Sustainability Principles of Kakadu National Park

Discuss about the Ecology to Natural Resource Management Institutions.

Australian tourism industry is highly influenced by the environmental and cultural heritage of Kakadu National Park. In the current situation due to improper joint management practices between aboriginal and non-aboriginal people, the sustainable management principles are not being maintained properly. In this study the issues which are creating challenges for developing proper sustainable management practices in this area has been highlighted. At the end of the study it has provided required suggestion that will be helping to deal with the challenges so that the tourism industry can be developed properly.

Sustainability principles of Kakadu National Park have two main strata to be focusing. One is associated with environment and another is related to the prosperous aboriginal culture. The strategies for the management of cultural heritage resources within the sustainable development concept framework has become the chief concern of this national park (Muboko et al., 2016). However, in various reasons these economic, aesthetic and social needs are not being fulfilled as the essential ecological processes and biodiversity of the place have been facing issues due to numerous issues. First, the climate change is a problem which has been affecting the ecological balance of this place. This is the reason why the issues like threats to the endangered species, flooding of indigenous rock art and salt water inundation in the freshwater wetlands have become prominent. In addition to this, lack of actions to revitalize and popularize the aboriginal culture through sustainable policies, the tangible and intangible assets of this place have been suffering (Watson et al., 2014). As the environmental issues have become prominent in this park it has impacted upon the economy also. Therefore, it can be said that the effect of global warming has been affecting the tourism sector of Australia which is directly linking consumers or the stakeholders associated with the tourism market of this region.

The sustainability principles of Kakadu National Park have been long maintained by the important wings of the country’s government. The strategies have aimed to align the park’s principles with the expectations and demands of the UNESCO’s sustainable practices (Kajlich, Buckley & Lilley, 2017). These strategies have aimed to safeguard both the tangible and intangible cultural heritage of the park which include the flora and fauna of the place, the paintings, rock art of the aboriginal residents of this park and their rich culture, language and traditional customs (Mitchell et al., 2015). The main principles of the management plan of Kakadu National Park are aligned with the policies of the United Nations Tourism Organization. These principles have vison, purpose and plans which aim to preserve the national park in its natural condition. The authority of this national park encourages the method of maintaining sustainability so that the resources are appropriately used, respected and the tourists can enjoy the area. Through the policies taken by the organization, the neutral values and culture of the aboriginals residing in the park are recognized and respected (Wolf, Stricker & Hagenloh, 2015). These polices aim to encourage the Bininj or Mungguy communities to look after and manage the park in its entirety. These aboriginal communities as granted to have possession over this land, their future generations also have the option for staying in the park and continue their functionality of looking after the ecosystem of the park. There are some disturbed areas associated with the aboriginal rights issues and demands of these communities which the government has settled and taken action to rehabilitate those problems so that the tourism sector does not get affected by these problems. Most importantly, the Bininj or Mungguy people are allowed to maintain their own traditions in one hand and get opportunities to flourish economically as well as socially (Petty et al., 2015).

Challenges to Sustainable Management Practices

Despite the fact that the governed of Australia along with various national an international organization have initiated to support the environment and unique culture of Kakadu National Park, have faced many problems from various aspects. First of all, the global warming has been affecting the ecosystem of this place harming the sustenance of the endangered flora and fauna of this region (Wilson et al., 2017). Secondly, the global warming and climate change has been affecting the cultural tangible asset of the aboriginal communities of this national park. Thirdly, due to climate change and warming, the tourism sector has become affected as the tourists have started to avoid this region reducing the annual tourist visit in this place. Finally, the collaborative measure that the government of the country aims for engaging the local aboriginal communities has been affected by the miscommunication and other disturbances (Cvitanovic et al., 2018). These issues are directly affecting the management of sustainability and stakeholder management in the Kakadu National Park. As the national park is completely dependent on the tourism sector this is why the chief stakeholder of this particular region are associated with tourism. The tour guides, travel agents and guides along the tourists both national as well as international are the chief stakeholders of this national park hence maintaining their interest is very important. The initiatives that the government of the country has been taken for collaborating with the Bininj or Mungguy communities has become problematic for the perfect management of the national park (Sponarski, Vaske & Bath, 2015). Despite the fact that the policies for attaining sustainable management speak for maintaining as well as respecting the obligations of aboriginal and non-aboriginal staffs, this joint partnership model has not proved to be successful to strengthen the tourism sector of this national park.

The recent trends of enriching the tourism sector of a particular place, the public, private and information media have been working cooperatively. The governments have created partnership with various corporate as well as non-profit organizations like UNESCO so that it can effectively introduce various programs and strategies to support the interests of various stakeholders (Unesco.org, 2018). The trend of promoting tourism of a place has been become the responsibilities of the information sector of the country which reflects the norms, values and culture of Kakadu National Park. The tourist information sectors along with the local media for example tourism media and commercial media of the country create the brand image of the national park that will be attracting huge tourists from various places. In intangible cultural heritage management, full support from the government is mandatory as there will be a presentation of cultural uniqueness through fostering information and programs (Ross et al., 2016). The public and private sector tie up will promote the cultural heritage of this place and lead to an interesting practice which aims to attain sustainable growth of the place through tourism.

Trends in Tourism Promotion and Cultural Heritage Management

The discussion of the issues of Kakadu National Park have disclosed numerous aspects that have created matters preventing sustainable growth. This is the reason why the authorities need to take some very important initiatives. The private and public partnership need to conduct research about the recent changes in the natural environment of the place due to globalization and review as well as report on the natural condition. Thus, they will be able to keep all the records updated and inform the concerned organization about changes. The authorities need to employee a special task force in order to safeguard the feral animals and plant species to provide scope for the maintenance biosecurity of his place. The national park authorities need to take initiative to keep track of land use in the park area. In this aspect the proper record must be maintained so that the parts acquired by the aboriginal communities for residential areas remain under control lowering possibility of acquiring the forest area. In order to maintain balance, the issues reading joint management between the indigenous locals and non-indigenous forest employees, programs must be introduced through which indigenous employment can be supported. These will include the needed training to the aboriginals so that they can perfectly preset their traditions and culture matching with the demand of the tourists. Moreover, trainings will help in engaging the young generation of these aboriginal communities so that they possess cultural knowledge and practices, respect them and look after their ancient tradition and intangible culture. This training method will be also catering the professional requirements of the nonaboriginal staffs also. This will help them to maintain good connection with the aboriginal guards of the national park and success of joint management initiated by the government will be attained. Initiatives need to be taken to face and manage park wise threats like landscape-transforming factors. These include weeds, fire, feral animals, extreme climate events as well as changes.

These park wise threats affect the natural as well as cultural values of the national park therefore, immediate steps need to be taken by employing more people and creating awareness regarding these. The local and national media plays very important role in promoting the brand image of this particular place therefore, new agreements need to be launched so that they can source the brand image of this national park to the international tourists also. This will increase tourist attraction for experiencing destination and know the rich cultural history of this place as well as the people residing in this place (Unesco.org, 2018). This is the reason why the government need to build infrastructure for accommodating more visitors and introduce recreational arrangements focusing on the aboriginal cultural heritage of this national park. Finally, though there are policies on proper usage of resources and methods of introducing new ways of authorizing activities of the stakeholders, these need to be revised time to time.

Recommendations

Conclusion:

In the above study it has be concluded that due to unhealthy relation between the aboriginal and non-aboriginal people in Kakadu National Park, the sustainability principles are getting hampered. As its result the biodiversity is getting affected and the economy is facing the challenges. The tourism industry in Australia and its business revenue also depends on the natural and cultural diversity of this area. In this situation the relation with the aboriginal people needed to be improved. If the training and development practices will be introduced in the Kakadu National Park, it will be helping in the case of bringing the sustainable development.

References:

Cvitanovic, C., van Putten, E. I., Hobday, A. J., Mackay, M., Kelly, R., McDonald, J., … & Barnes, P. (2018). Building trust among marine protected area managers and community members through scientific research: Insights from the Ningaloo Marine Park, Australia. Marine Policy, 93, 195-206.

Kajlich, H., Buckley, K., & Lilley, I. (2017). World Heritage and human rights in Australia: From K’gari/Fraser Island to national processes 1. In World Heritage and Human Rights(pp. 49-69). Routledge.

Mitchell, M., Lockwood, M., Moore, S. A., & Clement, S. (2015). Scenario analysis for biodiversity conservation: A social–ecological system approach in the Australian Alps. Journal of environmental management, 150, 69-80.

Muboko, N., Gandiwa, E., Muposhi, V., & Tarakini, T. (2016). Illegal hunting and protected areas: Tourist perceptions on wild animal poisoning in Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe. Tourism Management, 52, 170-172.

Petty, A. M., Isendahl, C., Brenkert-Smith, H., Goldstein, D. J., Rhemtulla, J. M., Rahman, S. A., & Kumasi, T. C. (2015). Applying historical ecology to natural resource management institutions: lessons from two case studies of landscape fire management. Global Environmental Change, 31, 1-10.

Ross, A., Sherman, K. P., Snodgrass, J. G., Delcore, H. D., & Sherman, R. (2016). Indigenous peoples and the collaborative stewardship of nature: knowledge binds and institutional conflicts. Routledge.

Sponarski, C. C., Vaske, J. J., & Bath, A. J. (2015). Attitudinal differences among residents, park staff, and visitors toward coyotes in Cape Breton Highlands National Park of Canada. Society & Natural Resources, 28(7), 720-732.

Watson, J. E., Dudley, N., Segan, D. B., & Hockings, M. (2014). The performance and potential of protected areas. Nature, 515(7525), 67.

Wilson, D. L., Hallo, J. C., Sharp, J. L., Mainella, H. F. P., & McGuire, F. A. (2017). Activity selection among baby boomer national park visitors: The search for a sense of adventure. Journal of Outdoor Recreation and Tourism, 19, 37-45.

Wolf, I. D., Stricker, H. K., & Hagenloh, G. (2015). Outcome-focused national park experience management: Transforming participants, promoting social well-being, and fostering place attachment. Journal of Sustainable Tourism, 23(3), 358-381.

Unesco.org. (2018). UNESCO encourages role of private sector in heritage conservation | United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. Retrieved from https://www.unesco.org/new/en/tehran/about-this-office/single-view/news/unesco_encourages_role_of_private_sector_in_heritage_conserv/