Tourism Partnerships in Protected Areas Exploring Contributions to Sustainability

TourismPartnershipsinProtectedAreas:ExploringContributionstoSustainability

SharronL.Pfueller•DianeLee•JenniferLaing

Received:10July2010/Accepted:8July2011

ÓTheAuthor(s)2011.ThisarticleispublishedwithopenaccessatSpringerlink.com

AbstractPartnershipsbetweennatural-areamanagersandthetourismindustryhavebeensuggestedtocontributetosustainabilityinprotectedareas.Thisarticleexploreshowimportantsustainabilityoutcomesofpartnershipsaretotheirmembers,howwelltheyarerealisedandthefeaturesofpartnershipsleadingtotheirachievement.In21casestudiesinAustralia,interviews(n=97)andsurveys(n=100)showedthatof14sustainabilityoutcomes,improvedunderstandingofprotectedareasvaluesandimprovedbio-diversityconservationwerethemostimportant.Otherhighlyrankedoutcomesweregreaterrespectforculture,heritage,and/ortraditions;improvedqualityofenvironmentalcon-ditions;socialbenefitstolocalcommunities;andimprovedeconomicviabilityoftheprotectedarea.Scoresforsatis-factionwithoutcomeswere,likethoseforimportance,allhighbutwerelessthanthoseforimportanceforthemajority,withimprovementinqualityofenvironmentalconditionsshowingthelargestgap.Thesatisfactionscoreexceededthatforimportanceonlyforincreasedcompetitivenessoftheprotectedareaasatouristdestination.‘‘Brown’’aspectsofsustainability,i.e.,decreasedwasteorenergyuse,wereamongthelowest-scoringoutcomesforbothimportanceandsatisfaction.Themostimportantfactorenabling

sustainabilityoutcomeswasprovisionofbenefitstopart-nershipmembers.Otherswereincreasedfinancialsupport,inclusiveness,supportiveorganisationalandadministrativearrangements,directinvolvementofdecisionmakers,part-nershipmaturity,creationofnewrelationships,decreasedconflict,andstimulationofinnovation.Improvingsustain-abilityoutcomes,therefore,requiresmaintainingthesepartnershipattributesandalsoincreasingemphasisonreducingwasteandresourceuse.

KeywordsConservationÁNaturalresourcesÁ

PartnershipsÁProtectedareasÁSustainabilityÁTourism

Introduction

Thisarticleaimstoexplorethesustainabilitygoalsofpartnershipsbetweentourism,protected-areamanagers,andcommunities.Itexaminespartnersatisfactionwithsustainabilityoutcomes,investigatesifsatisfactionaccordswiththeimportanceascribedtotheoutcomes,andanalysesthecharacteristicsofpartnershipsthatcontributetoreali-sationofoutcomes.

Achievingsustainabilitygoalsinvolvesbalancingeco-logical,social,andeconomicdevelopmentoutcomes(WorldCommissiononEnvironmentandDevelopment[WCED]1987).Theworldmovementtocreatenationalparksinareasofecologicalvaluewasanattempttoprotectnaturalareasfromconsumptiveuses,suchaslogging,hunting,andagriculture.Becauseoftheiruniquecharacterandbeauty,theseareashavebecomeattractionsfortourismandrecreationthatdonotinvolvethedestructionassoci-atedwithotheruses.Thisideahaslednatural-areaman-agerstoregardtheseactivitiesasprovidingjustification,income,andresourcesforconservationandenvironmental

S.L.Pfueller(&)

SchoolofGeographyandEnvironmentalScience,MonashUniversity,Melbourne,VIC3800,Australiae-mail:sharron.pfueller@arts.monash.edu.au

D.Lee

SchoolofSocialSciencesandHumanities,MurdochUniversity,Murdoch,WA,Australia

J.Laing

AustraliaInternationalTourismResearchUnit,

DepartmentofManagement,Berwick,VIC,Australia

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management(Leslie1986;Murphy1986).Nevertheless,tourismandrecreationhavearangeofdamagingimpactsonhabitatsandspecies(Butler1980;BuckleyandPannell1990).Theadventofideasofsustainabilityhasledtoattemptstocreatealternativeformsoftourismthathavefewerimpactsontheenvironmentandcommunities(EadingtonandSmith1992).Onesuchformisecotourism,whichoccursinnaturalareasandcombinesthegoalsofoptimisingsocialandecologicaloutcomes,providingcontributionstolocalcommunities,andfosteringenvi-ronmentalawarenessamongvisitors(Ceballos-Lascurain1987).Amoregenericterm,‘‘sustainabletourism’’describestourismthatoccursinanysettingbutaimstoberesponsibleinlinewithsustainabledevelopment.

Regardlessofthetypeofvisitorexperiencetheyoffer,tourismoperatorswhoconductbusinessinprotectedareasmustabidebytherequirementsofnatural-areamanagersintermsofareastheycanaccessaswellastypesofactivityandimpactstheycanofferandthereforemustembraceaspectsofsustainability.InAustralia,thiswasformalizedintheAustralianGovernmentsWhitePaperonTourism(CommonwealthofAustralia2003),inwhichthereisarequirementfordevelopmentofpartnershipsbetweenthetourismindustryandprotected-areamanagement.How-ever,theunderlyinggoalsofthesepartnersaresomewhatdifferent,withprotected-areamanagersfocusingonbio-diversityconservationandtourismoperatorsfocusingonprovidingavisitorexperiencethatyieldseconomicprofit.Althoughmanysuchpartnershipshavebeenoperatingforconsiderableperiodsoftimearoundtheworld,littleisknownabouttheirsuccessintermsofapproachestocon-servationandprotected-areamanagement.

Sustainability,SustainableDevelopment,andTourismAlthoughtheconceptofsustainabilityisrelativeandmutable(WahabandPigram1997),thestartingpointforunderstandingsustainabledevelopmentisusuallythedef-initiondevelopedbytheWCEDintheBrundtlandReport(WCED1987,p.4):‘‘…developmentthatmeetstheneedsofthepresentwithoutcompromisingtheabilityoffuturegenerationstomeettheirownneeds,’’whichlinksthenotionsofconservationandstewardship(PigramandWahab1997)andrecognizesbothhumanandconservationdimensions.ThedefinitionadoptedbytheUnitedNationsEnvironmentalProgramme(UNEP),theWorldConserva-tionUnion,andtheWorldWideFundforNature—‘‘improvingthequalityofhumanlifewhilelivingwithinthecarryingcapacityofsupportingecosystems’’(IUCN/UNEP/WWF1991)—alsogoesbeyondenvironmentalconcerns.AglobaldesiretocommittobroadsustainabilityprinciplesledtothecreationofAgenda21(UNCED1993,

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p.28),whichwasdesignedtoachieve‘‘aglobalpartner-shipforsustainabledevelopment’’andfocusedongoalsof‘‘fulfillmentofbasicneeds,improvedlivingstandardsforall,betterprotectedandmanagedecosystemsandasafer,moreprosperousfuture(UNCED1993,p.28).’’Thisdef-initioncoversenvironmental,economicandsocio-culturalgoals,theso-calledthreepillarsofthetriplebottom-lineapproachtosustainability(Deeryandothers2005;Dwyer2005;FontandHarris2004).

Insomenaturalareas,sustainabilitygoalsmayonlybeachievedbythetotalabsenceoftourism(Hunter1997),butinotherareastourismcanbeviewedascontributingto

sustainabledevelopmentandsustainability(Bjo

¨rk2007;Wall1997).Thislattertypeoftourismaimsfor‘‘atourismthatwillcarryon,thatwillendurebutthatwillalsocon-tribute,nourishandtolerate’’(Macbeth1994,p.42).However,applyingtheprinciplesofsustainabledevelop-mentinthecontextoftourismischallengingandevenproblematic(Butler1999,p.11).Thisispartlytheresultoftheimprecisenessoftheterms‘‘sustainability’’and‘‘sus-tainabletourism,’’whichhasbeennotedintheliterature(Butler1999;Macbeth1994;McCoolandothers2001;Sharpley2000;Wall1997),aswellastheneedtounder-standhowthetwoconceptsinterrelateandcanbemarriedinapracticalaswellasaphilosophicsense.Thus,thereisnouniversallyaccepteddefinitionofsustainabletourismthathas‘‘becomeallthingstoallinterestedparties’’(Butler1999).Wheeller(1993)suggeststhatfromatouristper-spective,theconceptofsustainabletourismessentiallyprovidesnothingmorethanawarmglowtotheheart‘‘whileenjoyingoneself’’(Butler1999).Morepositiveviewsarethatsustainabledevelopmentisimportantinsettingboth‘‘themoralagenda’’and‘‘apracticalroutemap’’forsustainabletourism(Macbeth1994,p.42)andthatsustainabletourism‘‘recognisesthataprecisedefini-tionofsustainabletourismislessimportantthanthejourneytowardit’’(HardyandBeeton2001,p.172).

Thereare,nevertheless,somecommonthreadsrunningthroughattemptstoconceptualisesustainabletourism.Theseincludethenotionofengaginginbehaviourthatdoesnothaveadversefutureeffectsorconsequences(Butler1993;Faulkner2001;HardyandBeeton2001;Macbeth1994;WorldTourismOrganisation[WTO]1993).Thereisalsorecognitionoftheneedsofdifferentstakeholders(Butler1999;Faulkner2001;HardyandBe-eton2001;MurphyandPrice2005)andtheimportanceofengagingtheminthisprocess.Faulkner(2001,p.344)suggeststhatsustainable-tourismdevelopment‘‘achievesequityinthedistributionofcostsandbenefitsoftourismbetweendifferentsegmentsofthecommunityandbetweenthecurrentandfuturegenerations.’’Anothercommonthemeistheneedtointegrateavarietyofgoals,usuallyeconomic,environmental,social,andcultural(Murphyand

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Price2005;Wight1993).Thereisalsoanacknowledgmentthattourismdevelopmenthaslimits(Bramwellandothers1996;Butler1996,1999;Cooper1996;Payne1993)andthattheboundariesofacceptabilitywithrespecttochange

mustbejudgedbystakeholders(Go

¨sslingandothers2002;MurphyandPrice2005;SunandWalsh1998;WearingandNeil1999).Somedefinitions,suchastheagendaforsustainabletourismdevelopedbyUNEPandtheWTO(UNEP/WTO2005),focusonoutcomes.The12aimsinthisagenda,usingMacbeth’s(1994)fourcategories,are(1)economicsustainability(economicviability,localpros-perity,employmentquality);(2)socialsustainability(socialequity,visitorfulfilment,localcontrol,communitywellbeing);(3)culturalsustainability(culturalrichness);and(4)ecologicalsustainability(physicalintegrity,bio-logicaldiversity,resourceefficiency,andenvironmentalpurity).

Partnerships

Duringthelasttwodecades,natural-areamanagementhasincreasinglymovedfrompurelyscientificallybasedbio-diversityconservationtoapproaches,suchasecosystemandwatershedmanagement,thatembracethebroaderconceptsofsustainabilityandsustainabledevelopment(Slocombe1993)andinvolveparticipationofassociatedcommunitiesandinterests(Kapoor2001;LeachandPel-key2001).Evenalthoughtourismisacommercialactivityrequiringeconomicreturnstosurvive,withinpartnershipswithprotected-areamanagers,itappearstocontributetosustainability(DeLacyandothers2002;Selin1999;Robinson1999;Macbethandothers2004).

Itisrecognizedthatitisimportantforthetourismindustrytoenterintodialogueandpartnershipwithothergroupsandsectorstoachievetruesustainabilitygoals(Butler1999;Goodwin1996;JonesandBurgess2005;Robinson1999;Selin1999;Wall1997).Thisreflectstheunderstandingofsustainabletourismasintegratingtheneedsofdifferentinterestsandstakeholders(Butler1999;Faulkner2001;HardyandBeeton2001;Robinson1999)andacknowledgesequityconcerns(Hall1999;JonesandBurgess2005).Itisimportantthatstakeholdersparticipatewillinglyintheprocess(Butler1999)andthatthereisagreementonsustainabilitygoalsaswellasonhowtoachievethem(McCoolandothers2001).Dudleyandoth-ers(1999)makethesamepointintheprotected-areacontext.Acollaborativeorpartnershipapproachisbelievedtobemorelikelytoleadtodecisionsbeingimplementedbecausethestakeholderswillhavemoreownershipoftheprocessandanyplansarisingfromthem(Hall1999).

Evaluatingsustainabilityoutcomesoftourismpartner-shipswithprotectedareasischallenging(Butler1999;MurphyandPrice2005),mainlybecauseeverydestinationwillhaveadifferentbalancingpointwithrespecttoresourcepreservationversusdevelopment;thus,develop-ingconsistentcriteriaacrossdestinationsmaybeimpos-sible(Tsaurandothers2005).Therehave,however,beenattemptstoidentifywhattourismshouldsustain.ThetourismandrecreationindustryinMontanarankednaturalandculturalheritage,communityeconomicstability,qualityoflife,anduniquenaturalenvironmentasthemostimportantcomponents(McCoolandothers2001).Otherstudieshaveproposedindicatorsforsustainablemanage-mentofvisitoruseofprotectedareas(Tongeandothers2005)oraframeworkfordevelopingsocialandsocio-economicindicatorsformeasuringtheimpactoftourismoncommunities(Deeryandothers2005).Anothersug-gestionisthatakeyindicatorofsustainabletourismshouldbebasedaroundtheecologicalfootprintthatwouldshowatotalestimateofdemandsonthebiophysical-productivityandwaste-assimilationcapacitiesofthenatureofthearea(HunterandShaw2005).

Partnershipshaveanumberofoutcomesinbothnatural-resourcemanagementandtourismcontexts.Theycanactasavehicleformobilisingresourcesandskills,leadingtoefficiencyandproductivitygains(DeLacyandothers2002).Theycanalsosupportchangemanagement(Rose-nau2000),stimulateinnovation(Tremblay2000),moder-atepowerinequalities(LeachandPelkey2001),boostconservationinitiatives(StubbsandSpecht2005),fostercollaborativedecision-makingandconflictresolution(DeLacyandothers2002),andassistwithcoordinationandunderstanding(DavidsonandLockwood2008).However,partnershipshavenegativeoutcomesinsomeinstances.Theycanbeexclusionary,favourestablishedinterests(Rhodes1997),compromisepublicaccountability,andthreatenpublicvaluesandthecapacityofgovernmentstogovern(DavidsonandLockwood2008).Effortsinrecentyearshavefocusedonpartnershipsuccessandthefactorsthatinfluencethis,largelyintermsofthesuccessofout-comes(Blackmanandothers2004;BuckleyandSommer2001;DeLacyandothers2002;GriffinandVacaflores2004;Moore1996;WondolleckandYaffee2000).Withrespecttooutcomes,askingmembersofthepartnershiptodefinesuccesshasmeritgiventheirinvolvementinandintimateunderstandingofthepartnership(Moore1996).StudiesonoutcomesofpartnershipsinAustraliannat-uralorprotectedareastodatehaveshowedalackofconcernabout‘‘brown’’outcomes,suchasdecreasedpro-ductionofwastebytourismenterprisesandvisitorsanddecreaseduseofenergy(Tongeandothers2005).Theyhighlightaninterestinefficiencyandproductivityout-comes(BuckleyandSommer2001;DeLacyandothers

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2002),minimisationofconflict(DeLacyandothers2002),economicsupportofparks(Steffen2003),bettertouristinfrastructureaswellasassetsandproducts(Steffen2003),greaterqualityvisitorexperiences(Steffen2003;GriffinandVacaflores2004;TourismandTransportForum[TTF]Australia2004),andpubliceducationandheightenedappreciationfortheneedforconservation(Steffen2003;TTFAustralia2004).Someofthesestudies,however,involveafewcasesordrawtogethercaseswithoutanoverarchinganalyticalframeworktoguidefutureresearch,andmanyhaveusedaqualitativeratherthanmixed-methodsapproach(e.g.,Bingham1986;LeachandPelkey2001;MooreandLee1999;Saxena2005).Theyalsodonotspecificallyaddresscontributionsofpartnershipstosustainability.Inabroadstudyoftourismpartnershipsthatfocusedonassessmentoftherelativeandcollectivecon-tributionofeighttheoreticalframeworksinidentifyingtheirmostimportantfeaturesandoutcomes,Laingandothers(2009)observedthatpartnersnominatedimprovedunderstandingofvaluesofprotectedareas,improvedbio-diversityconservation,andgreaterrespectforculture,heritage,and/ortraditionsasthemostimportantoutcomesforsustainability.Theresearchreportedhereextendsthatstudybyexploringindepththesustainabilityoutcomes,examiningpartners’satisfactionwiththerealisationofsustainabilitygoals,andexploring,indetail,thecharac-teristicsofpartnershipsthatwererelatedtotheirachievement.

MethodsCaseStudies

Thisresearchemployedamultiplecase–studyapproachtopermitbothliteralandtheoreticalreplication(Yin2003)usingbothquantitativeandqualitativemethodsasdescri-bedbyLaingandothers(2009).Theoreticalreplicationwasenabledbyincludingcontrastingcasesandliteralreplicationbytheinclusionofcaseswithcommonfeaturesandsimilaroutcomes.SelectionofcasestudiesfromthestatesofVictoria,SouthAustralia,WesternAustralia,andTasmaniawasbasedon16criteria(Table1)establishedonthebasisoffeaturesshowninpreviousresearchtobeinfluentialinpartnershipsandwithinputfromanindustryreferencegroup.Thisgroupconsistedof12middle-tosenior-levelmanagersinbothstateandfederalprotected-areaagencies,statetourismorganizations,e.g.,TourismVictoria,andseniormembersofthetourismindustryandassociatedbodies,e.g.,TTFAustralia.Thefinalsetof21casestudiesincludedatleast1casethatdemonstratedeachcriterion.

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Table1Casestudy—selectioncriteria

Marineandterrestrialpartnerships(notbothbutexamplesofeach)Partnershipswithbothmanyandfewmembers

Governmentandnongovernmentprotected-areapartnershipswithortoprovidetourism

PartnershipswithlargeandsmalltouroperationsCoverdifferentfacetsoftourism(access,accommodation,attractions,activities,andamenities)

Partnershipsassociatedwithprotectedareaswithsignificantinfrastructuredevelopmentaswellasthosewithnoinfrastructuredevelopment

Formal(legalstatutoryorwrittenbase)andinformal(noneofthese)partnerships

Best-practiceexamplesfromeachstateandterritory(atleastonefromeach)wheretherehasbeenasuccessfuloutcome,andthreeexamples(atleast)fromeachofVictoria,Tasmania,andWesternAustralia

AtleastonepartnershipfromVictoria,Tasmania,andWesternAustraliathathashadproblematicelementsAtleastoneindigenouspartnershipscasestudy

Atleastoneurbanorperiurbanprotectedareainvolvedinatourismpartnership

Partnershipsincludingregionalplanningauthoritiesand/orlocalgovernment

Jointplanningforandmanagementofprotectedareas(e.g.,transboundaryparks)

Partnershipsresultingfromcommunity-basedinitiativesPartnershipsinpotentiallyhigh-conflictlocales(e.g.,marineparks,periurbanprotectedareas,old-growthforests,andwildernessareas)

SamplingMethod

Potentialrespondentsfromeachcasestudywereselectedandidentifiedasaffiliatedorfamiliarwiththepartnership,e.g.,throughemploymentorparticipation.Aresearchercontactedpotentialrespondentsbymailortelephonetoexplaintheresearchandtorequesttheirparticipation.Anexplanatoryletterandaquestionnaireweresenttoeachrespondent,andaninterviewtimewasarranged.Questionnaires

Questionnairesweremailedoutto125keyrepresentativesofthepartnerships.Theseweredevelopedbasedon8theoreticalapproachesthatinformanunderstandingofpartnerships(Laingandothers2009).Theseapproacheswerepredominantlyfromtheareasofinstitutionalanalysisanddevelopmentframework,social-capitaltheory,net-worktheory,andenvironmental-disputeresolution.MostquestionswerederivedfromC2theoreticalperspectivesandexploredpartnershipfeatures,outcomes,andfactorsthatmightcontributetooutcomesandallwereclosedto

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permiteasierquantification.Questionsrelatingtosustain-able-tourismoutcomesofpartnershipswerebasedoncharacteristicsofsustainabletourismproposedbyUNEPandWTA(2005).The14questionscoveredMacbeth’scategories(1994)ofecological,social,cultural,andeco-nomicsustainability.

Partnershipfeatureswereinvestigatedthrough44ques-tionsdevelopedasaresultofanalysisoftheabove-men-tionedtheoreticalapproaches(Laingandothers2009).ThequestionsweregroupedunderthreecategoriesassuggestedbyBingham(1986):(1)12werepartnerrelated(featuresofthepartnersorpartnership),e.g.,empathybetweenpartners;(2)20wereprocessrelated(featuresofworkingtogether),e.g.,partnersaimforconsensuswhenmakingdecisions;and(3)12werecontextrelated(featuresoftheworkingenvironment),e.g.,sharedaccountabilityfordecision-making.Respondentswereaskedtoindicatewhetherthesefeatureswerepresent(yes/no)andtoratetheirimportanceforachievingsuccessfuloutcomesonascaleof1to5,with5beingextremelyimportant.Afurther28questionswererelatedtooutcomesofthepartnership:14wererelatedtogeneralpartnershipoutcomes,e.g.,improvedrelationshipswithotherpartners,and14wererelatedtosustainabletourism,e.g.,greaterrespectforculture,heritage,and/ortraditions.Foreachquestion,respondentswereaskedtoratethelevelofimportanceoftheoutcomeandtheirdegreeofsatisfactionthattheoutcomehadbeenachieved.Adraftversionofthequestionnairewaspilottestedandrevisedbeforeitwaspostedtostudyparticipants.Interviews

Whenquestionnaireswerereturned,apersonalinterviewwasconductedwitheachrespondenttoexploreindepththefeaturesandoutcomesofpartnerships.Mostinterviewswereconductedface-to-face,andafewwereconductedbyphone.Respondentswereaskedaboutthefeaturesofthepartnership,thesustainabilityoutcomestheythoughtweremostimportant,andthefactorstheybelievedcontributedtothepresence(orabsence)ofthoseoutcomes.Interviewsweredigitallyrecorded,andnotesweretaken.Asummaryofeachinterviewee’sresponseswassenttothemtocheckforaccuracy.DataAnalysis

QuestionnaireresultswereenteredandanalysedusingSPSS15forWindows(SPSS,Chicago,IL).Basicdescriptiveandbivariatestatistics(e.g.,frequencies,means,Studentttests,correlations)werethenproducedforthescaledresponsesandclosed-endedquestions.Questionswerescaledfrom‘‘notatallimportant’’to‘‘extremelyimportant.’’PairedStudentttestswereusedtodeterminethesignificanceofthe‘‘gap’’betweensatisfactionandimportanceforthe14sustainable-tourismoutcomes(Oh2000;TongeandMoore2007).Toexaminetherelation-shipsbetweentheimportanceoffeaturesofpartnershipswithsatisfactionwithsustainableoutcomes,Pearson’scorrelationanalysiswasundertaken.Featureswereonlyincludedwheretherespondentnotedthefeatureasbeingpresentinthepartnership.Thecorrelationsbetweentheimportancescoresofeachofthe44featuresandeachofthe14partnershipoutcomeswereexamined,givingatotalof616correlations.Correlationanalysisofthesatisfactionscoresforthe14generalpartnershipoutcomeswasalsoconductedagainstoutcomesforsustainabletourism,yieldingatotalof196correlations.CorrelationsthatweresignificantattheP\\0.05levelwithr=0.50andaboveindicatedstrongrelationships.Correlationswithr[0.30andthosewithr\\0.50indicatedmoderaterelationships,andthosewithr\\0.3indicatedweakrelationships(Fitz-GibbonandMorris1987).Becausethedatainthisstudydidnotshowanormaldistribution,interpretationoftheresultsrequirescaution;theyshowassociationsbetweenvariablesratherthancausality.

QualitativeresultsfrominterviewswereanalysedbyconstructingExcelspreadsheets(Microsoft,Redmond,WA).Inthefirstroundofanalysis,thespreadsheetswereorganizedaroundthepre-existingfeatureslistedinthequestionnaire(e.g.,accesstoinfluentialpeopleand/ororganizations)andaroundtheoutcomes(e.g.,improvedbiodiversityconservationintheprotectedarea).Ifafeaturewasidentifiedasbeingimportantbytherespondent,thetextblockfromtheinterviewtranscriptwasenteredinthenextcolumn.Similarly,textblockswereenteredforfactorsidentifiedascontributingtothepresenceofthisfeatureandforimportantoutcomesaswellaswhatcontributedtothem.Inmorecomplexresponses,multipletextblockswerederived.Atotalofapproximately1,800textblockswasobtained.Inasecondroundofanalysis,eachtextblockwasclassifiedonthebasisofthemesandfactorsinformedbytheresearcher’sknowledgeoftherelevantliterature.

Initially,onememberoftheresearchteamanalysedthetextblocksandassignedeachtoatheme.Thesethemeswerethenrationalizedtogive19,eachofwhichwasgivenadescriptivelabelandabriefexplanation.Thesearesubsequentlytermed‘‘factors.’’Insomecases,whentextblockscrossedovermultiplefactors,theywerecodedaccordingtothemostusefulorexplanatorycomponent.Asecondresearcherthenconductedanindependentcross-validation(Richards2005)ofeverytenthentry,andathirdresearchercodedonefifthoftheinterviewquestions.Becausethelevelofconsistencywasapproximately72%,theoriginalclassificationwasre-examined.Inmostinstances,thisinvolvedconstructingamoredetaileddescriptionofthefactorsandchangingafewoftheir

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Table2Factorlabelsusedfor1Adaptabilityandinnovation11Leadershipcategorisationofinterviewresponses

2Individuals3Benefits4Commitment5Communication6Continuity7Direction8Expertise9Inclusion10

Interconnections

names.Therevisedsetoffactors(Table2)wasthenusedforrecoding.Recheckingthecodingyieldedapproximately90%consistency.Theresearcherwhoconductedtheori-ginalcodingthencheckedandresolvedinconsistencies.Thisprocessdecreasedthenumberofcategoriesfromthe44itemsdescribingthefeaturescontributingtopart-nershipsandthe28possibleoutcomestoamoreman-ageablesizeandmadetheanalysistighterandmorefocused.Thedetailbeneaththecategorizationwasstillmaintained.Italsomeantthatanalysiswasbeingbasedonthemesandfactorsthatemergedfromtheinterviewsaswellasinformedbythetheoryofpartnerships.

Results

Ofthe125questionnairessentout,100werecompleted,yieldingaresponserateof80%(25nonresponses).Interviewswerethenconductedwith97oftheserespondents(3wereunabletobeinterviewed).TheaffiliationsofrespondentswhowereinterviewedarelistedinTable3.Respondentswerelargelydrawnfromcommercialtourismbusinessesor

Table3AffiliationofrespondentsAffiliation

No.Commercialtourismbusiness(including28accommodation,tours,etc.)Regionaltourismorganization3Statetourismorganization2Protected-areagovernmentagency38Governmentagency

3(notprotectedareaortourism)Localgovernmentauthority

6Nongovernmentorganization9

(including‘‘friends’’ofvarious

parksandenvironmentalorganizations)Localpeople(includingvolunteers)5Indigenous1University2Total

97

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12Performance13Processes

14Regulationsandagreements15Resources16Rolesandpowers

17Transparencyandaccountability18Trust19

Understanding

protected-areaagencies,reflectingthedominantparadigmfortourismpartnershipswithinprotectedareas.Questionnaires

Whenaskedtoindicatetheimportanceofpossibleout-comesforsustainabletourism,respondentsratedallassomewhattoextremelyimportant,withscoresof3.73(3=somewhatimportant)to4.44(5=extremelyimpor-tant)(Table4).Thosethatweremostimportantwereasfollows:improvedunderstandingofthevaluesofprotectedareasbypartners;improvedbiodiversityconservationintheprotectedarea;andgreaterrespectforculture,heritage,and/ortraditions(asdescribedbyLaingandothers2009).Satisfactionwiththeseoutcomesalsoratedhighly(3.51–4.24)(Table4),withthemostimportantoutcome(i.e.,improvedunderstandingofthevaluesofprotectedareasbypartners)alsohavingthehighestsatisfactionscore.However,whenthegapbetweensatisfactionandimportancewascalculated,negativevalueswereobtainedfor12ofthe14items,indicatingthatsatisfactionwiththeirachievementwaslessthantheirimportancerating.

Theonlyoutcomeforwhichsatisfactionwassignifi-cantlygreaterthanimportancewasimprovedcompeti-tivenessoftheprotectedareaasatouristdestination,whichhadapositivegapof0.29.Satisfactionwithandimportanceofincreasedprosperityofthelocalcommu-nityindicatednosignificantdifference.Thelargestsig-nificantdifferencebetweensatisfactionandimportancewasforimprovedqualityofenvironmentalconditions,indicatingthatthisitemhasthegreatestopportunityforimprovement.Interviews

Respondentswereaskedtoidentifythetwotothreemostimportantoutcomes(occasionallyuptofourwhenthelastfactorhadanequalfrequencywithanother)oftheirpart-nershipforsustainabletourismandexplainhowthepart-nershipcontributedtothem.ThethreemostfrequentlynominatedfactorsarelistedinTable5foreachoutcome.

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Table4ThegapbetweensatisfactionandimportanceofpartnershipoutcomesforsustainabletourismOutcome

ImprovedunderstandingofthevaluesofprotectedareasbypartnersImprovedbiodiversityconservationintheprotectedareaGreaterrespectforculture,heritage,and/ortraditionsImprovedqualityofenvironmentalconditionsEnhancementofculture,heritage,and/ortraditionsIncreasedsocialbenefitstolocalcommunities

IncreasedengagementofthelocalcommunityintourismIncreasedprosperityofthelocalcommunityDecreasedwastebyvisitors

ImprovedeconomicviabilityoftheprotectedareaDecreaseduseofenergy

DecreasedwastebytourismenterprisesDecreaseduseofwater

ImprovedcompetitivenessoftheprotectedareaasatouristdestinationListedaccordingtoimportancemean

aSatisfactionmean4.244.114.103.783.914.134.174.133.683.953.573.543.514.02

Importancemean4.464.444.424.314.244.204.204.094.033.993.913.913.773.73

Gap-0.22a-0.33a-0.32a-0.53a-0.33a-0.07-0.030.04-0.35a-0.04-0.34a-0.37a-0.26a0.29aSignificantatP\\0.05ascalculatedusingpairedStudentttests

Theoutcomesmostfrequentlyidentifiedasimportantwereasfollows:improvedunderstandingofthevaluesofpro-tectedareasbypartners;improvedbiodiversityconserva-tionintheprotectedarea;andincreasedsocialbenefitstolocalcommunities(Table5).Increasedeconomicviabilityoftheprotectedarea,increasedlocalprosperity,andcommunityengagementintourismwerethenextmostimportantoutcomesforsustainabletourism.Onlyasmallnumberofrespondentsidentified‘‘brown’’outcomes,e.g.,reducingresourceuse(energyandwater)andwastepro-duction,asmostimportant.Ofthese,thosethatreferredtotheexistenceofmanagedaccommodationsuppliedwithalternativesourcesofenergyplacedahighpriorityonsustainablebuildingsaspartoftheirenterprise.Thefactorsthatwerenominatedmostfrequentlyoverallascontribut-ingtosustainable-tourismoutcomeswerebenefits,under-standing,interconnections,andperformance(Table6).Furtherdetailsfromtheinterviewtextblocksyieldedinsightintoeachoftheoutcomesforsustainabletourism,andthesewillnowbedescribedinorderoftheirimportance.

andsoforth.’’Amemberofagovernmentdepartmentresponsibleforenvironmentsaid:

Themorepeopleyoubringthere,themorechanceofvaluesandrespectforculturebeingpassedon.Parksareforpeople,notjustbitsoflandlockedupforconservationpurposes.Therewillbemoreknowl-edgeandrespectfortheenvironment,themorepeopleareexposedtoit.

Improvedunderstandingofprotectedareavalueswasalsoimportantbecauseitresultedinfurtherbenefitstopartners.Foroneinterviewee,tourismproduced:¯givesapositiveexperiencetoan…a‘‘haloeffect’’

influentialgroupsotheybecomeadvocatesbackinthecommunity.Thissetsthestandardforpeopletoliveupto.Thisimprovedunderstandingofvaluesflowsfromknowledgeexchangefromguidestoguestsandincludesrespectforculture,heritage,andtraditions.

Interestintheprotectedareabyvisitorsledtoagreaterappreciationofit.Inoneinstance,tourismledtogreaterenvironmentalprotectionwithextensionofitsmostpro-tectedzone.Inanother,tourismledtofilmingbyNationalGeographic.

Anumberofintervieweesnotedthatrecognizinginter-connectionsbetweenenvironmental,social,andeconomicaspectsofthepartnershippromotedgreaterunderstandingofprotectedareavalues.Forexample,atourismlodgemanagersaid:

EnhancedUnderstandingofProtected-AreaValuesAdesiretopromoteunderstandingoftheimportanceofprotectedareaswasinmostinstancesasignificantdrivingforce.Forsomeindividuals,suchasguides,thepurposewas‘‘educationaboutthevalues,notonlythevaluesofprotectedareasbutalsoprivateland,aboriginalculture,

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Table5Summaryofinterviewresultsformostimportantoutcomesforsustainable

tourismandfactorscontributingtothem

Outcome

ImprovedunderstandingofthevaluesofprotectedareasbypartnersImprovedbiodiversityconservationintheprotectedarea

No.ofresponses36

ContributingfactorsUnderstandingInterconnectionBenefits/commitment

24

UnderstandingPerformance

Interconnections/communication/direction

IncreasedsocialbenefitstolocalcommunitiesImprovedeconomicviabilityoftheprotectedareaIncreasedprosperityofthelocalcommunityIncreasedengagementofthelocalcommunityintourism

Greaterrespectforculture,heritage,and/ortraditions

ImprovedqualityofenvironmentalconditionsImprovedcompetitivenessoftheprotectedareaasatouristdestinationDecreasedwastebytourismaDecreaseduseofenergyEnhancementofculture,heritage,and/ortraditionsUnclassified

a22181818

Benefits/performance/interconnectionsInterconnections/benefitsBenefitsPerformanceInclusionBenefitsUnderstanding

18UnderstandingPerformanceDirection

15985433201

PerformanceBenefitsPerformanceBenefitsUnderstandingBenefits

Interconnections/regulationsandagreements/direction/processesInterconnection/benefitsBenefits/performance

Resultsforwasteproductionbytourismenterprisesandbyvisitorswerecombined

DecreaseduseofwaterTotal

Table6FactorscontributingtooutcomesforsustainabletourismasindicatedininterviewsFactorsBenefitsUnderstandingInterconnectionsPerformanceInclusionDirectionCommitmentCommunication

RegulationsandagreementsResources

No.ofresponses5132272213109663

ImprovedBiodiversityConservation

Improvedbiodiversityconservationwasimportantbothforitsenvironmentalbenefitandbecauseitledtootherout-comes.Asconservationimproved,visitationincreased.Atthesametime,therewasanincreaseinawarenessofthefrequencyandabundanceofspeciespopulations,locationofsensitivespecies,fireregimes,andaimsofprotected-areaagencies.Assustainabletourismincreased,thelocalcommunityalsogainedmoreknowledgeoftheareaandreceivedavarietyofsocialandeconomicbenefits.

Theperformanceofthepartnershipwascriticaltoimprovingbiodiversityconservation.Inanumberofpart-nerships,memberscontributeddirectlytobiodiversityconservationthroughmonitoringbyvolunteers,visitoreducation,promotingresponsiblevisitorbehaviour,andimplementingsustainablemanagement.Forexample,aleadingrepresentativeofagovernmentorganizationclaimedthat:

Seeingthatagreatparkandwalkhasdirectimpactsandpriorityforbusinesses—Ithasprovidedoppor-tunitiestobuildcapacityanddemandforpartnerbusinesses.

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…thecountryisnowinthebestconditionofany(ofitstype)intheworldbecauseofmanagement—closingdamsandgettingridofherbivorepressureontheenvironment,andthebirdandanimalnumbershaveshotupthroughtheroof.ACommercialTourismOperatorStated

Wedon’tleaveafootprint,i.e.,makesurethereisnolitter,recyclethingsaboardvessels,andcreatenowaste.Nationalparksinitiatedtheboardwalksbecausetheywereconcernedabouterosionoftheriverbanks.They[origi-nally]wantedtoslowboatsdowntostopthis,sowecompromisedwiththebuildingoftheboardwalkstoenablepassengerstowalkthroughpartoftheforest.SocialBenefitsfortheLocalCommunity

Anincreaseinlocalsocialbenefitswasthethirdmostimportantoutcomeforsustainabletourism.Prideinthelocalareaincreasedthroughseeingtheworkandvalueofthepartnershipandlocalbusinessstimulatedthroughvis-itorsuseoffoodandotherretailoutlets.Partnershipsalsofacilitatedproductiveinteractionswithothertourismoperators.

Anumberofsocialbenefitsresultedfromotherbenefitsofpartnershipactivities,inparticularfromincreasedeco-nomicviabilityoftheareaandlocalprosperity.Thesewereascribedtothegrowthoftourism,buildingbusinessandretailcapacityandincome,increasedemploymentandtourisminfrastructureand,asindicatedbytheQueenscliffHarbourpartnership,‘‘investinginthelookandfeeloftheplace.’’

Theinterconnectionsbetweenvisitors,othertourismoperators,andprovidersalsocontributedsocialbenefits.Forexample:

…theincreaseintherightsortofvisitors(peoplethatwanttolookafterthearea)totheareahasbeenencouragedbythetypeofdevelopmentandtheassociatedsupportingmarketingmaterials.OtherImportantOutcomes

Citedbyequalnumbersofintervieweeswereimprovedeconomicviabilityoftheprotectedarea,increasedpros-perityofthelocalcommunity,andincreasedlocaltourismengagementandgreaterrespectforculture,heritage,and/ortraditions.Asoneintervieweestated:

Thoseprotectedareasthatareeconomicallyvaluablearethosesupportedbythegovernment.Themoreyoudothat,themoretheywillbeconserved.Thoseparks

thataresignificanteconomicallyarevaluabletoAustralia.Itwouldbeniceifthiswerenotthecase,butthat’sthewayitis.

Economicviabilitywasalsoimportantbecauseitpro-videdthemeanstoimproveenvironmentalmanagementtofinancebettermarketing,therebyincreasingvisitation,whichinturnhadflow-oneffectsinachievingincreasedengagementinlocaltourismandprosperityofthelocalcommunity.Atypicalresponsewasthateconomicviabilitywas:

Particularlyimportantforthoselivinginregionsaffectedbyfireordrought—needtokeepthemthereandnotmovingtothecities,soplacesdon’tbecomeghosttowns.Onewayfortheregionstostayeco-nomicallyviableisthroughtourism.Itkeepspeopleinvolvedintheircommunity.Wearemovingawayfrom[local]peopledislikingtourists.Bybeingengagedwithtourism,itgives[locals]ownershipovertheirarea.Theyflourishacrossallsectors,notjustbusiness.

Factorscontributingtogreaterrespectforculture,heri-tage,and/ortraditionswerelargelyrelatedtoincreasedunderstandingderivedfromworkingwithpartners,someindigenous,whocouldpassonknowledgeoftraditionsandheritagetoothers,includingvisitorsandthelocalcommunity.

ComparisonofResultsfromQuestionnairesandInterviews

Althoughimprovedunderstandingofthevaluesofpro-tectedareasbypartnersandimprovedbiodiversitycon-servationwereidentifiedasthetwomostimportantsustainabilityoutcomesbybothquestionnairesandinter-views(Table7),thereweresomedifferences.Thirdand4thrankeditemsfortheinterviewswereincreasedsocialbenefitstolocalcommunities(6thonquestionnaire)andimprovedeconomicviabilityoftheprotectedarea(10thonquestionnaire).Inquestionnaires,3rd-and4th-rankeditemsweregreaterrespectforculture,heritage,and/ortraditions(7thininterviews)andimprovedqualityofenvironmentalconditions(ranked8thininterviews).RelationshipsBetweenSustainableTourismOutcomesandFeaturesofPartnerships

Themostnotablefindingfromanalysisofcorrelationsbetweensatisfactionscoresforsustainable-tourismout-comesandimportancescoresforpartnershipfeatureswasjusthowfewrelationshipstherewere.Correlationsrangedbetween0.399and-0.318,with37thatwerestatistically

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Table7Comparisonofresultsfromquestionnaireandinterviewsregardingmostimportantsustainable-tourismoutcomesSustainable-tourismoutcomes

OverallimportancerankingbasedonRespondentsmeanscores(questionnairesn=100)aImprovedunderstandingofthevaluesofPAsbypartnersImprovedbiodiversityconservationinthePAGreaterrespectforculture,heritage,and/ortraditionsImprovedqualityofenvironmentalconditionsEnhancementofculture,heritage,and/ortraditionsPAProtectedarea

aFrequencywithwhichtheywereidentifiedastoptwoorthree(interviewsn=97)a124812

Comparisonsofrankings

12345

IdenticalIdenticalTopfiveinboth––

Thesearerankedoutof14giventhat14sustainable-tourismoutcomeswerelistedinthequestionnaire

significant(atP\\0.05)or6%ofthetotalofa616pos-siblecorrelations(Table8).Ofthese,5weresignificantattheP\\0.01level.Whilstthecorrelationscouldnotberegardedasstrong,someimportanttrendscanbeseen.Overall,themajorityofpartnershipfeaturesassociatedwithsustainable-tourismoutcomeswererelatedtothecontextualenvironmentinwhichpartnershipsoperated,withadministrativeandorganizationalsupportshowingthehighestandmostsignificantcorrelations.Featuresassoci-atedwiththetourismoutcomeregardedasmostimportantandwithwhichtherewasmostsatisfaction,i.e.,improvedunderstandingofprotectedareavalues,wereassociatedwithsharedaccountability,adequatelegalframeworksthatwererecognizedbythepartnership,andexistenceoforganizationalandfinancialsupport.Adequateadminis-trativearrangementstosupporttourismshowedlowtomoderatesignificantcorrelationswiththegreatestnumberofsustainable-tourismoutcomes.

Incontrast,featuresrelatedtopartnersratherthanthepartnershipitselfcorrelatedwithseveralsustainable-tour-ismoutcomes.Inparticular,outcomesassociatedwithlocalcommunitiesshowedweakcorrelationswithfeatures,suchasinclusiveness,participation,leadership,andhavingasupportiveprotected-areaagency.The‘‘brown’’aspectsoftourism,decreasedwasteandwateruse,werepositivelyassociatedwithadministrativeandlegislativefeatures.However,apuzzlingfindingwasthenegativeassociationbetweenthemandtrustandflexibilityindecisionmaking.Furtherresearchisneededtounderstandwhymoreflexiblepartnershipsareworseatmanagingwasteandwateruse.Thelengthoftimeapartnershiphadoperatedwasasso-ciatedwithimprovedeconomicviabilityoftheprotectedareaandenhancementofcultureandtraditions,aspectsofpartnershipsthatwouldnotnecessarilydeveloporberec-ognizedintheshortterm.

Examinationofrelationshipsbetweensatisfactionwithoutcomesforsustainabletourismandforgeneralpartner-shipoutcomesshowed39Pearsoncorrelationcoefficients,

outofthe196correlations,thatweresignificant(P\\0.01).Becausethecoefficientswereallmoderatetolow,onlymoderate(r[0.3)correlationsarelistedinTable9.Aswouldbeexpected,thoserelatedtoeconomicgainasatourismoutcomewerelargelyassociatedwithfinancialaspectsofthegeneralpartnershipoutcome.Improvedaccesstofundingfromthepartnershipfortheprotectedareaorfortheotherpartnersshowedsignificantcorrelationswith8differentsustainable-tourismoutcomes.Theseoutcomesincludedimprovementsinconservation,socialbenefits,environmentalconditions,anddecreasedwasteandwateruse.Improvedunderstandingofprotected-areavaluesandincreasedsocialbenefitsforlocalcom-munitieseachshowedsignificantcorrelationswithsatis-factionwithfourgeneralpartnershipoutcomes.Othergeneralpartnershipoutcomesyieldingtwosignificantcorrelationswithtourismoutcomeswerebenefitstoall,stimulationofinnovativeapproaches,strengtheningorga-nizationalorbusinesscapacity,decreaseofconflict,anddevelopmentofnewrelationshipswithinfluentialpeopleororganizations.

Discussion

Throughusingbothqualitativeandquantitativemethodsandbasingquestionsoneightestablishedtheoreticalapproachestounderstandingpartnerships,thisresearchoffersadetailedunderstandingofgoalsandoutcomesoftourismpartnershipsinprotectedareas.Itshowsthatachievementofsustainabilitygoalswasimportanttomembersofsuchpartnerships,withthemostimportantbeingimprovedunderstandingofthevaluesofprotectedareasandimprovedbiodiversityconservation.Gapanalysisshowedthatalthoughpartnerswerelargelysatisfiedwithlevelsofgoalachievement,therewasaneedforimprovement.Characteristicsofpartnershipsassociatedwiththeabilitytoachievesustainabilitygoalswere

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Table8Significantcorrelationsbetweensatisfactionwithsustainable-tourismoutcomesandimportanceoffeaturesofpartnershipsOutcomesforsustainabletourism(listed,lefttoright,frommosttoleastsatisfaction)ImprovedunderstandingofPAvaluesIncreasedcommunityengagementintourismIncreasedsocialbenefitstolocalcommunitiesImprovedbiodiversityconservationImprovedcompetitivenessofPAImprovedeconomicviabilityofProtectedareaEnhancementofculture,heritage,and/ortraditionsDecreasedwastebyvisitorsDecreaseduseofwaterPartnershipfeaturesEnvironmentalManagement

Relatedtopartners0.2950.3130.2380.260.2840.2250.225–0.3180.2740.2310.3210.2950.2440.2850.2940.3990.3470.2730.2890.2850.2480.2390.2770.3240.3000.2780.2640.2240.260.2470.26Decision-makersdirectlyinvolvedInclusionofallpeopleaffectedParticipationbyallpartnersEffectiveleadershipEffortstowardpowersharingPAagencysupportiveRelatedtoworkingtogetherFlexibledecisionmakingTrustbetweenpartnersRelatedtotheworkingenvironmentRecognitionofgoalsofallpartnersShareaccountabilityfordecision-makingShareaccountabilityforactionsSufficienttimehaspassedforpartnershiptobeeffectiveAdequatefinancialsupportAdequateorganizationalsupportCurrentadministrativearrangements(excludinglegislation)supportstourisminPAs0.2870.2540.3050.292CurrentlegislationsupportstourisminPAs0.237RecognitionoflegalobligationstopartnersLegalarrangementsexisttoimplementresultsofpartnershipIssuesofriskaddressedPAProtectedareaPearsoncorrelationcoefficientsareshownwhereP\\0.05.ItalicizedvaluesindicateP\\0.01123

0.310.31NewrelationshipswithinfluentialpeopleororganisationsImprovedaccesstodecision-making0.34EnvironmentalManagement

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dessatnsecerieercflwntentrDoeacbp/glnainnoeithastzsytgieinnnceaiargstSfrupaoobcnoesitveaihtcluaamvooriptSfnonpiafopihesdsreoevpneirturahPcpadeovtgosersnihApedtP/mccnreIauotiffsseshetcrco,afnrooydgitt,ienasnvissodieurnnmspunaiemfgsmumIortobococttuAnociPepimrmhooefgsnareonnncitEaagmrapneeliraaohtregmfncoeirsgmorhoeemyrtnnbstisiwoomruceudnEybmontioitcsatffiselitnlaaeSBototpomotttshs,)itrdoniwuemootisttin-lmcoe(oalrfitbsfsicae,tanmfimassaootitctttsastSuuoasobel3233..003133..005333..0043.057935333333.....0000053152533333.....000003331..000.0BPerehw87n33..w00ohsera82st33n..00eicfigsntA,ferifisfreedeeoyPitutonntyifctlfaeitsiyysacetsbniuryrotesimuocbbswnrirleofoytleerfoesampnvsiednAo/ittpoitssraeisudnucmoonnoPdlataaeelcfnnatuloormioeascpmbitvieoeauneswwtsenurr,sqdvdymenmnddedoedladodateteseeciegodnovcecevditreevliesrmsicatoitoAesosalvevpoaosasanbntivrietireorPaeleaosornrmrairdoidriespfrpaihearvncsruricrmocorcpopontconlmcmcmvnhrpnotmeceveocateIIIIIIEIDDDePTable9Significantcorrelationsbetweensatisfactionwithsustainable-tourismoutcomesandforgeneralpartnershipoutcomesEnvironmentalManagement

primarilyprovisionofsocialandeconomicbenefitstopartners,improvedunderstandingandincreasinginter-connectionsbetweenpartnersandprovisionofadminis-trativeandorganizationalsupport.Datafrominterviewsaddsrichinsightsnotobtainablethroughquestionnaires.Becauseourstudyfocusedonpartnershipsinprotectedareas,itisnotsurprisingthatthetwomostimportantoutcomesforachievingsustainabletourisminbothques-tionnairesandinterviewsarerelatedtoprotectedareavaluesandbiodiversityconservation.Respondentsareaccordingtheseecocentricgoalsagreaterprioritythanthoseofamoreanthropocentric,financial,andsocialnat-ure.Thesefindingsdiffersomewhatfromotherresearchwhereeconomicbenefitsfortheprotectedareaoutweighedthoseforraisedawarenessofprotected-areavalues(Steffen2003;TTFAustralia2004).Thismaybearesultofthedifferencesinapproachesemployedinthesestudies.Itmightalsoreflectthefactthat58%oftherespondentsinthisresearchweredrawnfromgovernmentorconserva-tion-relatednongovernmentbodies.Furtherresearchoncomparisonsofresponsesfromcommercialtourism,sur-roundingcommunities,andotherpartnershipmembersmightexplorethesedifferencesinmoredetailbutisbeyondthescopeofthisarticle.Theseandotherstudiesalsoidentifygreaterqualityvisitorexperiences(Steffen2003;GriffinandVacaflores2004;TTFAustralia2004)aswellaspubliceducationandheightenedappreciationfortheneedforconservation(Steffen2003;TTFAustralia2004)asimportantoutcomes.

Thenextmostimportantsustainabilityoutcomesdif-feredbetweenquestionnairesandinterviews.Thesedif-ferencesreflectthecapacityofinterviewapproachtoallowrespondentsmoreflexibilityindiscussingquestionsthanispossiblewithclosedquestionnaireitems.Itisalsopossiblethatpresentationofalistofpossibletourismoutcomesinthequestionnairepromptedrespondentstoplacegreaterlevelsofimportanceonmorealtruisticgoals,suchasgreaterrespectforculture,heritage,and/ortraditionsandenhancementofculture,heritage,and/ortraditions,whichmaynotcomeimmediatelytorespondents’mindsduringinterviews.Together,theseresultsreflectsomeofthegenerallyacceptedgoalsofsustainabletourismandthewidespreadperspectivethattourismshouldbeeconomi-callyviableaswellassustainthenaturalenvironmentandsocialaspectsofassociatedcommunities(Swarbrooke1999).Itisclear,however,thatinbothdatasetsthesetourismoutcomesareregardedasmoreimportantthan‘‘brown’’resourceefficiencyaspectsofsustainability,suchasdecreasedwasteorenergyuse.Asimilarlowregardforsuchaspectsoftourismhasbeenreportedbyothers(Tongeandothers2005).Itseemsthatmembersoftourismpart-nershipsarefocusingmoreonlocalbenefitsinimprovingbiodiversityandthesocio-culturalaspectsofcommunitiesthanon‘‘bigger-picture’’issuesofresourceuseandcon-tributiontogreenhousegasemissions,forwhicheffectsaremoredistantinbothtimeandspace.Thus,proposalstousebiophysicalproductivityandwasteassimilationcapacityasindicatorsofsustainabletourism(HunterandShaw2005)appeartobefarfrombeingrealised.

Ofthefoursustainable-tourismoutcomesregardedasmostimportantfromquestionnaires,threeareaccordedthehighestsatisfactionscores(refertoTable4).Althoughallsustainable-tourismoutcomesshowhighimportanceandsatisfactionscores,satisfactionislessthanimportanceforthemajority.Thiscouldbebecausealthoughoutcomesareregardedasimportant,theyarelesswellachieved,orbecauserespondentshavehighexpectationsthatoutstripperformance.Improvementinthequalityofenvironmentalconditions,thefourthmostimportantoutcome,hadthehighestgapbetweenimportanceandsatisfaction.Thisunderscorestheneedtogivemoreattentiontosustainablemanagementoflandandwater,perhapsthroughimprovinginfrastructureinnationalparksandassociatedtourismoperationsanddevelopingstrategiestodecreasevisitorimpacts.Theonlyoutcomeforwhichthesatisfactionscoreexceededthatforimportancewasincreasedcompetitive-nessoftheareaasatouristdestination,whichmightbeexplainedbypreviousobservationsthatpartnershipsimprovetouristinfrastructureaswellasassetsandproductsandthequalityofvisitorexperiences(Steffen2003;GriffinandVacaflores2004;TTFAustralia2004).

Characteristicsofpartnershipsthatenablesustainabilitygoalstobeachievedwhenexploredthroughinterviewsrelateprimarilytoprovisionofarangeofbenefits(Table6).Althoughanalysisofcorrelationsbetweenquestionnaireresponses(Table8)showsonlymoderateassociationsbetweenoutcomesandpartnershipfeatures,whichdonotpermitdefinitiveconclusions,someinter-estingtrendscanbeseen.Improvedaccesstofinancialsupportshowsthegreatestnumberofcorrelationsandisconsistentwithinterviewresultsthatfinancialsupportisabenefit.Thissupportsastudythatfoundthatpartnershipswiththetourismindustryassistedparksingainingfundingandrevenuetoprovidebetterinfrastructureandassets(Steffen2003).BuckleyandSommer(2001)alsoidentifyaccesstofundsasanimportantfactor.Itisofinterestthatthisisalsoasuccessfactorinwatershedpartnerships(LeachandPelkey2001)wherepartnersarenotconductingacommercialenterprise,suchastourism.SimilarfindingswereobtainedbydeLacyandothers(2002)andbySteffen(2003),whohighlightefficiencyandproductivityoutcomeswhenexploringtourism-partnershipsuccess.Inthosestudies,benefitsarealsonotnecessarilyfinancialbutincludespecialarrangementswithnatural-areamanagers.Thenextmostfrequentlycitedfactorscontributingtosustainable-tourismoutcomesininterviewsareincreased

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understandingofpartnersgoalsandtheinterconnectionsthatevolveduringthepartnership(Table6).Thisconfirmspreviousresearchthatidentifiesunderstandingascriticalinrecognisingpartnersgoalsintourismpartnerships(BuckleyandSommer2001)andinrespectingvaryingperspectivesonproblemsinarangeofothertypesofpartnerships(McGinnisandothers1999;Steffen2004).

Again,interviewresultsshowseveraldifferencesfromquestionnaireresults,possiblyduetodifferencesinthewayquestionswereposed.Interviewsaskedrespondentsdirectlyabouttheaspectofpartnershipsthataremostimportanttoachievingsustainabilitygoals,whereasques-tionnaireresultswereobtainedbyanalysisofcorrelations.Apartfromimprovementinfinancialsupportaddressedpreviously,thecharacteristicsemergingareinclusion,supportiveorganisationalandadministrativearrangements,anddirectinvolvementofdecisionmakers,whicharethethreepartner-relatedfeaturesratedasmostimportantforoverallpartnershipsuccess(Laingandothers2009).Othercharacteristicsrelatedtosustainableoutcomesarepart-nershipmaturity,newrelationships,decreaseofconflict,andstimulationofinnovation.ThesefindingssupportthoseofMattessichandMonsey(1992)andLeachandPelkey(2001)whofindthatincludinganappropriaterangeofstakeholdersisvitalforcollaborativeinitiativesunrelatedtotourism.Inthecontextofbothtourism(Steffen2004)andwatershedpartnerships(McGinnisandothers1999),understandingtheperspectivesofotherpartnersisanimportantsuccessfactor,whereasdecreaseofconflictishighlightedinarangeofpartnershipsettings(LeachandPelkey2001;deLacyandothers2002;Himmelman1996;MohrandSpekman1994;Poncelet2004;Brin-kerhoff2002).Theprocessfordecreasingconflictishelpfulinpromotinginnovativeapproachestosolvingproblems(Tremblay2000).Instudiesoftourismpart-nerships,BuckleyandSommer(2001)andBahaireandElliott-White(1999)notetheimportanceofadministra-tiveandorganisationalsupport,generallyanimportantfactorinnatural-resourcemanagement(WondolleckandYaffee2000).Thelong-standingnatureofapartnershipisalsoarecognisedcontributortosuccessfulnatural-resourcemanagementpartnerships(WondolleckandYaffee2000;LeachandPelkey2001;Poncelet2004;Imperial1999).

Itisofinterestthatanumberof‘‘success’’factorsofpartnerships,suchasopencommunication,trust,andcommitment,whicharecharacteristicsofthewaypartnersworktogetherasdescribedbyothers(e.g.,Laingandothers2009;WondolleckandYaffee2000;LeachandPelkey2001;MohrandSpekman1994),shownosignificantpositivecorrelationswithsatisfactionwithsustainable-tourismoutcomes.Itmaybethatitispossibletoachievepartnershipoutcomesrelatedtosustainabilitythrough

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structuralandadministrativecomponentswithoutmuchrelianceontheinterpersonalfactorsthatappearimportantforoverallpartnershipsuccess.

Conclusion

Overall,ourresultsindicatethateventhoughtourismisacommercialactivitywithrecognizedimpactsonprotectedareas,membersofpartnershipsinvolvingitbelievethatpartnershipsmakeconsiderablecontributionstobiodiver-sityconservationandenvironmentalmanagement.Suchpartnershipsaremostsuccessfulatincreasingunderstand-ingofthevaluesofprotectedareasandprovidingsocialandeconomicbenefitstolocalcommunities.Theyalsoleadtoimprovedvisitorexperiences.Thesepartnershipsarethereforedemonstratingmanyofthecharacteristicsascribedtosustainabletourism.Althoughmembersofpartnershipsarelargelysatisfiedwithachievementofsus-tainable-tourismgoals,theyseemtothinkthereisneedforimprovement.Thisisparticularlythecasewithreducingwasteandenergyandresourceuse.Thereasonsforthisarenotapparent,andfutureresearchshouldexplorewhetherlackofinterest,time,orcapacityistoblame.Itislikelythatstaffinagenciesresponsibleforprotected-areaman-agementandthoseintourismenterpriseslackthetechnicalknowledgeandskillsforwasteandenergymanagement,whichareratherdifferentfromthoserequiredforland,habitat,andspeciesmanagementorforrunningatourismenterprise.

Achievingsustainableoutcomesthroughtourismpart-nershipsrelatestotheircapacitytoimproveaccesstofunding;toestablishinterconnectionsbetweenstakehold-ers,includingvisitors,localcommunities,andmajordecisionmakers;todevelopunderstanding;andtodecreaseconflictbetweenthem.Italsorelatestoadequateadmin-istrativeandorganizationalsupport;toestablishingnewrelationshipswithpeopleandorganisationswithinfluence;andtostimulatinginnovation.Inreviewingexistingpart-nershipsandestablishingnewones,bothnatural-areamanagers,membersofthetourismindustry,andlocalcommunitiescouldbenefitfrompayingexplicitattentiontofosteringthesepartnershipattributes.Thisrequiresappro-priatepersonnelwithtimeandknowledgeandskillsinpartnershipmanagement,whichultimatelymeansimprovedfinancialsupport.

AcknowledgmentsTheSustainableTourismCooperativeResearchCentre,establishedandsupportedundertheAustralianGovernment’sCooperativeResearchCentresProgram,fundedthisresearch.TheauthorsalsothankSueMoore(MurdochUniversity),MichaelLockwood(UniversityofTasmania),AggieWegner(CharlesSturtUniversity),andBettyWeilerandGlenCroy(TourismResearchUnit,MonashUniversity)fortheirinsightfulinputs.

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OpenAccessThisarticleisdistributedunderthetermsoftheCreativeCommonsAttributionNoncommercialLicensewhichper-mitsanynoncommercialuse,distribution,andreproductioninanymedium,providedtheoriginalauthor(s)andsourcearecredited.

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