Developing sustainable tourism in the Amazon rainforest of Brazil – premises, actions, challenges

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present a number of premises to develop sustainable tourism in the Amazon region of Brazil and to identify a series of actions implemented by the Government of Brazil in the last five years for the effective development of this activity in the Amazon rainforest.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper examines the global picture of tourism and then focuses on the development of tourism at the national level over the last decade, paying particular attention to some of the strategies needed to pursue sustainable tourism development. This is followed by a discussion of the initiatives adopted by one of the principal players in the region – the Programme for Ecotourism Development in Amazonia of the Ministry of the Environment. Finally, the paper explores some of the main challenges that both the public and private sectors will face in the coming years as they attempt to accelerate the development of sustainable tourism in the Amazon region.

Findings

The paper demonstrates that while significant challenges beset the development of sustainable tourism, the Government of Brazil is committed to the pursuit of the policies and strategies that would maximize the economic benefits of tourism in the Amazon while maintaining and even strengthening the integrity of its environment and its constituent cultural forms.

Practical implications

Any paper that examines policy prescriptions, especially with regard to protection of the rainforest, has immediate relevance to various layers of authorities and practitioners. This paper would be of interest to planners at both the federal and state levels in Brazil as well as the non‐government organizations and private sector entities concerned in the development and operation of sustainable tourism.

Originality/value

This paper lays a solid basis for cross‐sectoral research that examines the contribution of specific industrial sectors to the protection of the rainforest in the Amazon of Brazil.

Citation

Lino Rodrigues de Jesus, V. (2010), "Developing sustainable tourism in the Amazon rainforest of Brazil – premises, actions, challenges", Worldwide Hospitality and Tourism Themes, Vol. 2 No. 2, pp. 144-152. https://doi.org/10.1108/17554211011037831