O.F.A DEL CRIADERO ESPIRITU SANTO

As the literature review revealed, there is a wide range of definitions of ecotourism, based on a variety of contexts and perspectives. It is worth exploring the research participants’ own conceptualisation of ecotourism, in order to be able to assess ecotourism’s impacts more practically. This is because the understanding of the term can reflect local people’s and decision makers’ aspirations, and will also influence the way ecotourism is implemented to achieve its perceived expectations. Based on the review of the definition of ecotourism in Chapter 2, it can be seen that the majority of studies, including those by Beeton (1998), Blamey (1997), Orams (1995), as well as Wearing and Neil (1999), to name a few, assume the practice of

ecotourism takes place in relatively undisturbed natural environments, especially in relation to wildlife. Accordingly, the main ecotourism destinations are largely reduced to forest parks, nature reserves and protected areas. More recently, commentators like Gibson et al. (2003), Higham and Lück (2002), as well as Weaver (2006), challenge the limitations of conventional definitions of ecotourism by extending the destinations of ecotourism operations from the narrowly nature-based environments to modified areas, reclaimed sites, urban environments and the like.

The research in Tengtou village conveyed that the interpretation of ecotourism by the local population differed from the majority of the prevailing literature which emphasised natural attractions as the key dimension. This is because the main attractions of ecotourism in this research field are basically an artificial park and the environmentally healthy image of the village, rather than distinctive natural landscape or famous historic sites. Based on interviews with the ex-manager of the Tengtou Travel Company, local officials, and other local residents, it appears that overall there is fairly broad consensus that ecotourism does not necessarily need to be a form of nature-oriented travel. Rather, it is regarded by them as a type of tourism that is careful about its impact on the environment, no matter whether it is natural or modified. In other words, a sound environment is considered as a crucial element of ecotourism by local participants in conceptualising their own views of the notion of ecotourism:

Ecotourism in our village is due to the sound environment. Since we have a beautiful park, and the whole village is beautifully clean, the number of tourists coming to visit our village increases. See, all the streets are cleaned twice a day, and all these flowers and trees are well looked after by certain staff (A retiree, personal communication, May 2007).

As such, the understanding of ecotourism in the context of Tengtou village reflects Tisdell’s (1996) classification of ‘environmentally sensitive tourism’, as discussed in Chapter 2. Meanwhile, the results of this research show support for suggestions

proposed by those more recent ecotourism writings, by arguing that the destination areas of ecotourism can be expanded beyond a variety of nature reserves or pristine nature-based areas, to the natural rural scenery, manufactured parks, green land and other scenic spots with carefully protected environments. The significance of an environmental dimension in defining ecotourism shows in the findings is in line with the prevailing ecotourism literature, such as Lindberg et al. (1997), Weaver (2001), and many others. Therefore, it can be argued that aside from focusing on the natural environment as the vital component of ecotourism, the interpretations of ecotourism in the research suggest that it shares similarities with other dimensions, such as those identified by the conventional ecotourism literature, especially in emphasising ecotourism’s environmental protection and educational roles.

Moreover, in the context of Tengtou village, local participants also mentioned that pursuing human beings living in harmony with their living environment is a distinctive theme that characterises their village’s ecotourism. Such an understanding indicates that ecotourism is not merely pursued as a matter of presenting beautiful scenery from several tourist attractions to attract tourists. It is also about working towards a kind of friendly relationship between local people and their surrounding environment. Ross and Wall (1999) mirror the view that ecotourism is justified on the basis that it pays particular attention to fostering symbiotic relationships between natural areas and local populations.

On the other hand, it is worth noting that as mentioned in Chapter 3, it is typical for ecotourism practised in China to involve a large number of tourists and with a highly modified entertainment infrastructure. This is also the case in Tengtou, which, to some extent, may not meet Western views of the definition of ecotourism, but may be appropriate given the large numbers of domestic tourists for which China must cater. As discussed in Chapter 2, Western countries attach great importance to the environmental and social-cultural aspects of ecotourism, which justifies the small scale and limited infrastructure development as the ideal ecotourism. However, in

the context of China, due to its large population, it is more realistic and desirable to practise large scale ecotourism. Thus, the development of a wide range of tourism-related infrastructure is also necessary, in order to meet the needs of tourists and bring sufficient tangible benefits to local people.