Socio Cultural Impacts of Tourism Essay - 2965 Words.
This literature search is a first analysis of European studies on international tourism and its economic and socio-cultural impacts on development. The search shows that, despite its recognized benefits, several negative consequences of tourism question the role that it can play in the socio-economic development of these countries.
Examples of negative impact of tourism on the environment are numerous, but at the same time, tourism can have a positive impact and contribute to the sustainable development, providing welfare and social progress. If the tourism is properly organized, it can make a significant contribution to the preservation of environment and culture.
Positive and negative impacts of tourism. Tourism can provide jobs and improve the wealth of an area. Many developing countries are keen to develop tourism in order to become richer and to improve.
The social and cultural impacts of tourism can result in changes to patterns of behaviour, lifestyle and the quality of life of the inhabitants or local people. Tourism, like all business ventures can have an impact on communities and may be positive or negative, and sometimes both.
Tourism impacts fall into three main categories. Environmental impacts affect the carrying capacity of the area, vegetation, air quality, bodies of water, the water table, wildlife, and natural phenomena. Sociocultural impacts are associated with interactions between people with differing cultural backgrounds, attitudes and behaviors, and relationships to material goods.
Socio-cultural factors have been the most important causal factors of social changes. Man is the most important player of social change. In fact, man is the originator and the main agent of socio- cultural changes. Social change has been caused by various human activities in the form of discovery, invention, diffusion, social movements, and so on.
The challenges facing today’s human population in tackling environmental and social issues from a sustainable perspective have substantially increased. Ecotourism, as a sustainable development strategy, became officially recognised in the mid-1980s as a way to enhance environmental conservation and improve the quality of life of marginalised communities.