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PLANETA

El Planeta Platica (The Earth Speaks):
Eco Travels in the Americas
ISSN 1089-8395
Volume 4, Number 4
Local Communities, Environment and Tourism
November/Noviembre 1997

If local communities play a vital role in tourism, why does mainstream travel shy away from people-to-people encounters? The following articles examine how some communities benefit from tourism. Belize is a good example. On the other side, mainstream tourism in Jamaica diminishes the encounter for both tourist and resident. Indigenous communities, such as the Pech, in Honduras are developing tourism not as an end in itself, but as a component in a new development strategy. This issue may prompt more questions than answers - what is true "public participation" for example. If there are answers, they will not be answered in the short-term, so keep an eye on these issues.

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Finally, a short note up front. This issue marks the end of the fourth year of publication and online distribution of El Planeta Platica. Next year will be the last year for this journal. It may be continue in a different form, but five years is a good span of time to develop and publish a journal. I'm very proud of the work here, and my thanks to readers and contributors alike. The next four issues will round out the publication cycle, and I encourage you to check out Writers' Guidelines if you'd like to submit an article. Future issues will look at travel agents, medicinal plants, trail building and South America - not necessarily in that order. For more info on the decision to cease publication next year, see the regular Bridges and Borders column.


FEATURES

g Rethinking Tourism and Ecotravel: Prologue - Deborah McLaren
Preview of one of the year's most dynamic books on ecotourism. The author's trip to Jamaica raises an awareness that the tourism industry is geared more to image than authenticity.

g The Zone of Silence - Andrea Kaus
Ranchers meet reseachers meet UFO-seeking zoneros in northern Mexico.

g At the Yanomami's - Beata Pawlikowska
The authors travels the Orinoco river to meet the Yanomami.

g Don Lulo's Cataratas Nauyaca (Costa Rica) - Bud Kenworthy
Interview with a Costa Rican campesino interested in providing rural environmental tourism.

g Intentional Communities in Costa Rica and Oregon - Dianne Brause
Linking communities is also a matter of linking individuals.

g Central American Sea Kayaking Expedition - Jean-Philippe Soule
Preview of a regional trip - the author requests feedback and suggestions.

g Community's Control Their Tourism Destiny in Rural Belize - Richard Mahler
When communities control tourism, they stand to gain a great deal.

g Of when I learned what Mexico was all about - Lizette Rolland
Reflections on cycling in the Mexican countryside.

g Exploring El Triunfo - Philip D. Tanimoto
The author searches for the Resplendent Quetzal (Pharomacrus mocinno) in this park near Mexico's border with Guatemala.

g Death Ranks Sixth - Scott Walker
The author contemplates fear number one - public speaking - when he addresses the community of El Cielo in northern Mexico.

g Marketing Medicinal Teas in Northern Ecuador - Tim Sulser
A successful project that maintains indigenous knowledge and biodiversity

g Mexican Perspective on Migratory Bird Conservation - Yuriria Blanco-Castillo
Some studies reveal that native indigenous people know their birds according to their own observations. They are likely to tell you whether a bird is edible or not, and whether it is a good or bad omen.

g Growing up in Akumal - Laura Bush Wolfe
Greening a hotel on the Yucatan peninsula.

g Bioregional Association of the Northern Americas (BANA) - Beatrice Biggs
BANA provides resources, connections, information and inspiration for individuals and groups interested finding local solutions to global problems.

g Visitor Information for the Rio Platano Biosphere Reserve - Arden Anderson
Updated information for anyone interested in visiting rural Honduras.

g NGO Landscapes: Conservation in the Maya Biosphere Reserve - Juanita Sundberg
This article examines the prevailing biosphere reserve model and analyzes its implementation in the Maya Biosphere Reserve, in the Peten, Guatemala..

 

Español/Spanish

g Programa de Ecoturismo en Areas Naturales Protegidas de Mexico - Daniel Ruiz Sandoval
Joint project of Mexico's Environmental and Tourism Secretariats/Trabajo de SEMARNAP y SECTUR

g Los Paramos de la Reserva Ecologica Cayambe Coca: Actores, Conflictos, Cooperacion y Conservacion - Greta Roffler
g Proyecto Piloto de Turismo Rural en el Ejido de San Nicolas Totolapan - Antonio Suárez Bonilla y Juan Carlos Ibarra
g Parque Ejidal San Nicolas Totolapan
g Ecoturismo y delincuencia - Jaime Bustillo Pon y Suyapa Dominguez
g Esfuerzos de la Educación Ambiental en Honduras entre una ONG y la Empresa Privada - Suyapa Dominguez y Jaime Bustillo Pon


ELSEWHERE ON THE WEB

Kudos to the fine webmasters and hosts of other content-rich websites focusing on community tourism.


BRIDGES AND BORDERS

g Getting Religion - Ron Mader
Perhaps this is an anti-editorial, because it asks more questions than it gives answers. Your editor contemplates linking environmentalism and spirituality.


BOOK REVIEWS

Our website is now an Associate of Amazon.com. Check out the reviews and bibliographies and purchase your books online. Sales help support this website!

g Rethinking Tourism and Ecotravel - reviewed by Ron Mader
g The Road to Mexico - reviewed by Ron Mader
g November 1997 Reviews:

    Rethinking Tourism and Ecotravel | Backpacking in Mexico | The Road to Mexico | Baja Almanac: California Norte | Pacific Mexico Handbook | Puerto Vallarta Handbook | Cry of the Earth, Cry of the Poor | School of the Americas | Pocket Medical Spanish | 301 Tips for Socially Responsible Travelers

g Change Notebook

Planeta's Environmental News

g Nicaragua: Environmental deterioration blamed on economic policies - EcoCentral
g Ecologia: Selvas Tropicales - Cecodes
g Where to find Environmental Information in Mexico City


All stories copyrighted. Contact authors directly if you want permission to reprint an article.

I'd also like to take this opportunity to extend my gratitude to the following eclectic group for their encouragement and correspondence that provided direct or indirect inspiration in the creation of this and recent issues of El Planeta Platica: David Barkin, Luis Bustamante, Bill Christensen, Karen Killebrew, Jon Kohl, Oscar Moctezuma, Andrea Kaus, Ivan Restrepo, Manuel Sanchez

Music That Helped Put This Issue Together: They Might Be Giants - "James K. Polk" from Factory Showroom, Mana - Suenos Liquidos, Austin Lounge Lizards - Highway Cafe of the Damned


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