Community participation in sustainable tourism development in Rose Blanche, Newfoundland and Labrador

Sarkar, Tanay Bhushon (2020) Community participation in sustainable tourism development in Rose Blanche, Newfoundland and Labrador. Masters thesis, Memorial University of Newfoundland.

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Abstract

This research focuses on the community participation in sustainable tourism development in Rose Blanche, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. Rose Blanche is one of the six remaining small towns on Newfoundland and Labrador province’s Southwest shore. The traditional occupation of the local communities of Rose Blanche was fishing. When the fishing industry collapsed in Rose Blanche in 1990, and the town faced economic restructuring, it became clear that the ability of Rose Blanche to grow and provide employment opportunities to its community members can no longer depend solely on the fishing industry. Consequently, tourism has been identified as the most suitable alternative. In this research, participatory action research has been chosen as a research method to explore the attitudes and perceptions of local residents’ about tourism development in Rose Blanche; the community participation process in tourism planning and implementation; and the three main dimensions of tourism impact on the community: economic, socio-cultural and environmental. Eight policy recommendations for future sustainable tourism development in the research area are presented. Findings suggest that sustainable tourism development should be encouraged in the region, but that its potential is limited unless government is supportive of the process and the community members actively participate in the tourism development process by building tourism infrastructure and attracting off-season visitors. This research concludes that despite demographic and economic challenges, the tourism sector in Rose Blanche has the potential for further development, in the form of cruise ship tourism, camping, iceberg visitation and other resource-based activities. The local community’s perception of tourism and the additional environmental and societal aspects of tourism are positive in Rose Blanche, which is essential for its sustainable tourism development.

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