Tourism, poverty alleviation and nature conservation: The state of contemporary research

This literature review analysed 112 scientific papers published in 17 different social science journals from 2003 to the end of 2007 discussing the relation between tourism, poverty alleviation and nature conservation. The majority of the articles is problem-oriented, concentrates on the relation between tourism and nature conservation and focuses on impact assessment and management issues. The relation between tourism and poverty alleviation is still under researched. Based on the literature review this article not only provides an overview of past scientific research work, but also explores research gaps and suggests main directions of a future research agenda.This literature review analysed 112 scientific papers published in 17 different social science journals from 2003 to the end of 2007 discussing the relation between tourism, poverty alleviation and nature conservation. The majority of the articles is problem-oriented, concentrates on the relation between tourism and nature conservation and focuses on impact assessment and management issues. The relation between tourism and poverty alleviation is still under researched. Based on the literature review this article not only provides an overview of past scientific research work, but also explores research gaps and suggests main directions of a future research agenda