Sunday, December 17, 2017

Week #8/Week of Monday, March 5


Your detailed and thorough post due by Wednesday@MIDNIGHT for full credit (A). Partial credit (C) can be earned by posting late, which is better than a ZERO.

Remember, weekly blogging is worth 1/3 of your entire semester grade.
Be sure to communicate with Dr. W as needed - rob.williams@madriver.com.





Read and blog ECOTOURISM – WHO OWNS PARADISE?, Chapter 7 (Zanzibar: Ecotourism on a Muslim Island)

1) THESIS: IYOW, post a single sentence that captures the thesis for EACH CHAPTER/ SECTION of our reading. 

2) EVIDENCE: Post and number THREE specific observations from EACH CHAPTER/SECTION of our reading(s) that supports your thesis. 

Use 2-3 sentences for each observation, and combine direct quotations from the text (AUTHOR's LAST NAME, 27), with IYOW analysis.

3) QUESTION: Include in your post a SINGLE SPECIFIC question you'd ask the class based on our readings.

9 comments:

  1. Thesis: Throughout Zanzibar, there is a delicate balance between culture and practices while also trying to protect the civilians that already live there. Zanzibar is trying to create a sustainable ecotourism industry throughout the country while trying to respect those that already reside there.

    Fact 1: “A number of academic studies and internal assessments have revealed that virtually no progress towards sustainable tourism development has been made since 1995” (Honey, 261). This is something I found interesting because I would think that they would try to make things more sustainable so they can last longer. I also found it surprising because the Zanzibar government had expressed a commitment to ecotourism and made a tourism development strategy.

    Fact 2: “The word ecotourism has been part of the lexicon of Zanzibar’s government officials and tourism promoters since the early 1990’s. But today, the word is found mainly in print, not in action” (Honey, 269). This tells me that there have been multiple things put on paper to improve ecotourism, but no action taken further. It’s interesting to me that they go forward to put things in place when but when it comes to actually doing something, not much happens.

    Fact 3: “Fundu Lagoon, a British-owned and -managed luxury eco-lodge, is one of the few ecotourism projects on Pemba, Zanzibar’s sister island to the north” (Honey, 281). I think the more eco-lodges that Zanzibar can create, the more of a ecotourism industry they’ll attract. Although they struggled to gain approval, I think it’s worth it in the long run.

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  2. Thesis: Zanzibar’s lack of focused attention on ecotourism and the haphazard government have been preventing true and successful ecotourism.

    1. In the 1970s, tourism was carried out in a lackluster manner; for example, lodges were haphazardly built and were not maintained. Even so, hope was given, which Honey describes, “Most innovative in the Tourism Zoning Plan was the emphasis placed on the involvement of local villages, giving them the ability to propose changes and ultimately block development they deemed to be detrimental to their collective interests” (260). However, donor money and confidence started to disappear in early 1996, so the policy statement and zoning plan were largely ignored.
    2. Matemwe Bungalows is oldest and most authentic ecotourism lodge and truly helps and educates the locals and visitors. It had struggles when it changed from a clientele heavy in backpackers to become more of a upscale beach resort which resulted in the hiring of more nonnatives. At one point, it also switched owners, and the new owners resulted in new changes that weren’t exactly welcome. Matemwe, though, still remains a fine example of ecotourism in Zanzibar.
    3. “But today, the word is found mainly in print, not in action” (Honey 269). Zanzibar struggled in terms of its scorecord. For example, some hotels are trying to minimize their impact, but there are too many energy-intensive concrete ones. Building these lodges has also caused deforestation/habitat loss which leads to erosion and marine damage. As for building environmental awareness, the lack of accountability and focus on short-term profits have kept environmental protection to the minimum. NGOs have helped in this regard, and there are some education opportunities for schoolchildren, but the awareness increase is disappointing.

    Question: Is there a balance between respecting the local culture and beliefs while still being comfortable? Example, someone who is homosexual traveling to Zanzibar

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  3. Thesis: Tourism development in Zanzibar has been fraught with complications. This has been a mixture of political dysfunction, corruption, and greed.

    1. “To facilitate this shift from state-run to free market economy, the Zanzibari government enacted a series of new laws and created new institutions” (259). This move to a free market economy was almost definitely fueled by the powerful hand of globalization. The IFC, which as we know is an arm of the World Bank, played a huge role in the development of Zanzibar. This was done under the guise of restoration and rehabilitation, which is a common thread amongst all of the WB’s incentive programs.
    2. “In 1994, the World Bank itself began multimillion-dollar Tourism Infrastructure Project in Tanzania and Zanzibar whose objective was, according to Barbara Koth, the bank’s first tourism adviser in Zanzibar, ‘to unstick private investment through infrastructure improvements’, including roads, electricity, water facilities, and Zanzibar’s main airport” (259). Once again, we’re reading about a country’s borderline failed tourism industry, and the World Bank’s “sustainable tourism” rhetoric shows up. This is a continuing trend where The WB’s efforts are always accompanied by a significant overhaul of a country’s economy, government, and eventually culture. Once again I am struck by the blatancy by which globalization and imperialism function.
    3. “Historically, Zanzibar has been a popular destination for lower-budget backpackers, but the client base is gradually shifting” (264). Many of the more populated areas of Zanzibar are slowly being gentrified in order to attract more global tourists. Not everyone is as hardcore as Gary Scudder. This has caused tourism to become a greater part of Zanzibar’s national economy. This means that it’s slowly replacing the clove industry.

    Discussion Question: Will Zanzibar’s culture be able to withstand the effects of globalization, or will the tourism industry cause the same effects found in places like Iceland?

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  4. Thesis: Zanzibar's tourism industry was poorly constructed when looking at it through an ecotourism perspective.
    1. Zanzibar is acting along the lines of getting as much growth now as possible well not planing long term. While to us who live in a country that is already well established we take issue with this from their perspective they are just trying to catch up. We are attempting to hold them to our level when they have to work things out on their own first.
    2. Originally Zanzibar used zoning plans in a attempt to incorporate their population into the tourism industry. Due to rapid growth and development this did not go as planed resulting in the zoning being largely ignored. When a plan is ignored it means that any attempt at a sustainable system is doomed to fail as the people are unable to stick with it. It does not mater how revolutionary an idea is if it is not implemented.
    3. Something that hit me while reading this chapter was how using a score card feels wrong. It makes it so that country are graded against one another when they each have their own needs. It does not feel fair to look at them in the same way just as we can't treat all people the same.
    Q. How can we improve their ecotourism without preventing their growth.

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  5. Thesis: There are many reasons why Zanzibar has both positive and negatives with ecotourism.
    1. Zanzibar has had success with their eco-lodges around their country. The most successful lodges have been the Matemwe Bungalows and the Fundu Lagoon eco-lodges. Matemwe lodges are incredibly ecotourism centered and focuses on education and sustainability. The lodge is shifting from being an ecotourism destination to more of a luxury resort while still trying implement ecotourism principles. The Fundu Lagoon is also another ecolodges. They have issues with government and tourism laws. These are both examples of two ecotourism eco lodges that both struggle and excel at ecotourism in Zanzibar.
    2. Zanzibar like many other “developing“ nations worldwide, is trying to tap into its natural beauty through tourism to help grow their economy and enhance the lives of their people. With this growing interest in ecotourism, the price to travel and stay in Zanzibar has increased as it has become a popular ecotourism destination. This has caused a shift in the people who are traveling there. They went from true ecotourists and backpackers to more turnstile resort tourists. “Historically, Zanzibar has been a popular destination for lower-budget backpackers, but the client base is gradually shifting” (Honey, 264). This quote illustrates the shift in the type of tourism Zanzibar has.
    3. Zanzibar has been trying to develop their tourism industry in order to accommodate a growing demand that has the potential to greatly impact their economy. To build the infrastructure, lodges, and resorts to meet this demand is unfortunately destroying a lot of the land that in theory this tourism should be protecting. This goes against the part of the ecotourism definition that discusses not harming but benefiting the natural land.
    Question: How can countries, like Zanzibar, find their ecotourism sweet spot, where they are making enough money through tourism to benefit the country while also not developing so much to damage the natural beauty that is bringing all the tourism?

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  6. ECO boom! Well done, all.

    Any post below this line -= C/LATE.

    Dr. W

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  7. THESIS: Although tourism has become a large part of Zanzibar’s economy, there is much to be desired in aligning with the core principles of ecotourism.

    As tourism in Zanzibar began to grow, private ownership of land and foreign businesses did as well. The tourism boom occured in the 1990s, and large corporations from overseas began to buy land in Zanzibar to set up large hotels and other tourism hubs. “Today Zanzibar’s tourism industry continues to be characterized by haphazard development trends. Community owned lands along the east coast have become private, mostly leased to foreigners and across the island, most lands of any value for tourism development have already been sold” (Honey 263).
    Conservation and development efforts for ecotourism in Zanzibar began to look up with the development of 6 protected areas in Zanzibar, including two forests and 4 marine reserves. However, there are downsides to these conservation efforts. In creating protected lands, these lands and natural resources are oftentimes being taken away from those most entitled to them- local and indigenous peoples. “In the case of both Mnemba and Chumbe, when the government leased the islands for development of private ecotourism lodges and marine reserves, fisherman lost access to resources without, many argue, fair and immediate compensation, thus endangering the livelihoods of already poor families” (Honey 278).
    “Virtually all government-based efforts to incorporate local people in tourism development and benefit sharing in Zanzibar have failed. Villages have lost access to land and the resources found on that land, such as coconut trees, fish, and seaweed. In some cases, open conflict has resulted from disagreement between locals and hotel owners about access to and use of resources” (Honey 291-292). This quote sums up a key problem in the Zanzibar tourism industry- employing local people. The lack of local employment and consultation leads to a tourism industry that the locals are not proud of or happy about, and one that pushes them further into poverty. Local Zanzibaris are put off by the behavior and dress of Westerners, which has been practically forced on them in a negative way because of the tourism industry.

    QUESTION: What could be done to promote more involvement of local women in Zanzibari tourism?

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  8. https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1N4su9ekVrpxHgbZuEJwfKa5m20I0QeqSe6xHnoTQ1cg/edit?usp=sharing

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  9. Thesis: Zanzibar is a cultured nation with many faiths and demographics as well as a rich history, but threats from abroad and within create a risk for the island nation and could send it down a very self-destructive path.
    1) “In 1994, the World Banks itself began a multimillion-dollar Tourism infrastructure project…taken together these reforms moved Zanzibar from the socialist camp to the neoliberal USAID-World Bank-IMF camp, with emphasis on export-oriented, private-sector economic development,” (Honey, 259) This is classic for the IMF and World Bank: they often place extreme economic policies in a country and force it to follow wheat they think is a successful model of development for a start-up nation, though I don’t think they have actually ever set up a country well, like, ever. Of course it is based off of unrealistic expectations with little based in the reality of the needs of the nation.
    2) “[Sibylle] Riedmiller recalls, ‘My vision was NOT ecotourism, but marine conservation and environmental education. Tourism income was only meant to be instrumental for that,’” (Honey, 273) I don’t think there is anything wrong with the ideals of Riedmiller, in-fact I’m certain that ecotourism was somewhat developed with that goal in mind. Ecotourism isn’t exactly the end goal, it is just the means to such an end. I think it’s an important distinction to make.
    3) I’m going to paraphrase the first part, although Stone town was declared a World Heritage Site, “the government has done very little to improve the conditions in the city or increase it’s tourism appeal. Narrow streets are littered with trash an the air is thick with exhaust… winding alleys and public spaces… are crowed by souvenir hawkers,” (Honey, 285) This is probably the most infuriating chapter in this entire book. Honey needs to get off of her high ecotourist horse and remember that these cities such as Stone Town are first and foremost homes to people. She can take her tourism appeal and stuff it for all I care. You do not talk about the downsides of a city just for the benefit of tourists rather than the daily life of the denizens. I get that she is trying to improve everyones well being, but this is the most first world white persons-point of view comment in this whole book and it really bothers me. Honey ain’t all that sweet.
    Question: How can we capitalize on the many different faiths of Zanzibar, I think that their culture, history and faiths can be big draw for international travelers, and if we can combine that into the ecotourist agenda, then the country will benefit.

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