Indigenous tourism

This chapter describes and reviews Indigenous tourism planning and policy in Australia from 1995 to 2004. It considers Indigenous participation in tourism and the changing roles of Indigenous people in tourism policymaking and state-based plans for developing Aboriginal tourism or ecotourism. The extent and effectiveness of Indigenous participation in tourism policy and planning by state or federal agencies is also evaluated. The roles of Indigenous people in Australian tourism now include native title holders, traditional owners, land managers, business investment, park rangers, tourism operators and guides. Section 12.2 defines Aboriginal or Indigenous tourism in Australia, and section 12.3 reviews Indigenous involvement in cultural tourism or ecotourism ventures. Section 12.4 reviews research on Indigenous tourism, including Indigenous tourism planning and policy. Section 12.5 goes on to describe the tourism policymaking process and policy environment for tourism and Indigenous people. In section 12.6 various Aboriginal tourism and Indigenous tourism strategies are reviewed with reference to the Indigenous contribution and roles in tourism. Section 12.7 examines the policy and management roles for Indigenous people in nature-based tourism strategies and ecotourism plans. A case study highlights the role of rainforest Aboriginal people in policy-making and tourism strategies prepared for the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area of North Queensland. Finally, section 12.8 suggests that tourism policies and plans address Indigenous cultural heritage and environmental relationships, but have limited means for Indigenous participation in the control and management of tourism as native title holders and traditional owners of land