Planning for Sustainable Ecotourism:
The Case for Research Ecotourism in
Developing Country Destinations
Julian Clifton
Department of Geography, University of Portsmouth, UK
Angela Benson
Centre for Tourism Policy Studies, University of Brighton, UK
Research ecotourism is a relatively new component of activities within the ecotourism
industry, providing research opportunities for visitors focusing on aspects of the
natural environment which are principally located in developing countries. This paper
is directed towards identifying the nature and causes of socio-cultural impacts of this
strand of ecotourism using a case study from Indonesia. The positive nature of
socio-cultural impacts perceived by host communities alongside the irregular nature of
economic benefits to host communities is analogous with the altruistic surplus theory
of individual recognition of communal benefits. Certain characteristics of research
ecotourists are identified as contributing towards host reactions towards visitors which
reinforce the contention that this is a desirable form of ecotourism in similar locations.