Capacity-Building Initiatives to Foster Sustainable Tourism in a Climate Change Context in Bolivia
摘要
Tourism in Bolivia generates more jobs than the mining and natural gas industry, therefore, measures to mitigate climate change in tourist places are vital not just for the preservation of nature and ecosystems in general, but also for the country’s economic development. Considered a megadiverse country, Bolivia, with its protected areas and national parks with ecosystems of mountains, forests, and savannas, Andean-Chaco-Amazonian tropics positions the country as an ideal actor for sustainable tourism initiatives. Bolivia’s geography, characterized by high-altitude landscapes and tropical rain forests, makes it particularly vulnerable to climate change impacts. Rapid glacial retreat in the Andean region threatens the viability of adventure tourism activities such as glacier trekking and mountaineering. Moreover, shifts in precipitation patterns and increasing occurrences of extreme weather events pose risks to tourism infrastructure and visitor safety, exacerbating challenges for sustainable tourism development. This chapter examines sustainable tourism practices and challenges in Bolivia, with the main emphasis on the role of capacity-building programs and education initiatives within a climate change context to foster long-term sustainability in the tourism sector, especially in those areas with an emerging tourism industry outside the cities.