Managing the Engagement of Sustainable Tourism in Natural Protected Areas Through Social Media

Sustainable Tourism In Protected Natural Areas And The Mediating Role Of Tourism Businesses

Based on the guidelines reported by the WTO (United Nations, 2003), sustainable tourism must manage natural, historical and cultural resources in order to satisfy the present needs of tourists, local businesses and host communities, and at the same time preserving those resources to ensure they maintain their essence and attractive in the future. But this is not a consensual definition. Researchers, professionals and authorities have not reached an agreement in defining sustainable tourism (Boley, McGehee, & Tom Hammett, 2017), nor distinguishing it clearly from other similar constructs such as responsible tourism (Mihalic, 2013). What is common to those concepts, though, is the notion that tourism activities must be aware of, respect and protect the fragility of the environment in which they take place, cultural, natural and economically, so as to ensure its particular conditions for the future.