Protected areas valorisation and sustainable tourism
This MOOC is about the sustainable use or valorisation of natural resources in protected areas. The main goal of this course is to introduce some of the commonly-used ways to sustainably valorise protected areas (and their resources), thereby contributing to their long-term conservation. It will focus on two complementary approaches: the first part of the MOOC will cover the benefits (direct or indirect) provided by natural resources in protected areas, while the second part will focus on sustainable tourism and its benefits, costs, opportunities and threats.
MOOC syllabus
Module 1: Protected areas ecosystem services
1.2 What are ecosystem services?
1.3 The range of ecosystem services and associated typology
1.4 Food security
1.5 Water security
1.6 Human security
1.7 Climate change: adaptation and mitigation
1.8 Cultural and spiritual values
Module 2: Managing ecosystem services
2.2 Understanding ecosystem services
2.3 Opportunities for protected areas to supply ecosystem services
2.4 Threats from the use of protected areas to deliver ecosystem services
2.5 Assessment and evaluation: understanding ecosystem services from protected areas
2.6 Management of direcct values from protected area ecosystem services
2.7 Management of indirect and non-use values from protected area ecosystem services
2.8 Monitoring and evaluation
Module 3: Rights and benefits for local and more distant communities
3.2 Distribution of benefits from ecosystem services supplied by protected areas
3.3 Participatory approaches to understanding the range of benefits supplied by protected areas
3.4 Free, prior and informed consent and other principles
3.5 Resource-use agreements
3.6 Co-benefits, such as payment for ecosystem services schemes
3.7 Managing expectations
Module 4: Tourism and visitation in protected areas: governance and impacts
4.2 About the IUCN WCPA tourism and protected areas specialist group and the best practice guidelines
4.3 Sustainable tourism in proteted areas
4.4 Environmental costs and benefits
4.5 Social and cultural costs and benefits
4.6 Economic costs and benefit
Module 5: Aligning PA management objectives and tourism
5.2 Principle 1 and 2 on management objectives and proactive planning
5.3 Principle 3: changing visitor use conditions
5.4 Principle 4: impacts on resources and social conditions
5.5 Principle 5: management is directed to influence human behaviour and minimising tourism induced changed
5.6 Principle 6: impacts are influenced by many factors, and limiting use is one option
5.7 Principle 7: monitoring is essential
5.8 Principles 8 and 9: decision making and affected groups
5.9 Principle 10: communication is key for knowledge and sustainability
Module 6: Capacity building, managing tourism revenues for conservation
6.2 Capacity building
6.3 Generating tourism revenue from fees and donations
6.4 Generating tourism revenue from concessions
6.5 Cost saving and efficiency
6.6 Wider economic benefits and links to conservation outcomes
6.7 The future of protected area tourism
The instructors
There are three instructors presenting this course: Geoffroy Mauvais (IUCN-Papaco), Nigel Dudley (Equilibrium Research) and Anna Spenceley (WCPA-TAPAS). The content of the course was created by these instructors as well as Sue Stolton (Equilibrium Research) and Andrew Rylance (WCPA-TAPAS).
Practical information
Follow this course online, on this platform, at your own pace.
Duration: 40 hours of work online and offline (this is an estimate, the reality depends on each student).
Price: free (including the attestation).