Leisure and Tourism Management Arlt

In Tourism todays "fun" destination types like mountains and beaches used to be places to be feared and avoided until recently.

Places and activities which are regarded as "boring" today used to be focal points in earlier times.

Every place is interpreted, using presumptions, expectations, ideas regarding its touristic "values".

Therefore the methodology of "Environmental Interpretation" gives a good base for dealing with the "Tourism Impact".

Environmental interpretation, 'Landschaftsinterpretation' in German, is a complex instrument of communication, tourism planning and management with close links to a range of other fields. One strand is linked to issues such as landscape perception and experiences of landscape, another to communication (environmental didactics) and another to strategic planning and countryside management, such as valorisation of the cultural and natural potential of countryside resources and visitor management. Central to the concept are the ideas of increasing appreciation of the countryside resource whilst implementing sustainable tourism development in rural areas through optimizing the use of indigenous resources.

Problems include increasing competition between similar destinations, changing tourism patterns and increasing diversification of target groups, with a public that is generally becoming more discerning and demanding. Quality in terms of the physical, cultural and social environment is also becoming more and more important in determining the market share of a destination, as well as a region's ability to respond to current fashions, for instance in sports and recreation, wellness or fun. As a result, regions are moving towards increased diversification and the development of sophisticated selling positions in an ever broadening range of niches.

Two trends appear to run in parallel: On the one hand are the relatively recent types of activities where choice is based on some kind of experience and the setting is more or less incidental (eg. fun parks, leisure parks etc.),
and on the other the search for 'authentic' experiences and an almost nostalgic desire to experience a rural idyll or 'real' countryside roots. In context of the latter, regions are renewing their focus on their natural and cultural heritage, where the natural synergies between tourism development, sustainable regional development and the conservation of cultural landscapes have long been apparent.

The challenge for rural destinations is to use their own and distinct identities in the development of quality tourism as a catalyst for long-term sustainable development. This requires tourism strategies to meet the following demands:

(1) Strategies need to assist destinations in maximising their inherent tourism potential whilst minimising potential negative impacts on natural and cultural resources.

Various criteria have been defined for sustainable rural tourism development in the literature, which can be summarized as making 'optimum and best possible rather than maximum use of the inherent natural and cultural potential' of a region (Kreisel, W. 2002). Optimising local resource means targeted development of tourism, directing visitor flow to achieve ecological and economic benefits and encouraging responsible tourist behaviour through visitor management and informal education.

Sustainability however not only refers to local resource management, but also to integration in terms of the planning process. Strategies therefore need to encourage local participation and transparency in product development as a way towards improved community cohesion and local pride, as well as co-operation between different interest groups and mutual trust as essential components of long-term sustainable development.

(2) Tourism planning must seek to achieve maximum tourist satisfaction.

Current trends in tourism demonstrate that attractive countryside alone is no longer enough. Flexible packages are required that increase the recreational value of the countryside, targeting specific user groups through providing appropriate infrastructure, specific tourism products and quality local services.

Regional tourism planning is therefore increasingly synonymous with strategic and integrated resource and quality management that attempts to create an all-round win-win situation.

Whilst it is difficult to provide an all-round objective evaluation, some deficits of existing approaches are readily apparent. Most common is a lack of integration between different sectors of regional planning and lip service to rather than application of sustainability principles. Often the specific regional context is neglected and tourism products are not meeting real visitor needs. As a result, much local potential and the potential to use tourism development as a catalyst for wider sustainable development tends to remain untapped.

4. Environmental interpretation

Environmental interpretation can assist in optimising the use and valorisation of local resources by creating attractive quality- and experience-based tourism products. Its particular strength - and what sets it apart from other approaches - is its ability to combine regional sustainable development with informal environmental education and visitor management. It therefore has a direct and an indirect contribution to sustainable development: One through promoting sustainable resource use, resource management and social development in the host region (on site contribution), and the other through contributing to environmental awareness and changes of behaviour in visitors (off site contribution). In order to gain maximum benefits, environmental interpretation needs to be considered as a complex instrument of planning, with different elements and levels working together in a flexible and regionally relevant context.

At its core, environmental interpretation can be described as a planning and communication approach which identifies and presents countryside character to the public. By translating "that which is perceived into that which relates personally to the visitor" and "bringing into focus the truths behind what the eyes see" (Everhard 1976, quoted in Wood 2002), visitors can gain better understanding of the countryside resource and therefore have a more enjoyable experience.

Beyond the enhancement of visitor experiences, interpretation has a clear conservation goal in that it uses greater understanding as a first step towards appreciation and care for a countryside or heritage resource:

"Through interpretation, understanding, through understanding, appreciation, through appreciation, protection." (Tilden 1977).

While the desired conservation benefits initially relate to the immediate surroundings - "Not least the fruits of adequate interpretation is the certainty that it leads directly towards the preservation of the treasure itself" (Tilden 1977), it is hoped that effects will also extend to more long-term behaviour and attitude. "If [current economic, environmental and political] difficulties are to be resolved, it will be through the activities of empowered and informed citizens who understand their relationship with nature and the importance of their heritage" (Wood 2002).

In the UK, Environmental interpretation has long combined the presentation of countryside resources and fostering of care with targeted visitor management. In protected sites it is an ideal tool for promoting the dual objectives of conservation and public access. In the context of sustainable rural development, it can yield important economic benefits through the targeted valorisation of heritage resources and places. Environmental interpretation has thus become a multi-pronged approach to heritage management and sustainable tourism development, whose aims combine the original concept of protection through awareness with integrated countryside planning and management. Objectives can be summarized as follows:

a) Didactic objectives: Enhancing visitor experiences and understanding of the countryside or heritage resource through appropriate messages and techniques of communication (issues here include the choice of media, thematic planning, and enhancing the effectiveness of communication with a leisure-oriented public)

b) Behavioural objectives: Increased appreciation of the resource as a prerequisite for careful use (issues here include the effectiveness of interpretation in encouraging behavioural change)

c) Strategic objectives: Environmental interpretation as a tool in sustainable regional development (issues here include the regeneration of disadvantaged areas, management of visitor distribution, improving tourist infrastructure or using interpretive planning as a means of fostering local participation and a sense of identity)

Another way of looking at interpretation is to focus on product-oriented aspects, which includes the provision of all visible and tangible elements of the interpretive infrastructure (eg. panels, visitor centres, guided tours or interpretive plans or strategies), and process-oriented aspects. These include the more intangible aspects of the interpretive planning process and relate to issues such as community involvement, development of local pride and confidence or conflict resolution.

5. The specific contribution of Environmental interpretation to sustainable tourism development

Environmental interpretation has two distinct roles in the context of sustainable tourism development:

The indigenous potential of a region is a composite image of its basic features and characteristics and the current state of development.

Physical landscape features, heritage features and societal infrastructure can be considered a natural baseline which is influenced by current trends and issues. While the natural and cultural 'baseline' is clearly important, it is these additional factors that can substantially add or detract from a region's indigenous tourism potential. They include the importance of tourism for the local economy, conflicts between different interest groups, local politics or decision-making structures for instance, as well as more intangible factors such as the willingness of local people to become involved, the willingness of decision-makers to act or the current national and international policy framework. Indigenous potential therefore extends beyond the natural and cultural assets of a region to include the options available for manoeuvre at any one time.

Identifying the indigenous potential of a region essentially creates a profile of local strengths and weaknesses, opportunities and threats. It is a complex process that requires several stages. The process itself can make an important contribution to sustainable development through offering opportunities for local involvement and increasing the transparency of decision-making structures. Not least can it assist in making decision-makers and locals more aware of their assets, which can help to generate local pride and appreciation of all those elements that make the region distinct and special.

Once identified, the indigenous potential can be translated into concrete products that allow a sustainable use of assets on different levels. On the one hand is the wider strategic level, where products might include a strategic interpretive plan or visitor management strategy, on the other the local level, where products might be a specific trail or series of panels or local interpretive plan. As part of an overall concept, different levels work together to ensure the optimum use of available assets, guiding development in such a way as to maximise use and minimise the danger of overuse.

FH Stralsund - Leisure and Tourism Management Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Arlt WS 2003/2004

FH Stralsund - Leisure and Tourism Management
Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Arlt WS 2003/2004