10:55 p.m.
Dear IUFRO Meliaceae E-list:
IUFRO Spotlight #48 may be of interest. Other Spotlights can be found at:
http://www.iufro.org/media/iufro-spotlights/
Regards,
Sheila Ward
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: IUFRO Headquarters <office(a)iufro.org>
Date: Fri, Aug 4, 2017 at 2:46 AM
Subject: IUFRO Anniversary Congress Spotlight #48: Forest tourism can mean
billions in economic benefits
To: Dear IUFRO Officeholder <mahoganyforthefuture(a)gmail.com>
[image: IUFRO Spotlight]
IUFRO Anniversary Congress Spotlight #48: Forest tourism can mean
billions in economic benefits
*The 125th Anniversary Congress on 18-22 September 2017 in Freiburg,
Germany, will offer a wide selection of scientific sessions highlighting
innovative research and interdisciplinary research approaches of relevance
to forests, and focus on the transfer of scientific knowledge on critical
global forest-related challenges to national and international political
agendas. In a series of "Congress Spotlight" articles individual sessions
shall be showcased to give a foretaste of the richness and scope of
research findings that will be presented at the Congress. Keep updated at:
http://iufro2017.com/ <http://iufro2017.com/>*
*Forest tourism can mean billions in economic benefits*
PDF for download
<http://www.iufro.org/download/file/27078/6521/anniversary-congress-spotlight48-sustainable-tourism-d6_pdf/>
<http://www.iufro.org/index.php?eID=tx_cms_showpic&file=18500&md5=630dceec3d3e283f7a5225d6acc1d93b405766de¶meters%5B0%5D=YTo0OntzOjU6IndpZHRoIjtzOjQ6IjgwMG0iO3M6NjoiaGVpZ2h0IjtzOjQ6IjYw¶meters%5B1%5D=MG0iO3M6NzoiYm9keVRhZyI7czoyMjoiPGJvZHkgYmdjb2xvcj0iYmxhY2siPiI7¶meters%5B2%5D=czo0OiJ3cmFwIjtzOjM3OiI8YSBocmVmPSJqYXZhc2NyaXB0OmNsb3NlKCk7Ij4g¶meters%5B3%5D=fCA8L2E%2BIjt9>
*Tourism and recreation should receive just as much thought, science, and
funding as other forest uses. (Photo Pixabay)*
Dr. Taylor Stein of the University of Florida in Gainesville believes "that
any meeting that addresses the management of the world's forests is
incomplete without a focused discussion on tourism."
While there is limited research on the impact of nature-based tourism, Dr.
Stein pointed to a 2007 report from the Center for Responsible Travel that
said nature-based tourism accounted for 7% of the international tourism
market and had a $77 billion impact on the world's economy.
And, he added, surveys of travelers around the world consistently show that
natural attractions (e.g. wildlife) are important reasons for their visits
and they value conservation and protection of environmental quality.
For those reasons, natural resource managers require systematic research
and up-to-date science to better understand how to best integrate tourism
and recreation management into forest management practices, he said.
(The United Nations would seem to be thinking along the same lines as Dr.
Stein. The UN has declared 2017 as the International Year of Sustainable
Tourism for Development.)
Dr. Stein is coordinator of a session on forest tourism to be held at the
IUFRO 125th anniversary congress in Freiburg, Germany in September
entitled: *Nature-based tourism and recreation's role in sustaining forests
and improving people's quality of life*. He expects it to show that good
science is needed to plan and manage for tourism in natural areas.
The socio-ecological system is extremely complex and sustainably planned
tourism requires a good understanding of that system, he said.
"Forest managers and policy makers must recognize that quality nature-based
tourism planning and management can result in a multitude of benefits. If
managers are not even aware of the benefits of recreation and tourism and
only see recreation and tourism as a cost – as many managers currently do –
then we should not be surprised that managing for tourism and recreation is
consistently considered a "new" idea and/or a distraction from "more
important" forest management goals such as timber or restoration," Dr.
Stein said.
He sees platforms such as the IUFRO Congress acting as a catalyst to bring
about a change in thinking. "Meetings like the upcoming IUFRO one can help
make this change occur.
"As more forest professionals see tourism and recreation presented at
scientific meetings, they will learn that this use of the forest should not
be considered a low priority of forest management, but tourism and
recreation should receive just as much thought, science, and funding as
other forest uses," he said.
"Most natural resource professionals entered their fields to focus on
ecology and were not sufficiently trained in the social sciences," he said.
"I think social science classes should be better integrated into natural
resource managers' educations. Specifically, classes on conflict
management, collaboration, communications, and recreation management should
be required of all natural resource professionals."
He believes the presentations on forest tourism to be made at the IUFRO
Congress, will help those professionals realize that "tourism to natural
areas provides billions of dollars to the world's economies. It also helps
to expand support for forests and the conservation of forest ecosystems and
wildlife. And, not unimportantly, it also can empower communities to
conserve and use natural areas in ways they decide," he said.
"Another benefit of tourism as a theme for the IUFRO meeting is that we can
highlight the diversity of tourism thought throughout the world. Different
cultures manage, plan, and think about tourism differently, and IUFRO gives
us an opportunity to highlight this diversity.
"For example, several presentations will discuss community-based tourism in
Mexico, which often manages its land communally, with the community
deciding how tourism will integrate into land management," Dr. Stein said.
"This will contrast with community-based tourism research from the U.S. and
Europe, which takes a more top-down approach to managing public resources."
The session will highlight research that examines how land management
agencies use innovative techniques to incorporate local community residents
into tourism decision-making and also, presentations related to sustainable
and ethical aspects associated with nature-based tourism and recreation.
*________________________________*
*The September 18-22 Congress in Freiburg will celebrate IUFRO's 125th
anniversary. Founded in 1892 in Eberswalde Germany, IUFRO has grown to
unite more than 15,000 scientists (who cooperate in IUFRO on a voluntary
basis) in almost 700 member organizations in more than 120 countries.IUFRO
promotes global cooperation in forest-related research and enhances the
understanding of the ecological, economic and social aspects of forests and
trees. It disseminates scientific knowledge to stakeholders and
decision-makers and contributes to forest policy and on-the-ground forest
management.About 2000 scientists from 89 countries are expected to attend
the Congress. The Forest Landowner Research session in Freiburg will be one
of 172 scientific sessions that will cover a wide array of topics dealing
with various aspects of forest research.See you at the IUFRO 125th
Anniversary Congress in Freiburg, Germany!Look out for #IUFRO2017
<https://twitter.com/hashtag/iufro2017?f=tweets&vertical=default&src=hash>
on Twitter and @iufro2017 <https://www.facebook.com/iufro2017> on Facebook!*
*________________________________*
The International Union of Forest Research Organizations (IUFRO) is the
only worldwide organization devoted to forest research and related
sciences. Its members are research institutions, universities, and
individual scientists as well as decision-making authorities and other
stakeholders with a focus on forests and trees.
Visit: http://www.iufro.org/
*________________________________*
*IUFRO 125th Anniversary Congress Spotlight #48, published in August 2017by
IUFRO Headquarters, Vienna, Austria.Available for download at:
**http://www.iufro.org/media/iufro-spotlights/
<http://www.iufro.org/media/iufro-spotlights/>*
*Contact the editor at office(at)iufro.org <office(a)iufro.org> or visit
http://www.iufro.org/ <http://www.iufro.org/index.php?id=104>*
If you do not wish to receive *IUFRO Spotlight* publications, please email
us at: office(at)iufro.org <office(a)iufro.org>
*Imprint: http://www.iufro.org/legal/#c18944
<http://www.iufro.org/legal/#c18944>*
