The role of ecotourism in developing local communities in Indonesia

ABSTRACT

Ecotourism has evolved into a strategy for establishing sustainable livelihoods and plays a vital role in the management of local communities. It confronts numerous difficulties despite appearing to be the ideal tool for enhancing socio-economic development. This study examined how ecotourism helps local communities thrive through a case study of a tourist village in Wringinputih, Borobudur, Central Java, Indonesia. A series of observations and interviews were conducted to learn more about the ecotourism of rural development. The results showed two opposing views on the importance of the concept. It considerably improves perceptions of openness, ties-based local communities and resource preservation. On the other side, there are considerable obstacles to the tourist village’s effective sustainability, including corruption, local disbelief in the government, and a lack of ecotourism in planning initiatives. Recommendations are made on how the development programme can offer a sharp analysis to comprehend the characteristics of local communities in the planning and management process.

KEYWORDS:

• Ecotourism
• community development
• the tourist village
• Wringinputih Village
• Indonesia

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

.