Case study of an ecotourism development project in Celestun, Mexico : houshold and community level investigation

Includes bibliographical references (pages [128]-133)This project is a case study and evaluation of an ecotourism project in Yucatan, Mexico. The methods used to determine differences in household economic activities include a time allocation analysis and a livelihood systems approach, neither of which has ever been used to investigate ecotourism in Mexico. These methods reveal the presence of wealth differences and varying economic activities in the sample of thirty households. I argue that the wealth differences are not solely a result of differential household involvement in ecotourism, but instead are caused by other characteristics such as the amount of time spent by household members on a diverse range of economic activities. The current increase in the number of participants threatens the sustainability of this ecotourism project. This thesis recommends several ways by which ecotourism benefits could be extended to a larger number of people without threatening environmental sustainability.M.A. (Master of Arts