Responsible tourism in the African Great Lakes Parks: Community involvement

Following an assessment of the seven protected areas in the African Great Lakes Region, it is clear that the opportunities for sustainable tourism require further study, leading to the development of a 'Project for the development of sustainable tourism in a specific area of the region'. Identifying the positive and negative impacts of the livelihood activities of local communities on nature conservation; the cultural potential within local communities; collaborative initiatives between neighbouring countries to develop sustainable tourism; efforts in governance, protected area management and nature conservation; revenue sharing and collaboration with local communities living near the parks prompt reflection on the vulnerability of ecosystems and their capacity to recover (ecological resilience) during periods of increased visitor numbers (to avoid reaching the limits of ecosystem overexploitation, particularly in the case of sports tourism driven by increased financial demands). Compensatory and precautionary measures are being implemented to safeguard the quality of life of local communities and the ecological environment.