structure such as a 'Friends of...' association or community-based incorporated group. Alternatively, several family members or groups from within the community engage in an ecotourism enterprise.
While there are relatively few of these models, they are increasing in number, especially in Latin America (for example, Albergue Chalalan and Mapajo Lodge in Bolivia). There is a need to be mindful that there are Community Conserved Areas (CCAs)3
owned and conserved by communities, where community-based tourism also takes place.
Case study: a community-owned ecotourism business in Albergue Chalalan, Bolivia Chalalan is the first eco-business in Bolivia that is entirely community-owned and managed.
Its achievements in linking tourism with conservation and development are the result of a joint effort between San Jose de Uchupiamonas indigenous community, Conservation International (CI) and the InterAmerican Development Bank (IDE).
Madidi National Park, created in 1995, protects a swathe of land that stretches from the high Andes to the Amazon Basin. Spanning 19,000 square kilometers, Madidi features lowland rainforests, cloud forests, dry forests, and pampas grasslands. The park is home to 1000 species of birds, 44% of all mammal species known to the Americas, and 38% of all neotropical amphibians. Each year, 7000-8000 tourists are drawn to the unmatched variety of plants and animals and stunning landscapes.
Chalalan Lodge is one component of a broader programme that aims to connect ecotourism with sustainable development, biodiversity conservation, and organizational strengthening in the San Jose de Uchupiamonas community. The guiding philosophy is that the long-term effective management of Madidi NP hinges on the well-being of resident communities. Sustainable development and biodiversity conservation are the long-range goals for the Chalalan project.
Tourism, Indigenous and Local Communities and Protected Areas in Developing Nations 79 Chalalan had three main steps to complete as a project aimed at offering tourists a jungle tour as well as connecting tourism with biodiversity conservation and community development. The first is to create a viable tourism operation, which entailed building the lodge, related infrastructure and trail systems; then training staff in hotel management and service through on-site experiential learning and rotating shifts; and lastly establishing a corporate structure. A sociedad anonima (legal company) was registered, formally making Chalalan a community-based enterprise.
The project implementation spanned five years from inception to transfer of full ownership and management by the San Jose community. As a project aimed at balancing economic needs of people in Madidi with conservation of natural resources in the park, Chalalan is an ongoing endeavour that continues to undergo changes, adjustments, and improvements.
Adapted from Stronza, 2004b; IDE, 2002 Private sector/NGO/Government management models in protected areas
A more traditional model of PA tourism planning and management is for the private sector, an NGO, or the government to control and operate tourism within or adjacent to a park.
This is generally the case within National Parks, where much of the tourism infrastructure is built and maintained by the government. In some cases, operation is delegated to the private sector via concessionary agreements. Similar situations may arise on private reserves, for example those increasingly being developed for safari tourism in South Africa (Wines, 2004) or NGO reserves (e.g. Maquipucuna Reserve in Ecuador), which are set aside as reserves financed by tourism.
Joint venture management models
Joint ventures are a growing area as a model for tourism operations in protected areas. Joint ventures are collaborative efforts with varying degrees of shared ownership, management, and profit sharing, generally between communities and the private sector (for example, Conservation Corporation Africa and Wilderness Safaris in southern and eastern Africa.
These shared efforts between communities and the private sector help overcome some of the challenges commonly faced by communities attempting to implement tourism planning and management: lack of access to the market; language difficulties; and lack of communication technology (Drumm and Moore, 2002).
To a lesser degree, there are also joint ventures between NGOs and communities: for example, the first stages of Chalalan in Bolivia (above) were undertaken as a cooperative effort between Conservation International and the community of San Jose de Uchupiamonas. A compelling argument for three-way joint ventures among communities, the private sector, and NGOs (Stronza, 2004a) is that this provides efficiencies and strengths from each actor. For example, the community provides the resource base (human, cultural, and in some cases natural); the private sector partner provides capital, infrastructure, management capacity, and quality standards; and the NGO provides for capacity-building, support for conservation, and satellite economic activities such as handicrafts and souvenirs, agriculture, and transportation services (Rodriguez, 2004).
Tourism, Indigenous and Local Communities and Protected Areas in Developing Nations
Fig. 5. An Achuar community member with a tourist at Kapawi Lodge, Ecuador.
(Photo: S.A. Canodros) Case study of a joint venture: Posada Amazonas, Peru
Posada Amazonas is an ecotourism lodge located in Madre de Dios, Peru. The lodge is run as a joint venture between the local community of 80 Ese'eja Indian, mestizo, and Andean colonist families (the Native Community of Infierno) and Rainforest Expeditions (a Peruvian company). The venture operates on a 60/40% profit split basis, favouring the community. The company oversees the day-to-day management, and hires and trains community members to assume increasing responsibility. The long-term goal is to pass full ownership and management of the entire lodge to the community in the year 2017.
Each partner has brought different resources and skills to the project. The company has offered financing; marketing skills; experience in the logistics of transport and food service;
trained personnel; knowledge of Western tourist preferences, and, perhaps most fundamentally, an immediate demand in the form of several boatloads of tourists. The community has brought labour; local knowledge of wild flora and fauna; title and access to 10,000 hectares of forested land; and their indigenous identity, which has already been featured in the marketing campaign. The area boasts a variety of readily accessible wildlife species to photograph, which is important to the ecotourism experience.
The Native Community of Infierno manages approximately 10,000 ha of rainforest which they received title to in 1974. The land borders the Tambopata Candamo Reserved Zone. Tourism is a relatively new activity for the community, providing income and employment; education; capacity-building; and support for conservation of cultural identity.
Adapted from Madalengoitia, 2000; and Stronza, 2001 80
Tourism, Indigenous and Local Communities and Protected Areas in Developing Nations 81