Informations et ressources scientifiques
sur le développement des zones arides et semi-arides

Titre : Ecotourism development for biodiversity conservation and local economic development in remote regions : a multi-scale approach in the Sahara-Sahel

Auteur : Costa Santarém Frederico da

Université de soutenance : Universidade do Porto

Grade : Doutoramento em Biodiversidade, Genética e Evolução 2020

Résumé partiel
Global ecosystems are threatened by human unsustainable development. In particular, deserts are facing some of the highest species and habitat loss rates. Yet, they remain largely neglected in public discussions and are among the least studied and underfunded ecosystems for conservation, despite providing multiple ecosystem services that benefit people. Therefore, alternative and sustainable land-uses are urgently needed for conserving these last wild biomes and provide local people with the needs to prosper in the long term. Ecotourism (one of the key cultural ecosystem services) has been advocated as a potential solution for the desert conservation crisis, able to conserve charismatic and non-charismatic species while improving local socioeconomic conditions. As one of the fastest growing sectors within the tourism field, ecotourism may serve as an answer for sustainable local development. The United Nations also recognise ecotourism as a key for poverty alleviation and wildlife preservation in remote regions, yet its application to desert ecosystems remains little studied. Among the Earth’s largest arid regions, the Sahara-Sahel is the most neglected desert. Despite being rich in natural and cultural heritage that could substantiate the development of ecotourism activities, regional conflicts and unsustainable activities in poorly governed societies and regions have been detracted Sahara and Sahel countries from proper development. Ecotourism might help ameliorate conflicts while improving socioeconomic conditions for local people and benefit the conservation of imperilled species, but its research and development on Sahara-Sahel is still in its early stages. In this Thesis, I performed one of the first ecotourism assessments and frameworks for the sustainable development in Sahara-Sahel. The main goal of the Thesis is to understand the role of flagship species for conservation and ecotourism and how ecotourism could work as a sustainable solution for desert conservation and local livelihoods improvement. In particular, I want to 1) understand which species can be used as flagship for conservation and ecotourism marketing and where are located hotspots of these groups of flagships, 2) assess which are the most suitable areas for ecotourism development in Mauritanian inland water-bodies (local scale) and in the 18 Sahara-Sahel range countries (sub-continental scale), 3) evaluate countries’ performance in preserving and promoting the cultural services that their ecosystems supply, and 4) understand the implications of climate change on regional tourism

Présentation

Version intégrale (11 Mb)