working Group 2: Recreation and nature tourism supply, demand

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working Group 2 Recreation and nature tourism
supply, demand actual usage
Lehrstuhl für Forstpolitik und Forstgeschichte

• the case of Germany
• Carsten Mann
• Michael Suda

2
1 research practice strengths

• long tradition to recognize social aspects of
  forests (20th cent.)
• 60th recreation part of legislative change in
  forest policy
• 70th main research emphasis focus
• - opinion research demands (drift to
  constructs)
• - research seldom theory based
• - socio-economic evaluation of recreation in
  forests
• - quantitative descriptions seldom perceptions
• driving forces economic ecological social
  impacts
• forestry related researchers (ideology)

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2 weaknesses deficiencies

• today much research for leisure, few for forest
  recreation
• ecological focus, no social science approach
• problems to compare results (theory, methods,
  definitions)
• motives general conclusions (relax, recreate,
  health)
• underestimation change of values (new definition
  leisure)
• lack of management to deal with diversity
  quantity
• weak definitions in relevant laws (e.g.
  sustainable sport)

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2 weaknesses deficiencies

• no central database
• very few visitor monitoring systems
• infrastructures mainly from the 60th/70th
• less recreation service thinking (forestry)
• recreation as a product (monetary importance)
• image problem of forestry
• few cooperation between actors

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3 expectations needs for future development

• increasing recreation needs
• recognition of quantitative/qualitative
  development
• integration of social sciences for planning
• strategies for conflict management
• standardized methodology ( visitor monitoring)
• replication of studies
• more cooperation/communication between actors
• recreation as a service (trends)