Community-Based Ecotourism in the Maya World
Date
2020-05
Authors
Silveira, Cody
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Abstract
This thesis research seeks to evaluate a paradox of sorts interrelating the
successes, challenges, and opportunities of community-based ecotourism development in
Guatemala. In the village of Uaxactún, in the northern Petén department, tourism
development has floundered despite the community’s surrounding archaeology sites,
forests, biodiversity, and unique cultural tourism experiences. To understand the reasons
contributing to a lack of tourism initiative, awareness, and development, the products,
marketing strategies, and structural dynamics hindering community and ecotourism
growth within Uaxactún were assessed. Further completion of this research also
encompassed four weeks of ethnographic based field methods such as semi-structured
interviews, archival analysis, and participant observations. I argue that Uaxactún has
immense potential to develop community and ecotourism as an economic supplement to
agriculture and the harvesting of non-traditional forestry products (NTFPS). The
community boasts the first excavated ruins in the Mayan World, an onsite museum with
over 500 artifacts, and tours regarding the history and viability of community forest
management. Despite these positive aspects, the community’s tourism sector faces
significant challenges. Community tourism remains hindered by a lack of promotion,
adequate accommodations, and reliable and safe transportation. Furthermore, I argue that
two of the most pressing challenges facing future tourism potential and development
within Uaxactún are a lack of interest in and prioritization of community tourism by the
Guatemalan government, and relatedly, large-scale traditional tourism in the Maya Biosphere Reserve (MBR) that threatens to undermine forestry communities. Uaxactún’s
experience is not unique; rather, it illuminates the challenges and opportunities of
community and ecotourism development across the Global South.
Description
Keywords
Community development, Ecotourism
Citation
Silveira, C. (2020). <i>Community-based ecotourism in the Maya world</i> (Unpublished thesis). Texas State University, San Marcos, Texas.