Coral reefs are important destinations and resources for tourism and bring various benefits to local communities that rely on them as a food source, for financial income, employment and recreational opportunities. However they are under increasing threat from climate change and its related impacts such as coral bleaching and ocean acidification, as well as anthropogenic stresses from human activities including over-fishing, anchor damage, coastal development, agricultural runoffs, sedimentation and coral mining. Coral Reefs: Tourism, Conservation and Management adopts a multidisciplinary approach to review these issues as they relate to the sustainable management of coral reefs. It incorporates coral reef science, management, conservation and tourism perspectives to provide a broad coverage of coral reef tourism issues in locations around the world. These include the Great Barrier Reef and Ningaloo in Australia, the Red Sea, Pacific islands, South East Asia, the Maldives, the Caribbean islands, Florida Keys and Brazil. Specific issues addressed include climate change, pollution threats, recreational fishing, island tourism, cruising, scuba diving, marine wildlife, governance, sustainability and conservation.
1. Introduction
2. Coral Reef Ecology: A Scientific Perspective
3. General Threats to Coral Reefs
4. Climate Change
5. Mass Tourism vs Niche Products on Coral Reefs
6. The Management of the Great Barrier Reef: GBRMPA
7. A Narrative Approach to Understanding Tourists' Snorkelling and Scuba Diving Experiences
8. Offshore Research Tourism Activities
9. Coral Reefs: The Indigenous Stakeholders' Perspectives
10. Fishing on Coral Reefs: The Case of the Maldives
11. Cruising on Coral Reefs
12. Coral Island Tourism: The Case of the Cayman Islands
13. The Media Perspective of Reef Tourism
14. Whale Shark Tourism at Ningaloo Reef: Successes, Challenges and Next Steps
15. Coral Reef Conservation, Costal Tourism and Sea Turtle Protection in Brazil
16. Encounter with Reef-associated Dolphins in the Wild
17. Coral Reef Tourism at the Red Sea
18. The Coral Reef System of Belize
19. Coral Reef Tourism in South East Asia: The Case of Koh Tao
20. The Sustainability of Coral Reef Tourism in the Pacific Ocean
21. Coral Reefs of the Florida Keys
22. Conclusions
Bruce Prideaux is Professor of Tourism, School of Business and Law, Central Queensland University, Australia. He is the author or editor of ten books and numerous research articles on various topics in tourism.
Anja Pabel is a Lecturer in Tourism, School of Business and Law, Central Queensland University, Australia.
"Coral Reefs: Tourism, Conservation and Management provides a wonderful multidisciplinary and global review of the world's major coral reef tourist destinations and their future prognosis. Over twenty international experts have been brought together from a diverse range of backgrounds and areas of expertise to compile a four-part assessment of the status of coral reef tourism [...] Overall, I found it provided fascinating insights into the topic that I was not always expecting and subsequently wanted to inquire further about, and for me that what makes a good read. I would therefore happily recommend the text to teachers, students, academics and NGOs."
– Anne-Marie Gerlach, Geographical Education, Vol 32, Australia