Ecotourism and environmental sustainability: principles and practice (Book Review)

Abstract

A collection of contributions from a 2006 meeting in the UK, this compilation is rather a mixed bag. Most of its material has already been published elsewhere. Of course, the editors of this volume did not have the opportunity to specify topics or select authors, as it is essentially a conference proceedings. No criticism, therefore, for their editorial efforts. This volume does not really have either enough solid new content, however, or a sufficiently strong theme or structure to substitute for the primary literature.

There are five very general chapters and nine case studies. The latter look at: the Andes and Himalayas; a heavily‐visited Biosphere Reserve in China; cruise ships in the Canadian Arctic; bears in Alaska; tigers in India; dingoes in Australia; seals in New Zealand; tropical forests; and botanical gardens. From an ecologist’s perspective, however, the data are rather disappointing, and the depth and detail of the case study chapters differs enormously.