CHANS-Net: The International Network of Research on Coupled Human and Natural Systems

Journal or Book Title: Tourism Tribune

Abstract: Focusing on biodiversity conservation and sustainable development of underdeveloped regions, community-based ecotourism (CBET) has developed into a relatively mature field of knowledge in the international community. Recently, rural tourism and pro-poor tourism have become the topic of heated discussion and were promoted to the level of national strategy in China, which concern matters vital to the national well-being and people's livelihood. It is estimated that 17% (12 million) of the national population in poverty will be out of poverty by 2020 as a result of tourism development. China's poor communities are mostly in ecologically vulnerable and culturally sensitive areas, which reflects the reality that China needs to grasp development opportunities and concentrate on how to prevent ecological degradation. In the meantime, related practices need to be supported by theory. This paper utilized the new scientometric tool CiteSpace III and used 484 articles (1991-2014) derived from the Web of Science as the data source to map the knowledge domain of high impact literature with the highest co-citation counts. Turning points with high betweenness centrality were applied, as well as literature with citation bursts, so that we could obtain a clear view of the development of CBET based on hot research topics and trends. The results revealed that CBET involves multiple disciplines: Ecology and Environmental Studies, which act as exploiters and promoters; Leisure and Tourism Studies, which lead the way to practice; and Sociology and Anthropology, which reflect humanistic care. The CBET research of the past 25 years can be divided into three stages: the ecology-dominated Sprouting stage (1991-1998); the tourism and politics-dominated Countdown stage (1999-2007); and the Sociology and Anthropology-led Development stage (2008-2014). Research trends can be concluded from in-depth analysis on the CBET's development history. These include: (1) expansion of the research areas by expanding the research area from land reserves to marine protected areas, as well as the adjacent community cultural landscape and following the development of the research to a more broad analysis. (2) Transfer of the research subjects: the research subjects underwent a shift from the natural environment to the local community, which means that conservation of the natural ecological system is no longer the subject being brought to attention, as scholars began to show concern for the social ecological system. (3) Transfer of the research body: case studies concentrating on less-developed countries and regions have long been dominated research. However, there has been a fundamental change in the existing paradigm in which Western scholars were the main force. An increasing number of Chinese researchers have begun to be involved in CBET research. (4) Evolution of research hotspots: scholars have turned their attention to from initial biodiversity conservation to the sustainable development of communities, as well as how to promote sustainable livelihoods and alleviate poverty based on improvement and empowerment derived from increased social capital. (5) Evolution of the research routes: it has evolved from research on management strategies of biodiversity conservation to research on tourism impact based on local residents' perceptions and attitudes, and then on to preliminarily exploration of theories on the CBET system and index drawn from numerous cases. (6) Transition of research methods: Research methods underwent a shift from empirical case studies to the theoretical exploration of numerous cases. The spirit of questioning and seeking and the improvement of localization experience theory are the two most important enlightenments we have achieved for future CBET research. Solid research will be an important driver of the success of CBET in practice.

Type of Publication: Journal article