Bridging Worlds: Utilizing a Multi-Stakeholder Framework to Create Extension–Tourism Partnerships

Shane Feyers, Taylor Stein and Kotryna Klizentyte
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Shane Feyers: School of Natural Resources and Environment, University of Florida Biodiversity Institute Fellow, PO Box 116455, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA
Taylor Stein: School of Forest Resources and Conservation, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA
Kotryna Klizentyte: School of Forest Resources and Conservation, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA

Sustainability, 2019, vol. 12, issue 1, 1-23

Abstract: Some counties in the United States are turning to visions of sustainable development in response to increasing environmental problems caused by land use expansion and intensification. Sustainable tourism is one industry capable of fostering this change because of its relationship to all facets of a destination, from transportation and culture to natural resource management. This paper addresses a study that examined what support tourism destinations in Florida need from the Cooperative Extension Service to better utilize natural areas as responsible tourism attractions to benefit the local community, economy, and biodiversity (i.e., ecotourism). A nominal group technique, questionnaires, and interviews with local tourism professionals were used to investigate needs and support for ecotourism development. Results show, when nature-based tourism products are present, growth in ecotourism market supply is desired by tourism providers. Results also indicate that this growth is possible with the help of Extension agents, who would serve as educators on responsible tourism topics and facilitate partnerships between government, businesses, local residents, and visitors. Integrating these results into the (2013) multi-stakeholder framework developed by Waligo et al. for sustainable tourism development, this paper outlines reasoning and process for the Cooperative Extension Service to provide important support for a prevalent natural resource use.

Keywords: Cooperative Extension Service; ecotourism; sustainable tourism; agency culture change; emerging governance structures; organizational capacity-building (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
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