People and Tourism in Fragile Environments

• Description
• Contents

Mountains, deserts, savannahs and the polar regions are fragile both in their ecologies and the cultures of their inhabitants. These fragile environments are characterised by a marked seasonality, and many human activities are limited to clearly defined times of the year. Environmental impacts arise not only from traditional economic activities, but also from tourism which has recently grown rapidly in many of these environments around the world. This trend is welcomed by the tourism industry but viewed with apprehension by many organisations concerned with protecting the human and natural systems of fragile environments. While tourism can provide new sources of revenue and help stem depopulation, it can also destabilise communities, making them dependnet on external sources of money and endangered long-established traditions and ways of life. This volume discusses many of these delicate interactions by presenting detailed case studies from five continents.