Information needs for building a foundation for enhancing sustainable tourism as a development goal: an introduction

Abstract

Societies are inevitably connected to their natural and cultural heritage, in one or many ways. Ensuring that this heritage endures is one of their most significant obligations, thus leaving this heritage for their successors. But ensuring this heritage endures requires this heritage to be carefully stewarded which itself requires knowledge and understanding. Developing an appreciation for this heritage contains within itself a recipe for its very destruction. Understanding builds resilience which is a necessary but not sufficient condition for sustainability. This book is about understanding the challenges that face the sustainability of tourism to stimulate the research that is needed to address these challenges so eventually we can build understanding.