Co-management as a Framework for the Development of a Tourism Area Response Network in the Rural Community of Curanipe, Maule Region, Chile

Abstract

Crises have the potential to highlight both opportunities and challenges. Such was the case for the coastal town of Curanipe, Maule Region, Chile, which was devastated by an earthquake and resulting tsunami in 2010. The natural disasters resulted in communication breakdowns, which highlighted the intricacies in the hierarchy of the tourism industry and government agencies and the need for coordinated partnerships between the private and public sectors. This paper applies the theory of co-management to tourism crisis management. The Tourism Area Response Network (TARN) is presented as a co-management approach to fostering closer partnerships in tourism crisis management and communication among the appropriate actors of Curanipe. More specifically, the key characteristics, outcomes, and related dimensions of co-management are applied to the development of TARN in Curanipe.