Abstract
Tourism can stimulate economies, promote cultural preservation, and incentivize environmental conservation. The tourism assessment and planning process described in this article is a tool for facilitating tourism development at the community level by helping entrepreneurs assess the products and services they currently offer, align their current tourism products with best practices for improving their businesses' sustainability, and coordinate efforts to harness the full benefits of sustainable nature-based tourism or ecotourism. Extension educators can use this tool to educate and coordinate tourism entrepreneurs and to encourage them to adopt practices that maximize the cultural, social, economic, and environmental benefits of local tourism by minimizing potential negative impacts.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Journal | Journal of Extension |
| Volume | 55 |
| Issue number | 5 |
| State | Published - Oct 1 2017 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:The tool described here could not exist without the hospitality, excitement, and engagement of Erin Meier, University of Minnesota's Southeast Sustainable Development Partnership; Joe Deden and the staff of Eagle Bluff Environmental Learning Center; Fillmore County's tourism-based businesses; and our capstone teammates Kristina Werden and Chou Moua.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2017 Extension Journal Inc.
