Geology Reference
In-Depth Information
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Keywords
Geotourism
Geoparks
Africa
Sustainable and rural development
Mots-clés
G
é
otourisme
G
é
oparcs
Afrique
D
é
veloppement rural et durables
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1
Introduction
ndings show that the concepts of Geotourism and
Geoparks are relatively new but, since they are both
opportunities for rural community development, they present
essential credentials for poverty alleviation and sustainable
development in Africa. The other key
Key
Geotourism, or tourism related to geological sites and fea-
tures, including geomorphological sites and landscapes, can
be seen as a relatively new phenomenon (Dowling
2009a
)
and a subgroup of geology and tourism. Though still in
infancy stage and emerging as tourism niche markets
awaiting further development and commercialisation, geo-
tourism and geoparks have been credited as tools for rural
development, local community participation and poverty
alleviation. It is noteworthy that through involving local
communities in innovative strategies and geomarketing,
such as creating geotours, geoproducts, geomuseums, geo-
tourism and geoparks try to promote the local economy and
public knowledge about geology (Farsani et al.
2010
).
Moreover, promoters of geotourism and geoparks engage
local people in conservation activities, education and tour-
ism development. According to the European Geoparks
Network (EGN) charter and Global Geopark Network reg-
ulations, all geoparks have to be established in rural areas.
Therefore, geotourism and geoparks are opportunities for
rural development, and they contribute to efforts in allevi-
ating poverty, unemployment and migration to urban areas.
Thus far the concepts of geotourism and geoparks play an
important role in local economic development and sustain-
able rural development, by increasing the number of tourists.
They have to support the establishment of local crafts and
replicas, as well as support local products. Consequently,
visitors to geoparks can actually take with them, together
with emotions and knowledge, locally manufactured goods
(Frey et al.
2006
). This paper focuses on a review of the
contemporary prospects of geotourism and geoparks for
sustainable rural and economic development.
nding is that geo-
tourism and geoparks are new phenomena with limited data
—
further research is needed to improve the understanding of
their capabilities, especially in Africa.
2
Geotourism and Geoparks—A Review
2.1
Geotourism and Sustainability
The roots of geotourism can be traced as far back as 1956
when one pioneer of Italian geology, Michele Gortani, stated
that;
s mind, the landscape comes alive and
talks. Every stone, every form of coast or mountain or valley
tells its story, evoking the vicissitudes of its history and it
“
to the geologist
'
'
s
becoming
(Neto de Carvalho and Rodrigues
2009
). Hose
(
1995
) documents that the geotourism concept was devel-
oped and promoted from the early 1990s onwards. Joyce
(
2006
) argues that geotourism is a relatively neoteric term
not yet appearing in dictionaries. It can be seen as an aug-
mentation of tourism generally and parallel to ecotourism in
particular. Perhaps geotourism is looking back to the 18th
century Grand Tour, the aims of which were learning, edu-
cation and self-improvement. Joyce (
2006
) adds that
”
Geo-
tourism, or tourism related to geological sites and features,
can be seen as an innovative phenomenon
“
. National Geo-
graphical Centre for Sustainable Development de
”
nes geo-
tourism as
Tourism that sustains or enhances the
geographical characters of a place, its environment, heritage,
“
