Sustainable tourism is intended to minimise negative impacts, increasing the potential
longevity of the industry. However, where tourism is intended to further development
goals, particularly in LDCs, conflict arises for the sustainability of the industry, and the
community that sustainable tourism was designed to safeguard. This is particularly
problematic in the case of cultural assets being utilised to establish a sustainable tourism
product. The extreme poverty typically experienced by rural communities in LDCs
constitutes a part of the tourist product. Traditional cultures and practices are maintained
as modern resources, equipment, or alternatives are not available to the community.
Environments and sites of cultural significance remain unchanged, as development is
stagnated by a lack of money and resources. However, as globalisation becomes more
widespread, the desire to adapt to the more dominant culture grows. When the resources
become available for development, in this case, via the income from tourism, the process
will have a negative impact on the original assets the community utilised for tourism.
Traditional cultures and practices can be changed through access to more efficient forms of
technology, or through the import of cheaper or better materials. As accessibility to
alternative cultures and products increase, the adoption of these will have a deleterious
effect on the traditions of the community.
Though this ‘demonstration effect’ or ‘acculturation’ is typically identified as a negative
impact of tourism, it must be noted that in the case of LDCs, development is a common goal
for sustainable tourism. The aforementioned changes represent the achievement of these
goals. However, under these circumstances, the achievement of development goals as
facilitated by tourism, will negatively affect the product. This must be taken into
consideration, as it is not appropriate to deny community development for the sake of the
sustainability of the tourism product, where development is a key aim. There must be a
compromise for which allows tourism to continue to grow to facilitate development,
without impacting sustainability. Whether this can be a practical reality is yet to be seen.
Realities of Sustainable Tourism for Development in LDCs
Despite the challenges identified in this critique, the role of sustainable tourism is still
important for enhancing the opportunities for LDCS with its reduced barriers to entry
compared to other developmental solutions. The above critique has focused on the purest
theoretical definitions of sustainable tourism, and highlighted the contradictions in
sustainable tourism for development in LDCs. It also decreases the extent of the dissonance
between sustainable tourism theory and practical reality. This critique also serves to