Positive & Negative Effects of Tourism
Due to the size, strength and impact of the tourism industry on local economies worldwide, the debate over the positive and negative effects of tourism is little more than a mental exercise. But to develop sustainable tourism policies, a thoughtful consideration of these effects is necessary.
1. Economic Effects
o Tourism’s primary benefit is the profit it brings the local and regional area. But the financial burden shouldered by a community to build and maintain a tourism industry is also a consideration. Tourism development also opens communities to encroachment by offshore corporations providing services to affluent tourists, funneling the biggest profits away from locals.
Environmental Effects
o Although tourism itself can disrupt or destroy ecosystems and environments, tourism can also be the very impetus for conserving an unspoiled landscape otherwise vulnerable to industrial development.
Cultural Effects
o “Culture” is one of the chief consumables of tourism, and experiencing unusual cultures can be educational for the visitor and highly profitable for the community. But tourism is a necessarily invasive process that thrusts traditional communities into the modern world, threatening their distinct lifestyles and cultural products.
Social Effects
o Tourism employment brings new streams of income into a community but also inhibits individuals from performing traditional tasks, making families dependent on cash income from tourism and therefore less likely to participate in time-honored work and social activities.
The Term Paper on Tourism and Community Involvement
... be broadly viewed inclusively with tourism industry operators, non-tourism business practitioners, local community groups, indigenous people groups and local residents. Therefore planning and policy ... are dependable suppliers in the tourism industry (Holden, 2008). The local residents can exclusively pose a deterrent effect on tourism if not given priority ...
Political Effects
o Travel is touted as a means to close gaps between peoples, cultures and religions, but the extreme differences of wealth and lifestyle between locals and tourists in some areas can cause resentment.
