Proforma: Generally Accepted Accounting Principles and Judgmental Approach Essay

In addition to forecasting cash flows, managers and investors are also interested in forecasts of the firm’s financial statements. These projected financial statements are called pro forma financial statements. They give both the management and investors an insight into what the financial statements will look like in the future and a signal as to any need to raise long-term funds. The starting point in the creation of the pro forma financial statements is the construction of the pro forma income statement (do you remember why? ). Like the cash budget, it also relies heavily on the sales forecast. Significant errors in the sales forecast will result in errors in the income statement which, in turn, will cause errors on the pro forma balance sheet. Pro Forma Income Statement There are two approaches to creating the pro forma income statement: the percentage of sales method and what I will call the judgmental approach. The percentage of sales approach is simplistic and prone to error (estimating financial statements is tricky enough without compounding the error using an inferior technique). The percentage of sales method assumes that all items on the income statement except interest expense and tax expense vary in direct proportion to the change in sales. This is simply usually not true. Some items will change with sales, but others will not. See the criticism of the percentage of sales approach at the top of page 116 in your text. My illustration will focus on the judgmental approach which allows the analyst to apply judgment to forecast the level of those items that are not expected to vary with sales. My vehicle for illustrating the creation of a pro forma income statement appears below: Assume that sales for the BMX Corporation are expected to be $12 million in 2008 and that sales in 2007 were $10 million. Further assume that cost of goods sold can be divided into two parts: a part that varies with sales and a part that does not (i. e. , cost of goods sold has both fixed and variable components). Further assume that operating expenses can also be divided a fixed portion and a variable portion. Further assume the firm plans to increase its borrowing in 2008 which will increase interest expense on the income statement. The first step in the analysis is to determine the percentage increase in sales: (2008 sales – 2007 sales)/2007 sales = percentage change in sales ($12 million – $10 million)/$10million – 1 = . 2 or 20% The second step in the analysis is to construct the 2008 proforma income statement assuming those items that vary with sales will increase by the percentage change in sales (20%) and that those items that don’t remain fixed. An example of this process is given on the Excel worksheet below. Double click on the worksheet to access it, then scroll up or down as needed. Notice the variable expenses are found by taking the 2007 expense and multiplying by 1 + the percentage change in sales (1. 2). This increases those expenses by 120%. A common error students make is to simply multiply the variable expenses by the percentage change in sales. If we did that here, we would be multiplying the variable expenses by 20%. In other words, we would not be increasing variable expenses by 20%, we would be reducing them by 80%. Notice the pro forma net income for 2008 is $600,000. You may wish to analyze the effect using a strict percentage of sales approach would have had on pro forma net income. Would net income be higher or lower as a result? You would be correct to sense the potential for an exam question here. Finally $200,000 in dividends are deducted from the $600,000 net income giving us a $400,000 addition to retained earnings. The third step is to use the $400,000 pro forma additions to retained earnings in addition to a number of other assumptions to compute the Pro Forma Balance Sheet. I will also use the judgmental approach in this step. The 2007 historical balance sheet and the pro forma balance sheet for BMX Corporation appear in the Excel worksheet below. To access the worksheet, double click on it, then scroll up or down as needed to see view the worksheets. I will make the following assumptions regarding the pro forma balance sheet: 1. The firm wants to continue to maintain a minimum cash balance of $100,000 2. Marketable securities will increase to $75,000 in 2008. 3. Accounts receivable have historically been 36. 5 days of sales. Since sales for 2008 are expected to be $12,000,000, accounts receivable will be $12,000,000 x (36. 5/365) = $1,200,000 (you could also do the following which is algebraically identical: ($12,000,000/365) X 36. 5). 4. Inventories have historically been 20% of cost of goods sold. Since cost of goods sold for 2008 are expected to be $9,000,000, inventories will be $9,000,000 x . 20 = $1,800,000. 5. Vectra will increase fixed assets by $750,000. Depreciation expense for 2008 is estimated to be $200,000. Net fixed assets for 2008 will be: Net fixed assets (2007) + additions to fixed assets – depreciation expense 2008 $5,000,000 + $750,000 – $200,000 = $5,550,000 6. Annual purchases (all on account) have historically averaged 60% of cost of goods sold. The accounts payable balance, in turn, is typically 20% of purchases. Accounts payable will therefore be $9,000,000 X . 60 X . 20 = $1,080,000 7. Taxes payable will be approximately one quarter of the tax expense shown on the 2008 pro forma income statement. Taxes payable will equal $400,000/4 = $100,000. 8. Notes payable will increase to $1,000,000. 9. There will be no change in other current liabilities, long-term debt, or common stock. 10. Retained earnings on the 2008 pro forma balance sheet will change by the additions to retained earnings ($400,000) shown on the pro forma income statement. Since the 2007 retained earnings was $1,000,000, the retained earnings for 2008 are expected to be $1,000,000 + $400,000 = $1,400,000. Notice the 2008 pro forma balance sheet did not initially balance: e. i. , total assets ($8,725,000) did not equal the sum of total liabilities and equity ($8,332,500). In other words, the firm’s need to fund assets of $8,725,000 in 2008 will not be met at anticipated levels of debt and equity. This is the firm’s signal that it will have to raise funds by issuing additional debt or equity in the amount of $392,500.

Swot Analysis of It in Ryanair

RYANAIR by: Simon Schuster 08707031 BAHTM Since its beginnings in 1985, Ryanair has created a niche market for a ‘no frills’ airline based upon the model they adopted from Southwest Airlines. Ryanair is now the most popular (in terms of passenger traffic) low cost airline in Europe. Ryanair’s primary model is low cost and IT has been influential to this. Today, 99% of Ryanair passengers check-in online (the other 1% being a small number of self-check-in kiosks in Stansted) and the same ratio applies to sales, 99% of which are acquired through www. ryanair. om. We are going to conduct an analysis of the implementation of IT in their strategy. The analysis tool being used will be SWOT. Strengths One of the strengths Ryanair have with regards to IT is their website. It accounts for almost the entirety of their sales. As well as this it provides a wealth of data on where people travel? How often? How many bags? These are all instrumental pieces of information that hel p manage operation. Using this information will allow Ryanair to boost the accuracy how it distributes its fleet across their destinations.Another use of this information would be how they control queues for passengers checking-in luggage as they would have the exact data from the online booking. As of August 2011, www. ryanair. com was the most visited airline website in Europe. This statistic shows that the website has a distinct advantage above their competitors in acquiring revenue from advertisements. As well as this, it shows a trend that travellers visit their site the most whether they go directly there or are referred to it because of their cheap prices.Aside from their website, they operate a single model fleet comprising of 275 Boeing 737-800s. This makes repairs and diagnostics universal which allows them to use the same scale to track and monitor the performance and safety of their aircrafts. This again would considerably lower costs. Weaknesses Ryanair’s website has often come in for criticism because of its misleading prices. They regularly advertise ‘promotions’ or ‘offers’ at rock bottom prices, however they don’t include the related charges and ‘optional’ fees.These charges and fees being, using any payment method other than Ryanair credit. Another possible weakness is their reluctance to adopt the mobile boarding pass. As many other airlines have this facility as another way to aid their customers’ experience, Ryanair seem to think less of it with Michael O’Leary saying â€Å"If you’ve printed out your piece of paper from the website, what does the mobile phone do for you? Nothing. †. I can only presume this is because it will decrease the amount people being charged for the many fines Ryanair have in place for their customers.A further weakness is the fact they have decided to charge â‚ ¬2. 99 to download their app for iPad and iPhone. This is in contrast to other airlines who released their apps well in advance of Ryanair but chose to offer it free to customers with similar or more functionality like the mobile boarding pass mentioned above. Opportunities Ryanair has many opportunities to grow through IT. Being the most visited airline website, advertising is a huge opportunity to gain revenue.As well as this, it presents an opportunity to combine flights with other components of travel like hotels and car rental. They currently have a relationship with Hertz and also have a hotel booking function through www. ryanairhotels. com. As well as this they have relationships with other travel accommodation providers. There is an opportunity there to offer a package deal where customers will be able to purchase a holiday in full from Ryanair. This would be useful to customers as well as Ryanair.Ryanair tested the use of mobile phones during flights which were received well by passengers as well as the airline themselves. However, they failed to reach an agreement with communications company OnAir. This is something that certainly will be the norm in years to come and I’m sure Ryanair would like to get there first as profits from high margin calls and texts could be lucrative. Because of a long relationship with Boeing, as well as using the same model planes across their fleet, Ryanair can provide Boeing with large amounts of valuable data.Data that would help develop Boeings future models and in turn would provide improvements for Ryanair’s new planes. There is also a possibility Ryanair could install monitors on their planes that display sponsored advertisements for the duration of the flight. These ads could be related to the planes destination as well as Ryanair’s own adverts. Threats Ryanair’s biggest threat, among all airlines, is the rising price of fuel. Aside from this, they could face sanctions for their misleading adverts on their website.Another threat of theirs is hackers, who co uld interrupt their website causing loss in revenue as well as customer dissatisfaction if online check-in was unavailable. An extreme case of this would be terrorists hacked into aviation authorities and caused an international threat. There is always the threat of more and more low cost airlines doing business, however even with others developing better apps and having higher standards of customer relations, Ryanair seem unfazed as they are ruthless in their low cost model and continue to be the cheapest. SummaryIn conclusion, Ryanair’s IT strategy and how they implement it on their business is working well for them. The key asset being their website, through which almost all their revenue comes from. Even though competitors may have slight advantages in other IT components, Ryanair has the most efficient model and their brand as the ‘no frills’ airline is evidently the most recognisable across Europe. With a website with such high traffic and putting the major ity of the pre-flight responsibility on the customer, it’s clear to see how they use IT to their advantage. References

Effect of Gradient on the Abundance of Ranunculus Repens Coursework

Effect of Gradient on the Abundance of Ranunculus Repens - Coursework Example First action to betaken is to identify the cause of the disease. This made me to study on the causes of the disease and what I found was that is caused by a plant called Ranunculus repens. This concerned me and I had to do a project on this plant. This is because Ranunculus repens have both the negative and positive effects on the environment. One of the reasons that I chose to do a project on Ranunculus repens is because of its unique property that can be used to treat musculoskeletal disorders. According to PFAF, chewing leaves of this plant will help in healing muscular pain. Therefore, my research can help us to understand the optimum conditions required for Ranunculus repens to grow so that higher yields of the plant can be obtained for its medicinal usage. The other reason for choosing Ranunculus repens as a project is that it is thought to be poisonous for humans and animals if eaten fresh and I think this is something that we as humans should be aware of especially agricultur alists. According to Garden Organic Ranunculus repens â€Å"can cause diarrhea in sheep and cattle. Ranunculus repens depletes potassium in soil making it inadequate for other plants. Therefore this particular plant is not suitable for grazing, especially cattle. My project can provide useful material for farmers about the plant e.g. where they mostly occur. Based on my project Farmers may decide not to graze their animals on a place where Ranunculus repens are most common in order to obtain higher meat yields. The farmers may also decide to manage their grassland to minimize the growth of Ranunculus repens to avoid its noxious effect. An alternative reason for choosing this plant involves its unique and attractive colour and structure. â€Å"It is essential to preserve our remaining natural heritage for future generations. Wildlife and geological features are under pressure from development, pollution, climate change and unsustainable land management. Therefore it is useful to st udy the important biological properties of the plants in order to maintain them e.g. by knowing their niche will help us to provide the best conditions possible for Ranunculus repens to survive and develop. Scientific background Ranunculus repens has many features that makes that makes it survive in its habitats. It grows well in wet environments as compared to its growth in dry conditions. Ranunculus repens competes for light, moisture and nutrients with other plants. This pressure has made it to have some adaptations to this environment. They are submerged in water making them lose diffusion pathways of getting oxygen between their roots and the atmosphere. This made roots to have elongated shoots that help them get oxygen from the atmosphere. Both leaves and the shoots come grow outward to the water surfaces to help the plant get oxygen from the air. Bodies of Ranunculus repens are submerged in water. They strive to get oxygen, light and nutrients from the environment. They get l ight through their leaves that are growing to the water surfaces. This helps them to absorb light from the atmosphere and make their food through photosynthesis. The leaves also help them get oxygen from the environment. All these features have made wet conditions suitable for their survival. Hypothesis of this research is to identify the effects of land gradient on the growth of Ranunculus repens. Null Hypothesis - There will be no difference in the abundance of Ranunculus rep

Developing An Authentic Productive Assessment Dissertation

Developing An Authentic Productive Assessment - Dissertation Example The paper tells that giving the students a feeling of pride in their work, like the mini diorama by displaying it for all to see and appreciate during a special occasion helps in the development of their self-esteem. Not to encourage external motivation, such an act provides internal satisfaction more because they would realize that their hard work and creativity becomes all worth it at the end. The fact that I scored mostly average to above average in this assessment validates my ideas of how a good authentic assessment should be. I am aware that the tasks develop a whole range of skills not only in literacy but in work habits, creativity, and planning. It also promotes communication and collaboration among the students as they share with each other their own ideas, thereby learning from each other. However, I must not be complacent because there is still much work to be done in the pursuit of an excellent authentic learning assessment. Going for further knowledge and information beyond what is available from the texts themselves and the insights of the students is another wonderful suggestion from one of my peers, as it develops research skills in the students. Thus far, I am glad that I was able to modify what could be a traditional assessment task to a more authentic one by giving the students opportunities to construct their own knowledge and communicate it to the whole class. I am sure that in doing so, I shall be able to engage the students’ interest in the task, and the positive experiences will heighten their learning.

HOW MIGHT THE FAN PRACTICES THAT PRODUCE A CULT TEXT BE CATEGORIZED AS Essay

HOW MIGHT THE FAN PRACTICES THAT PRODUCE A CULT TEXT BE CATEGORIZED AS EITHER MASCULINE OF FEMININE; THIS ACCORDING TO GENDERED COMPETENCIES AND DISPOSITIONS AS FOUND IN THE AMERICAN SERIES TRUE BLOOD - Essay Example Vampires, two years prior, remained hidden from the Human Race; dwelling in the shadows while preying on human beings for their blood that was the vampires lifeline. This, however, changes when scientists in Japan create an artificial form of blood called â€Å"True Blood† that takes the place of human beings’ blood. They no longer have their survival controlled by the need for human blood. Instead, the vampire race is able to integrate itself into the â€Å"Mainstream† Human society. The resultant interactions are mutually suspicious with each race preferring its own company; often being intolerant of the other (Broyles, 2010, p. 56). Vampire blood, on the other hand, is categorized as being a kind of human narcotic: â€Å"V† or â€Å"V Juice† that is often sought after by the Human race. Sookie, the main protagonist is caught up in a fight between a human couple and a vampire male, Merlotte’s first, who were attempting to drain his blood. From this scene, the notion of women’s’ hospitability, non- violence and accepting nature is exhibited; this contributing immensely to the ensuing relationship that was to develop between her, Sookie, and the vampire, Bill Compton. From this relationship, a host of vampire culture and psychology is explored with great limitations being portrayed on vampire psychology. The receptive and understanding nature of Sookie epitomizes the goodwill and caring nature present in the female psychology (Hammond, 2006, p. 136). The murders of several women, all connected to Sookie’s older Brother Jason, provides the first season’s major plot. ... 136). The murders of several women, all connected to Sookie’s older Brother Jason, provides the first season’s major plot. Among the victims are Maudette Pickens, a sexual partner; Dawn Green, one of Merlotte’s servers; Grandmother Adele and girlfriend Amy Burley. He is addicted to vampire blood â€Å"V†; that is a human narcotic unlike anything manufactured at the time. The viewers’ knowledge of Jason’s innocence does not help much in easing the constant accusations and investigations carried out by detective Andy, in conjunction with Sheriff Bud, who target him as the main suspect in the investigations. The theme of masculinity comes out with the accusations, of the murders, and the constant harassment of the perceived suspect by the local authority. Violence and other acts of violence are socialized with the notion of masculinity while the feminine nature is credited with old age (Grandmother Adele), sensual and sexual pleasures as portray ed by Maudette and Marlette’s Dawn Green (Ghaill, 1994, p. 51). Friendship and enduring bonds are exemplified by the unwavering support given to Jason by two of his friends and workmates, Fortenberry and Lenier. Masculinity and endurance are two themes explored until in the end, another actor; Rene is exposed as the murderer; killed in a final confrontation with Sookie. Rene, Arlene’s fiance is actually Drew Marshall who having created a false identity goes about killing those women he considers gang-bangers; that is, women who have sexual relations with vampires. Friendship and unwavering bonds between the Male species is exemplified as being strong and long-lasting; this contributing to the fan

Plants and Animals Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Plants and Animals - Essay Example Paleoethnobotany refers to as the study of relationships between plants and animals, though the use of the archaeological records. The present human beings are aware of how people benefitted from plants for clothing, food, medicine, boats, houses, and a variety of tools and structures. Therefore, in the contemporary society, individuals try to understand the ecological and cultural dynamics of the previous food ways; techniques for producing, procuring, and managing plant resources; and the meaning that plants had to the past human beings (Merlin, 2003). Archeology and paleoethnobotany have a close relationship between themselves. Paleoethnobotany is the sub-field of archeology that deals with the study of plant remains from excavations. Therefore, archeology supports paleoethnobotany by providing the study materials, especially the plant remains. People can be able to understand the relationship between animals and plants through archeology. ... It is apparent that paleobotany differs from paleoethnobotany because paleobotany does not include the relationship between plants and animals, but only considers plant remains in their geological settings (Merlin, 2003). Artifactual and Paleoethnobotanical data A researcher depends on the collected data in order to support or test the hypothesis of a given research. For instance, there has been a need of data to support the hypothetical use of psychoactive drugs in the historical period. Researchers extract most of the data from the literature of disciplines such as archeology, anthropology, palynology, and ethnobotany. Dating of various evidences varies in relative reliability and technique. Artifactual and paleoethnobotanical data are forms of data that provide the archeological evidence for the relationship between plants and man in the previous days (Merlin, 2003). An example of the relationship is how ancient people used the psychoactive drugs. The artifactual data is the subje ct to some type of reconstruction and interpretation (Merlin, 2003). There will be a disagreement regarding the interpretation of the artistic, medicinal, religious, or other practical inspiration of an artifact. Paleoethnobotanical evidence results from the assignment of specimens to specific taxonomic groups, and verification of its putative use by human beings is sometimes contentious (Merlin, 2003). The most reliable archeological information results from the combination of artifactual and paleoethnobotanical evidences (Merlin, 2003). Merlin’s Hypothesis The evidence on use of cannabis for recreation, fiber, medicine, and ceremony is enough to go against Merlin’s hypothesis, which

Scientific literacy Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Scientific literacy - Assignment Example In its laban form, the milk acts as an inhibitor to the ACE enzyme, which has been identified as the trigger for hyper tension (Momani 45). Camel milk has also been identified as being beneficial in managing diabetes. The milk possesses an insulin effect that is essential in managing type I and 2 diabetes. The molecular structure of the milk’s protein is identical to that of insulin and can be used to assist people with diabetes. Scientific research has been conducted on the milk’s protein structure to isolate it in order to replicate insulin. However, the quantities that are favorable have not yet been identified. For patients with autism spectrum disorders, scientific studies report that the use of camel milk by patients with the above condition, benefit greatly from its medicinal properties. Case studies have been conducted on children with ASD and there have been noted improvements in terms of their moods, health and functioning, courtesy of the regular consumption of camel milk. Due to the recent developments regarding the benefits of camel milk, it is highly recommended that all people drink camel milk. Its health properties have been proved to prevent a variety of diseases. Therefore, there should be increased efforts from the government, health authorities and the scientific community, to promote further research into camel milk in order to encourage its

The Role of Health Information Technology in (which evert area you Research Paper - 1

The Role of Health Information Technology in (which evert area you choose from below) - Research Paper Example or electronic health information implementation to prompt innovation in Healthcare Delivery by health service providers (Buntin, Burke, Hoaglin, & Blumenthal, 2011). The Health Information Technology has been used in a number of health areas, where its role is worth highlighting, such as ACO’s, PCMHs (Patient Centered Medical Homes), and HIEs or RHIOs etc. This paper is aimed at evaluating the role of the Health Information Technology in its one of important areas of Health Information Exchange. The health information exchange is quite a recent technology that is developed and implemented as a result of Federal efforts in order to employ the innovative technology for more advantages regarding health and providers. Within the United States, the utilization of health information exchange systems was profoundly established by the management through the channel of the American Recovery as well as Investment Act of 2009. Especially, the American and Recovery Investment Act integrated the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act (HITECH) that encouraged associations to implement EHRs and health information exchanges by means of optimistic and pessimistic rationales. Additional countries have as well approved rules and regulations encompassing the extensive implementation of EHRs, together with Canada, England and Australia (Blumenthal, 2009). On the whole, electronic health information exchange is analyzed like a healthy and needed aspect for health areas across the globe. In this scenario, latest innovative technology facilitates bulks of medical data and information to be processed as well as exchanged very quickly and resourcefully as compared to the obsolete paper-based manual structures (Brady, 2011; Buntin, Jain, & Blumenthal, 2010) Health information exchange or HIE can be defined as, â€Å"the exchange of clinical data such as problem lists, clinicians’ notes, or other critical medical information from one provider organization

Two Lobbies At A Glance Essay Example for Free

Two Lobbies At A Glance Essay Introduction   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Among the many hotels in Toronto, I decided to compare two hotels on nearly the same 3-star rating grade but with big contrasts. I decided to compare Marriot Residence Inn Hotel and the Drake Hotel. The Drake Hotel, located a bit distant from downtown, got a three and a half star rating for five floors of well-planned rooms, with attractively decorated interior and fun entertainment venues that makes it a hip destination. The Marriot Residence Inn Hotel meanwhile got three star ratings and is centrally located in the downtown making it an ideal destination for business travelers, vacationers and families. It is also located near the famous CN Tower and you can even book a room with panoramic view. Their room prices are different as well with the Marriot Residence Hotel’s room tagged at $232 per night and the Drake Hotel’s room priced at $191 per night. Both hotels boasts of hi-tech facilities, equipment and extensive amenities suited to the interest of the majority of their guests. Both hotels are also voted among the top ten most popular hotels in Toronto with the Residence Inn bagging the top place and the Drake Hotel in the top nine out of a hundred hotels. Both are popular to tourists although the choice of hotel between the two is driven ultimately by their personalities that are often in contrast too.   The hotel lobbies described and differentiated below became a window then to their distinct style of servicing their clients. The cozy lobby of the Marriot Residence Inn Hotel (Downtown) against the adventurously hip lobby of the Drake Hotel.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The first thing you will notice upon entering the lobby of one of the most popular hotel in Toronto, Marriot Residence Inn, is the cozy ambiance, clean interior and coordinated colors. The red seats are comfortable and the wooden wall panels create a warm atmosphere. The lobby of Drake Hotel is meant to catch the attention of the adventurous and art lovers. The couches are soft and got a lived-in look to it. The chairs are not matching and there are edgy and colorful art pieces that are included in the lobby. The dà ©cor is meant to vibrate a hip, inviting and cool hotel for those who want that kind of lifestyle. The Marriot Residence Inn Hotel provides better guests reception than those in Drake Hotel.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The front desk team of the Marriot Residence Inn Hotel is friendly and quick to assist you with your bags and to your room. They are professional but very welcoming that it makes guests feel comfortable instantly. The front desk team of Drake Hotel is helpful and friendly too. However, they seem to lack additional personnel to attend to the guests that are coming in and out. At few times, they let the guests drag their own bags in and make them wait since the reception is busy. Since many of the personnel of Drake Hotel are young, some had attitude in servicing their guests while some are very courteous to everyone. Some complaints on the guest stays are the noisy delivery at the morning of beer supplies and the pulsing beat of the jammed crowd at weekends. The guests of Drake Hotel are mainly composed of art-lovers and young, adventurous ones while the guests of Marriot Residence Inn are mainly composed of family vacationers, professionals and mature tourists.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Perhaps it’s the neighborhood around Drake Hotel that made it a popular choice for the hip and the artsy. The Drake Hotel has a hangout bar at its rooftop, lounge and club. It is also near famous bars and within the art community that gladly supports them. The guests of Marriot Residence Inn are treated the classy and comforting hotel amenities and downtown entertainments located around the Marriott while the hotel guests of Drake Hotel are subjected to fast, hip and fun events within the hotel itself.   The CN Tower, which is the tallest vertical structure in the world, stands within the view of the Marriot Residence Hotel while the Drake Hotel boasts of a very interesting art community and buzzing nightlife. The peace and quiet of the Marriot Residence Inn is more relaxing than the vibrant buzz of life in the Drake Hotel.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   If a guest is looking for a relaxing stay and envisioned sublime peace in their hotels then Drake Hotel is not for them Marriot Residence Inn is more suited to the mentioned objective of peace and quiet since the Marriot Residence offers hotel rooms, classy restaurant and a high-end bar. Drake Hotel meanwhile, is the spot for three very famous and very crowded nightspots in Toronto thus noise level and activity buzz is high. One guest stated that when he complained about the noise, he was given an earplug owned by the staff so as he could get a night of sleep. The Marriot Residence Hotel is much suited for family than the Drake Hotel.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The Drake Hotel has a menu of pleasure toys discreetly displayed in the lobby while the Marriot Residence Inn Hotel offers a comfortable and quiet stay. Since the focus of Drake Hotel seemed to be more on the entertainment areas rather than the hotel rooms, it is often jammed with people having a nightlife rather than of guests who are looking for a good bed to rest and a quiet room to sleep into. Conclusion   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   There are many phases in one’s life that one has varying interests and goals. Therefore the timing of choosing one hotel between the two is dependent on the interests of the guests. The Drake Hotel is much suited to the young, hip and outgoing personalities who like to be around art, jamming, nightlife and entertainment. While the Marriot Residence Inn hotel boasts of world-class excellence and quality service that they provide to those who can afford it.  Ã‚   Staying in either of these two hotels is enjoyable as long as your needs are met, your expectations exceeded and the moments you stayed there are hassle-free and enjoyable for you and your companions. Reference: Toronto Hotels. (2008) Trip Advisor. Retrieved January 25, 2008 from http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotels-g155019-Toronto_Ontario-Hotels.html Thesis Outline Two Lobbies At A Glance Introduction   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Both are nearly in the same 3-star rating. Both are located in tourist interests areas. However some differences are noted upon observation of their distinctive lobbies. Point One: The cozy lobby of the Marriot Residence Inn Hotel (Downtown) against the adventurously hip lobby of the Drake Hotel. Marriots Residence Inn’s cozy ambiance, clean interior and coordinated colors Drake Hotel offers colorful art pieces and dà ©cor Point Two: The Marriot Residence Inn Hotel provides better guests reception than those in Drake Hotel. The friendly staff of Marriots Residence Inn The busy and young personnel of Drake Hotel Point 3: The guests of Drake Hotel are mainly composed of art-lovers and young, adventurous ones while the guests of Marriot Residence Inn are mainly composed of family vacationers, professionals and mature tourists. The Drake Hotel has a hangout bar at its rooftop, lounge and club. The guests of Marriot Residence Inn are treated the classy and comforting hotel amenities and downtown entertainments located around the Marriott Point 4. The peace and quiet of the Marriots Residence Inn is more relaxing than the vibrant buzz of life in the Drake Hotel. Drake Hotel‘s high noise level and activity buzz. Marriot Residence offers hotel rooms, classy restaurant and a high-end bar. Point 5: The Marriots Residence Hotel is much suited for family than the Drake Hotel. The Drake Hotel has a menu of pleasure toys discreetly displayed in the lobby Marriots Residence Inn Hotel offers a comfortable and quiet stay for whole family. Conclusion The timing of choosing one hotel between the two is dependent on the interests and preference of the guests.   Staying in either of these two hotels is enjoyable as long as your needs are met, your expectations exceeded and the moments you stayed there are hassle-free and enjoyable for you and your companions.

A Comparative Analysis on the Socio-Cultural Theories of Marx Essay Example for Free

A Comparative Analysis on the Socio-Cultural Theories of Marx Essay Over the years, the names Karl Marx, Emile Durkheim, Max Weber, and Friedrich Nietzsche have been very dominant in the field of sociology, psychology, economics, and politics. In discussing the concepts of communism and materialism, the theories of Karl Marx cannot be disregarded. For Marx, the major influential factor in human history is economics (Cline 2008). According to Marx, even in the past, people were not moved by ostentatious ideas but rather by material things that helped them live and survive. Marx’s studies and theories also deal with explaining the roots of the collision of classes—the wealthy and labour classes. The conflict between the wealthy and labour classes became inevitable because of the rise of capitalism. Due to capitalism, there has been a separation between these two classes. The wealthy continue to own properties and acquire labourers as modern slaves to work for them in their businesses, while the labourers continue to struggle for what little they have, and they have to work day and night just to survive. It is also because of capitalism that the scarcity of resources has increased, and this made the conflict between the classes even worse. For Marx, everything is built upon the foundations of economics. All the prominent social and economic institutions as well as other organizations can only be understood well if they will be associated with economics. Moreover, Marx expressed that oftentimes, people tend to think that their ideas actually root from truth, beauty, love and other grand concepts, but in actuality, those ideas are from class interest and class conflict (Cline 2008). On the other hand, as compared to Marx, Emile Durkheim was better known for his studies of the communication process in relation to sociological analyses. The main idea of Durkheim’s theory notes that the civilization of human beings is a result of communication (Book Rags 2008). Their psychological nature becomes cultural forces, and the material and economic life becomes the community and the society. Aside from this, Durkheim also became a prominent figure in the field of sociology. He explained the nature of the society with an evolutionary approach, regarding society as an organism that has a specific structure and function (University of Regina 2002). According to Durkheim, although a society is composed of individuals, he pinpointed that a society is not simply a sum of individuals; rather, it has an identity and existence of its own that is different from the individuals that are part of it. He further added that it is the society that is influencing the individuals through norms, social facts, sentiments, and social currents, rather than the individuals influencing the society as a whole. Durkheim’s sociological ideas also posed a concern towards social order. He tried to find out how a modern society remains intact given people’s differences, individualism, and autonomy of individuals (University of Regina 2002). Eventually, Durkheim was able to find the answer and explained it in his book, ‘The Division of Labour in Society’. In the book, Durkheim defined and explained the concepts of social solidarity, common consciousness, and systems of law which he also connected to the idea of forced division of labour. However, he claimed that such forces in the society will not always be effective in creating solidarity. Thus, there will be disruptions in solidarity and consciousness because of the social changes. This chain of ideas introduces the concept of anomie or suicide, which Durkheim considered as a naturally occurring phenomenon in every society. Durkheim also expressed his ideas about social action. In explaining this concept, he took the structuralist approach. He considered the social structures to exert a strong influence on social action (University of Regina 2002). He believed that the collective thoughts, beliefs, practices, and consciousness of individuals can indeed make a difference in a lot of ways. Max Weber shared the same position as Marx in terms of alienation in relation to former’s views about the inevitable rationalisation and bureaucratisation of the world (The Hewett School n. d. ). Both of them agreed that it was the modern methods of organisation which drastically increased the effectiveness and efficiency of production. Both of them also concurred that these modern methods paved the way for the exceptional domination of man over nature. They also shared the same opinion of the modern world with such rationalized efficiency—that it threatens to transform into a monstrous being and dehumanize its creators (The Hewett School n. d. ). However, Weber opposed Marx’s claim that alienation is only a transitional stage towards man’s true liberation. Ha also denied that inevitable characteristic of socialism. Previously, Marx noted that capitalism caused the lowering of the worker class in the mode of production. However, Weber argued that this situation cannot be avoided in a rationally coordinated system. Weber further added that men cannot participate in socially significant actions anymore unless they join a larger organization. It is through these organizations that men get to sacrifice their own goals and desires for the sole aim and objective of the organization. Thus, people get to take off a part of them and therefore get to be alienated. Lastly, Friedrich Nietzsche was known in his arguments about the core and foundations of morality. Unlike Marx, Durkheim, and Weber, Nietzsche’s theories are more inclined to morality, and he was more into arguing for concepts that relate to religion. However, his theories posted a huge significance in the fields of sociology, economics, and politics as well. His moral philosophy is primarily critical in orientation. With his philosophy, he attacked morality both for its commitment to weak descriptive claims about human action and also for the adverse impact of its distinctive norms and values on the budding higher types of human beings—or what he calls the ‘higher men’ (uberman) (Zalta 2007). This idea of higher men explains that, above all other motivations, human behaviour is motivated by the will to power. He also became known in his arguments regarding the foundations of traditional Christianity. For Nietzsche, the creativity and realities of the world are more important than any consideration of any worlds beyond (UK Apologetics 2007). Aside from this, he also had several beliefs which proved his interest to challenge the tradition and beliefs of Christianity. Nietzsche believed that the goal of a human’s life must be to find his/her true self and not to help others. He also believed that sexuality does not really oppose virtues; rather, it is a virtue in its own right. Furthermore, he also argued that the highest virtue an individual can have is to be true to him- or herself. Thus, Nietzsche’s ideas can be observed to have a sense of selfishness. However, it can be explained that he has this kind of belief since his exposure and genre are that which believe in the power of the human will alone and not of any greater being. Upon analyzing the theories and theorists mentioned above, I observed that all their ideas contribute a lot to the developments of the society nowadays. The first three theorists dwell more on the economic side. They explained the effects of capitalism, social classes, and the harmony of relationships within a society. On the other hand, Nietzsche observed the moral part which the first three theorists seemed to have overlooked. Looking at our modern society now, everything seems affected by multimedia. If only Marx, Durkheim, Weber, and Nietzsche still exist today, they might probably look at multimedia as one of the most powerful forces that has the ability to shape a society. However, relating their theories to the modern concepts of multimedia today, Durkheim’s concepts seem to have the greatest relevance to it. This is because Durkheim regarded communication as a shaping factor of civilization. By this, he meant that communication (which includes multimedia nowadays) is one of the forces that pave the way for human organization (Book Rags 2008). Communication or multimedia in the modern perspective can also be interpreted—using Durkheim’s view—as the mould which makes or shapes a society. Thus, a society without the practice of communication cannot be considered a civilized society (Book Rags 2008). Putting this into modern context, a society without the practice of multi-media—which can be considered as one of the most powerful means of communication at present—is a society which has not yet reached development. List of References Cline, A. (2008). ‘Religion as Opium of the People’. About. com [online]. Available from http://atheism. about. com/od/philosophyofreligion/a/marx. htm? p=1 [29 October 2008] Book Rags (2008). Durkheim, Emile (1858-1917) [online]. Available from http://www. bookrags. com/research/durkheim-mile-1858-1917-eci-01/#bro_copy [29 October 2008] The Hewett School (n. d. ). Weber and Marx [online]. Available from http://www. hewett. norfolk. sch. uk/CURRIC/soc/WEBER/wm. htm [29 October 2008] University of Regina (2002). Conservative Approaches [online]. Available from http://uregina. ca/~gingrich/s16f02. htm [29 October 2008] Zalta, E. Ed. (2007). ‘Nietzsche’s Moral and Political Philosophy’. Stanford Encyclopaedia of Philosophy [online]. Available from http://plato. stanford. edu/entries/nietzsche-moral-political/ [29 October 2008] UK Apologetics (2007). Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900) [online]. Available from http://www. ukapologetics. net/truthaboutnietzsche. html [29 October 2008]

Environmental Impacts of Tourism in Mauritius

Environmental Impacts of Tourism in Mauritius CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION Tourism has become the main focus for countries mainly for Small Island developing states and has affected residents in terms of economic, socio-cultural and environmental impacts. So, there is a need to understand how local residents perceptions contribute towards tourism. The purpose of the study is mainly to provide a theoretical basis and framework for assessing host attitudes on the environmental impacts of tourism in Mauritius. Tourism and the environment are interrelated; the relationship between tourism and the environment has been universally recognized with the rapid increasing demand of tourists interacting with the natural environment. Tourism has the capacity to preserve as well as to destroy the environment. Studying the environmental impacts is a critical component of understanding how tourism affects the environment in Mauritius. An extensive literature covers the nature of the main interaction of tourist and host, characteristics of host-tourist relationship and thei r association with the environment. Researchers have been more interested towards the interaction between the tourists and the host. However, there are previous studies that have looked into the issue from tourist perspective. For achieving the purpose of the study a questionnaire was designed and a survey was done among the local residents. For the analysis part, quantitative approach was applied and the aim and objectives were in line with the majority of relevant literature. Consequently the methodology was elaborated, the sampling designs adopted, choice of instrument used, data collection follow the requirements, the limitation of the study was discussed and this leading to the conclusion and recommendation of the study. 1.1 Profile of Mauritius Mauritius is a small island in the Indian Ocean situated in the African continent. The area of Mauritius is about 2,040 sq.km. and its population is around 1.3 million. The ethnic groups consist of: Indo-Mauritians 68%, Creoles 27 %, Sino-Mauritian 3% and Franco-Mauritian 2%.Religions found in Mauritius are: Hindu 48 %, Creoles 27 %, Muslim 16.6 %, Christian 8.6% and others 2.5 %. Since 1968, Mauritius has evolved from a low-income, agriculturally based economy to a middle-income diversified economy with growing industrial, financial and tourist sectors. The economy rests on sugar, tourism, textiles and apparel and financial services and it is also expanding into information technology. Annual tourism growth has been in the range of 5 % to 6%. This remarkable growth has led to more equitable income distribution, increased life expectancy, lowered infant mortality and much improved infrastructure. Mauritius is has become is one among the most successful and competitive economies in Af rica; 2010 GDP at market prices was estimated at $9.5 billion and per capita income at $7,420, one of the highest in Africa. Moreover, Mauritius also has international relations with countries found in the west ,with India and countries of southern and eastern Africa. It is a member of the African Union (AU), World Trade Organization (WTO), the commonwealth, La Francophonie, the Southern African Development Community (SADC), the Indian Ocean Commission, the common market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) and the Indian Ocean Rim Association. 1.2 Problem Statement Tourism is a major industry and remains a valuable sector in many countries of the world. Tourism also contributes significantly to the countrys economy. Like most destinations; the development of tourism presents challenges to a countrys environment. As tourism development become more widespread, there tend to be changes in the environment (Husband Harrison, 1996), the capacity to absorb large numbers of people will be challenged (WTO, 1990) and environmental problems tend to rise. Recently, Mauritius has been facing some considerable negative environmental impacts from the tourist industry. This issue is quite debatable, because negative environmental impacts of tourism must be minimized and the aim must be towards building a green Mauritius. The challenge is therefore to maintain the long-term sustainability of tourist industry in Mauritius and subsequently derive benefits from it. Very oftten, tourism is seen as an opportunity for economic development, a tool for natural resourc e conservation and an opportunity for community development and empowerment of locals. As such, it becomes important to assess residents perceptions of the environmental impacts of tourism in Mauritius and to know whether residents support tourism development occurring or not. Understanding residents attitudes is complicated. Research shows that residents attitudes towards the environment are an indication of support for tourism development (Gursoy, 2002 Jurowski, 1997). A good understanding of the factors influencing support for development is important for residents, investors and policy makers (Gursoy Rutherford, 2004). Residents must have positive perceptions of tourism in order to sustain tourism development in a country and it is agreed that active support from the host population contributes towards sustainability of a country. 1.3 Aims and Objectives The aim of this study is to assess residents perceptions of the environmental impacts of tourism in Mauritius. Tourism impacts are very complex to model as such investigating residents perceptions is a good method to analyze the status of tourism impacts prevailing in a country and to know residents support for future tourism development. The purpose of this study is therefore, to analyze environmental impacts in Mauritius resulting from tourism activities with the objectives to understand the nature of these impacts. To meet the above goals, four specific objectives have been developed. The objectives are as follows: To investigate residents perceptions of the environmental impacts of tourism in Mauritius To find out if residents in Mauritius are aware of environmental issues To investigate the extent to which locals are involved in sustaining the environment To measure residents attitudes and responsibility towards environmental practices  Ã‚   Following these objectives two hypotheses have been put forward for testing. H1: There is a significant relationship between length of residency and positive environmental impacts of tourism H 5: There is a significant relationship between gender and environment oriented activities 1.4 Outline of dissertation Chapter 1-Introduction This chapter outlines the purpose of the research and the layout of the dissertation. The profile of our study that is Mauritius is also found in this chapter. Chapter 2-Literature Review In this chapter, the literature review consists of the various issues such as: residents perceptions towards tourism, positive and negative environmental impacts of tourism, tourism development and environmental sustainability in Mauritius. Chapter 3-Methodology This part covers the type of methodology that was used for conducting the survey and also highlights the limitation of the survey. Chapter 4-Results and Discussions This part shows the results obtained from the questionnaires that were distributed to residents in different regions. Data has been analyzed using graphical and Statistical Package for the Social Science (SPSS) Software. Chapter 5-Conclusions and Recommendations The last part identifies the possible solutions for the problems encountered with the poor involvement of locals and of the positive perceptions of residents towards environmental impacts of tourism, leading to a concluding note of the project. CHAPTER TWO LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Introduction The Tourism Industry is regarded as one of the most important and fastest growing industry around the world. Travel has been of great interest to people since the beginning of the civilization. Recently, it has been noted that there has been an increase in tourists arrivals, especially in small island states. According to UNWTO, tourism will continue to grow in 2011. Tourism sector has suffered from the global financial crisis in 2008 and 2009, but thanks to the improved economic conditions worldwide, international tourism has been able to recover from the decline brought in the financial crisis (United Nations, 2010). The travel and tourism industry is one of the largest and most dynamic industries in the world and this industry is expected to generate about 9% of global GDP and provide for more than 235 million jobs representing 8 % of global employment (Merco Press, 2010).The WTO has set up the long-term forecast of the assessment of the development of tourism up to the first 20 y ears of the new millennium known as the Tourism 2020 vision.UNWTOs Tourism 2020 vision predicts that international arrivals are expected to be over 1.56 billion by the year 2020. Among the worldwide arrivals in 2020, 1.2 will be within the same region and 0.4 will be long distance travellers. The top three receiving regions will be Europe with 717 million tourists, East Asia and the Pacific around 397 million and the Americas with 282 million, followed by the Africa, Middle East and South Asia (UNWTO, 2011). As such, the tourist will continue to be a flourishing industry in the coming years. Tourism has been described as the smokeless industry that can bring maximum benefit to a community as compared to other economic activities. 2.2 Tourism impacts There are many academic researchers that have been done on the impacts of tourism. Many local communities believe that tourism bring changes in social, cultural, environmental and economic positions where tourism activities have had a close connection with the local communities (Beeton, 2006; Richards Hall, 2000).It is imperative to understand and assess tourism impacts so as to ensure that sustainability is maintained in the long-term of the tourism industry (Diedrich Garcia-Buades, 2008).As such, it becomes important to understand tourism impacts towards the community. Thus, the model at figure 1 helps to illustrate tourism impacts on the community. 2.2.1 Model of Support for Tourism development In the twenty-first century, researchers on tourism believe that there are two categories of impacts which are the positive and negative impacts and they have a direct occurrence on the host community as a result of tourism development (Fredline and Faulkner, 2000; Upchurch and Teivane, 2000). For example, as Ryan (1991) states that the greatest impacts of tourism will occur when there is a greater gap between the culture and income level of both host and tourist. Locals perceptions towards the tourism impacts can vary significantly. According to Sharma (2004), if residents have more positive attititudes towards tourism impacts, tourism development will be more successful in a community. If residents benefit from tourism development they support additional tourism planning and development in a community. Gursoy Rutherford (2004) outlines that tourism developers need to consider the perceptions and attitudes of residents before investing in scarce resources. In addition, understanding of residents perceptions towards tourism impacts can also help in identifying the types of tourism which have the potential for building community capacity (Moscardo, 2008, p.86). So, there exist different types of tourism impacts which have been discussed in details. 2.2.1 Economic impacts In the beginning, tourism was encouraged because of its economic impacts. It is highly accepted that tourism provides economic benefits to the community..Economic impacts are easier to research in a local community because it is small and generally it is more accessible. Moreover, tourism bring positive benefits on local economies and creates a visible impact on a countrys national GDP growth which can be an essential component for community development and poverty reduction. (Ashe, 2005). For instance, tourism creates employment for locals, investment opportunities, business opportunities, tax revenues for government and it also help small and medium enterprises for countries, regions and communities to expand (Ryan, 1998; Choi Sirakaya, 2005; Dyer, 2007) but on the other hand tourism can have negative economic impacts on the society such as: too much dependency on foreign capital, inflation , leakages and a low education trap for locals (Giannoni Maupertus, 2007). Yet, more impor tant is the benefits spread to the residents of local communities (Scheyvens, 2001). 2.2.2 Social and cultural impacts According to (Law, 1993) social and cultural impacts refer to changes to residents everyday experiences as well as to their values, way of life and intellectual and artistic products such as: arts, artifacts, customs, rituals and architecture. Social and cultural impacts are strongly interrelated and not limited only to the host area population (Glasson, 1995, p.34).In many destinations, the nature and traditional meanings of culture may be substantially changed when culture is redefined as market share (Earrington and Gewertz, 1996). Because of this, a host community may face cultural problems of the commercialization of culture, religion and the arts together with the misuse of indigeneous culture as attractions and be forced to adopt cultural habits of the tourists, such as their language, dress and manner to satisfy visitors (Cohen, 1979).Another downside of tourism development is seen in many parts of the world where tourism developments threaten the displacement of local people . On the other hand, (Glasson, 1992) argues that along with the downside of development, there are cultural benefits and intercultural communication between hosts and visitors that increase good understanding between them and without tourists, local culture and tradition may have been lost completely, as there is no market for traditional products. 2.2.3 Environmental impacts Environmental impacts occur as a result of tourism development in many regions of the world as communities struggle to find an optimal balance between optimal and conservation. Recently, it has been found that tourism activities are highly dependent on the environment. Research has shown the impacts that tourism has on natural resources (Green, Hunter and Moore, 1990).Most of the researchers have been conducted on natural or semi-natural areas, with very little research done on urban settings (Green, 1990).Specific sites have been examined such as Alpine areas (Goodman, 1989; Rodriguez, 1987), islands (Wilkinson, 1989), coastal areas (Martinez-Taberner, Moya and Forteza, 1990). In addition, most research has been focused around the negative impacts that tourism has on natural resources after the damage has taken place. As such, tourism is always blamed to be responsible for resource degradation (Farell and McLellan, 1987). Broader perspectives of the environmental impacts of tourism are discussed in the next paragraph. 2.3 The Environmental Impacts of Tourism â€Å"The environment is probably one of the most important contributors to the desirability and attractiveness of a destination. Scenic sites, amenable climates and unique landscape features have an important influence in tourism development and the spatial distribution of tourism movement.† (Coccossis and Nijkamp, 1995, p.4) Tourism and the environment are interrelated as tourism is dependent on natural resources to survive. There are studies that have identified both the positive and negative environmental impacts of tourism (Burns Holden, 1995; Puckzo Ratz, 2000). Some of negative and positive impacts of tourism on the environment are illustrated in table 2.3. Table 2.3.1 Balance sheet of environmental impacts of tourism For the negative impacts of tourism, Puckzo and Ratz (2000) observed that tourism development that are not well-planned often leads to increased stress on destinations and in negative changes in the destinations physical and socio cultural attributes. According to Wood (1991), it is possible to identify broad categories of impacts that may affect all destinations. Therefore, it is important to elaborate on the positive and negative impacts of the environment. The negative environmental impacts of tourism can be as follows: 2.3.1 Water Pollution Water pollution is believed to be one of the environmental impacts caused by tourism. It can affect surfaces such as rivers, lakes and oceans. Chemical and oils spills from boats can cause devastating water pollution that kills water birds, shellfish and other wildlife. Tourists can also contribute to the degradation of the marine life also through:snorkelling,scuba diving and sport fishing can threaten fisheries and other marine resources. For example, tourism is known to have contributed to inappropriate development around Lake Tahoe in the United States (Iverson, Sheppard Strain, 1993) and at Pattaya in Thailand (Mieczkowski, 1995); oil pollution in water at King George island (Harris, 1991). 2.3.2 Waste Disposal Apart from the consumption of large amounts of natural resources, the tourism industry also produces considerable waste and pollution. In fact, disposal of liquid and solid waste generated by the tourism industry has posed a problem for many developing countries and some countries are incapable of treating these waste materials. This has led to reducing the availability of natural resources such as fresh water. For example, in Kerala state the tourist industry collapses after two decades of fast growth because there was inadequate disposal of solid waste. Tourists also contribute to land pollution from solid waste and the contamination of marine waters and coastal areas from pollution generated by marinas, hotels and cruise ships. For example: the cruise ships in the Caribbean Sea alone produced more than 70,000 tons of liquid and solid waste a year during the mid-1990s (UN,1999).the cruise sector around the world are facing this problem. In fact, the expansion of the cruise sector e nsures that the environment is protected across the world oceans and between the worlds tourist destinations (Johnson, 2002). 2.3.3 Coastal area degradation Tourism has already had adverse effects on coastal areas, especially in small islands developing states. Beaches are destroyed by sand quarrying and are normally not being replenished because of the destruction of coral reefs by waste disposal and pollution. Erosion occurs because of tourism facilities and infrastructures built too close to beach destruction and coastal degradation. Destruction to coastal areas is the removal of the mangrove forests which act as a home for birds and other animal which act as a barrier against damage to sea. Marine life can be disturbed by intensive use of thrill craft, boat tours and boat anchors. Anchor damage is regarded as one of the danger to coral reefs in the Carribean Sea as there are a growing number of both small boats and large cruise ships in the region (Michael Hall, 2001). 2.3.4 Climate Change External environmental shocks could be threatened to tourism, especially climate change such as: global warming and sea-level rise. Rises in sea level could threaten tourism activities particularly in coastal regions and small islands. Global warming is expected to change climate temperature and provoke climate events such as: tropical windstorms, coastal flooding and storms that may affect tourist activities in a destination (UN, 2000). 2.3.5 Land Degradation and littering Land resources include minerals, fossil fuels, fertile soil, forests, wetland and wildlife. Pressures on natural resources have been increased due to intensive tourism development. Tourism can lead to the clearance of native vegetation for the development of new facilities and infrastructure; demand for fuel wood will be increased and even forest fires. Fragile areas such as: rain forests, wetlands and mangroves are threatened by tourism activities. Littering cause by tourists degrade the physical appearance of the environment. For example: tourists on expeditions leave behind their garbage and belongings. Such practices by tourists degrade the environment and some areas have few disposal facilities. 2.3.6 Damage to ecosystems The delicate ecosystems of most small islands are damaged by tourism activities, because they rely heavily on tourism. Tourism activities which are not properly controlled can also cause severe disruption of wildlife habitats and increased pressure on endangered species. For example, in Africas national parks tourists vehicles approach wild animals and very often distract them from hunting and breeding, (Masny, 2001). Trampling occurs by tourists, they use the same trail and trample the soil, causing damage which lead to loss of biodiversity and other impacts. Habitat loss, fragmentation and erosion in Nepal (Croall, 1995); destruction of wildlife at Zakynthos in Greece (Prunier, Sweeney Green, 1993); disturbance of animals and loss of area for production in Kenya (Sindiga Kannunah, 1999). 2.3.7 Air pollution Tourists contribute towards air pollution. Transport by air, road and rail are continuously increasing. Moreover, polluted air and water, dust, fumes from traffic congestion also degrade the quality and natural beauty of tourist destination (Williams, 1998, p.2) .Air pollution is the result of emissions from vehicles. Although, tourism is not so concerned for the overall emissions problems, recent issues such as: ozone destruction, greenhouse effect and global warming make tourism related to air pollution (Wheatcroft, 1991).But tourism is responsible for a large share of emissions, it accounts for more than 60% of air travel. 2.3.8 Noise pollution and visual pollution It is a fact that noise pollution from airplanes, cars, buses, discotheques and recreational vehicles are becoming an ever growing problem for modern life. Noise pollution cause disturbance and annoyance to the lives of people, stress for humans and it also causes distress to wildlife in sensitive areas. For example, noise generated by vehicles of tourists can cause animals to change their natural activity patterns .There is a lack of planning that fails to integrate tourism structures. Large resorts may clash with indigenous design. Building and structures; poorly designed do not comply with local building control and cause negative impacts on the picturesque scenery (Williams, 1998, p.2). These may include violations congestion of buildings and structures that are not harmonious with the natural landscape. 2.4 Preservation and conservation On the other side, tourism also contributes positively towards the environment. Tourism is regarded as the catalyst for preserving natural areas. Doswell (1997) argues that tourism lays emphasis to conserve and protect the environment. Tourism also draws attention to subjects regarding biodiversity, natural resources,endangered species and human impacts on the environment. Tourism is also used as a means to preserve natural areas rather than to develop them for alternative uses such as: agriculture, forestry and mining (Master, 1998). Mathieson and Wall (1982) further argued that tourism has fostered the protection of many species since they serve as major attractions. For example, in Ghana tourism has helped in maintaining the natural reserves.. In this way, natural areas become valuable and this can lead to creation of national parks and wildlife parks. National parks in East Africa were developped almost exclusively because they attract large number of international tourists .For example, in Hawaii, new laws and regulations have been set to preserve the rainforest and to protect native species. 2.4.1 Improvement of infrastructure The government is encouraged to invest more in infrastructure and recreational facilities when there are large number of tourists coming to a destination. As such, there is an improvement on road system, sewage disposal, and telecommunications among others which tourists use. Tourism can also act as a medium for improving the environment, according to Youell (1998) revenue received from park-entrance fees can be used to pay for protecting and managing sensitive areas. On the hand, in some places government collect money from tourists in indirect ways. For example: revenue obtained from recreation of equipment, license fees   obtained from hunting and fishing can help the government to fund and manage natural resources and finance infrastructure. As such the community will be able to benefit from facilities such as: attractive places, signage, lighting, litter bins and renovation of parks. 2.4.2 Creating environmental awareness People of the community become more environmental conscious of the problems prevailing in the environment. Tourism makes people becomes more environmental conscious. As such, peoples behavior towards the environment will change. Ross Wall (1999) suggested, tourism has the potential to contribute to both conservation and development and it involves the creation of positive synergetic relationships among tourism, biodiversity, and local people through the application of appropriate management strategies. 2.5 Residents perceptions towards tourism Sustainable tourism development can be achieved normally when all stakeholders are involved in tourism development process (Bryd, 2007). Sustainable tourism believes that the community is the focal point of tourism and planning process (Choi and Sirakaya, 2005).In addition, investigating the residents perceptions towards tourism is important because it influences their behaviour towards tourism (Andriotis and Vaughan, 2003). Studies show that the perceptions of residents towards tourism differ from resident to resident. Sustainable tourism development largely depends on the hosts acceptability of tourists and tourism-related programs, offerings and activities by locals (Musa, Hall, and Higham 2004). The active support of the local population is required for tourism development to occur in a community. One indicator that affects tourism development in a destination is the host attitude (Lepp, 2007). In a destination area, the attitudes of the tourists and residents are taken into acco unt. Another factor that is likely to influence the negative and positive impacts of tourists destination is residents attachment to community. Some researchers, Canan and Hennessy (1989) states that the longer the residents live in a community, the more negative they are towards tourism development. The lengths of residency of locals have a direct impact on tourism development. Theories such as the attribution theory (Pearce, 1989); dependency theory (Preister, 2008), the social representation theory (Andriotis Vaughan, 2003), Butlers (1980) tourist area life cycle, Doxeys Irridex model (1970), the intrinsic and extrinsic framework (Faulkner Tideswell, 1997) and the social exchange theory (SET) (Ap, 1982) have been developed   in an attempt to better understand the host perceptions towards tourism. However, it is the SET that have received the greatest attention by scholars attempting to study residents attitudes towards tourism and their support towards tourism development (Gursoy Rutherford, 2004). 2.5.1Social Exchange Theory In a tourism context, social exchange theory would mean an exchange of resources between the tourists and the host population where each of them supply each other with valued resources (Ap, 1990).SET implies that residents who gain benefits from the tourism industry are likely to perceive the industry as positive and thus support tourist industry, while those who perceive themselves incurring costs because of tourism would display negative attitudes towards tourism thereby opposing such development. Social exchange theory firmly believes that a need exists to measure the level of active participation of residents in the planning and development process associated with tourism development (Wang Pister, 2008). But, the theory has been criticized by stating that humans are isolated individuals and they respond like computer machines (Pearce, 1996). Furthermore, this theory needs to be further tested due to the complex nature of residents both in isolation and as collective individuals (Zhang, 2006). So, to have a better idea of resident attitude it is important to look at the intrinsic and extrinsic model. 2.5.2 Factors affecting residents attitudes towards tourists 2.5.2 Intrinsic and Extrinsic Model The factors that affect residents attitudes towards tourism are intrinsic and extrinsic variables (Faulkner Tideswell, 1997).The intrinsic variables refer to â€Å"the characteristics of the host community that affect the impacts of tourism with the host community† (Faulkner Tideswell, 1997, p.6) and includes factors such as: employment, length of residence, proximity to tourist zones and involvement within the tourism industry. Length of residency affect tourism development in a community, native born of the community have been found to have more negative perception of tourism development because they are attached to that place (Madrigal, 1995). On the other hand, Bisle and Hoy (1980) found a positive relationship between distance of residence from the tourist zone and perceptions. As regards to community attachment, studies showed that the longer a host has been a resident in the area; as such they become less attached to tourism (Weaver, 2001). Residents who are dependent and involved in the tourism sector are more likely to have positive attitudes towards tourism (Lindberg, 1 Environmental Impacts of Tourism in Mauritius Environmental Impacts of Tourism in Mauritius CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION Tourism has become the main focus for countries mainly for Small Island developing states and has affected residents in terms of economic, socio-cultural and environmental impacts. So, there is a need to understand how local residents perceptions contribute towards tourism. The purpose of the study is mainly to provide a theoretical basis and framework for assessing host attitudes on the environmental impacts of tourism in Mauritius. Tourism and the environment are interrelated; the relationship between tourism and the environment has been universally recognized with the rapid increasing demand of tourists interacting with the natural environment. Tourism has the capacity to preserve as well as to destroy the environment. Studying the environmental impacts is a critical component of understanding how tourism affects the environment in Mauritius. An extensive literature covers the nature of the main interaction of tourist and host, characteristics of host-tourist relationship and thei r association with the environment. Researchers have been more interested towards the interaction between the tourists and the host. However, there are previous studies that have looked into the issue from tourist perspective. For achieving the purpose of the study a questionnaire was designed and a survey was done among the local residents. For the analysis part, quantitative approach was applied and the aim and objectives were in line with the majority of relevant literature. Consequently the methodology was elaborated, the sampling designs adopted, choice of instrument used, data collection follow the requirements, the limitation of the study was discussed and this leading to the conclusion and recommendation of the study. 1.1 Profile of Mauritius Mauritius is a small island in the Indian Ocean situated in the African continent. The area of Mauritius is about 2,040 sq.km. and its population is around 1.3 million. The ethnic groups consist of: Indo-Mauritians 68%, Creoles 27 %, Sino-Mauritian 3% and Franco-Mauritian 2%.Religions found in Mauritius are: Hindu 48 %, Creoles 27 %, Muslim 16.6 %, Christian 8.6% and others 2.5 %. Since 1968, Mauritius has evolved from a low-income, agriculturally based economy to a middle-income diversified economy with growing industrial, financial and tourist sectors. The economy rests on sugar, tourism, textiles and apparel and financial services and it is also expanding into information technology. Annual tourism growth has been in the range of 5 % to 6%. This remarkable growth has led to more equitable income distribution, increased life expectancy, lowered infant mortality and much improved infrastructure. Mauritius is has become is one among the most successful and competitive economies in Af rica; 2010 GDP at market prices was estimated at $9.5 billion and per capita income at $7,420, one of the highest in Africa. Moreover, Mauritius also has international relations with countries found in the west ,with India and countries of southern and eastern Africa. It is a member of the African Union (AU), World Trade Organization (WTO), the commonwealth, La Francophonie, the Southern African Development Community (SADC), the Indian Ocean Commission, the common market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) and the Indian Ocean Rim Association. 1.2 Problem Statement Tourism is a major industry and remains a valuable sector in many countries of the world. Tourism also contributes significantly to the countrys economy. Like most destinations; the development of tourism presents challenges to a countrys environment. As tourism development become more widespread, there tend to be changes in the environment (Husband Harrison, 1996), the capacity to absorb large numbers of people will be challenged (WTO, 1990) and environmental problems tend to rise. Recently, Mauritius has been facing some considerable negative environmental impacts from the tourist industry. This issue is quite debatable, because negative environmental impacts of tourism must be minimized and the aim must be towards building a green Mauritius. The challenge is therefore to maintain the long-term sustainability of tourist industry in Mauritius and subsequently derive benefits from it. Very oftten, tourism is seen as an opportunity for economic development, a tool for natural resourc e conservation and an opportunity for community development and empowerment of locals. As such, it becomes important to assess residents perceptions of the environmental impacts of tourism in Mauritius and to know whether residents support tourism development occurring or not. Understanding residents attitudes is complicated. Research shows that residents attitudes towards the environment are an indication of support for tourism development (Gursoy, 2002 Jurowski, 1997). A good understanding of the factors influencing support for development is important for residents, investors and policy makers (Gursoy Rutherford, 2004). Residents must have positive perceptions of tourism in order to sustain tourism development in a country and it is agreed that active support from the host population contributes towards sustainability of a country. 1.3 Aims and Objectives The aim of this study is to assess residents perceptions of the environmental impacts of tourism in Mauritius. Tourism impacts are very complex to model as such investigating residents perceptions is a good method to analyze the status of tourism impacts prevailing in a country and to know residents support for future tourism development. The purpose of this study is therefore, to analyze environmental impacts in Mauritius resulting from tourism activities with the objectives to understand the nature of these impacts. To meet the above goals, four specific objectives have been developed. The objectives are as follows: To investigate residents perceptions of the environmental impacts of tourism in Mauritius To find out if residents in Mauritius are aware of environmental issues To investigate the extent to which locals are involved in sustaining the environment To measure residents attitudes and responsibility towards environmental practices  Ã‚   Following these objectives two hypotheses have been put forward for testing. H1: There is a significant relationship between length of residency and positive environmental impacts of tourism H 5: There is a significant relationship between gender and environment oriented activities 1.4 Outline of dissertation Chapter 1-Introduction This chapter outlines the purpose of the research and the layout of the dissertation. The profile of our study that is Mauritius is also found in this chapter. Chapter 2-Literature Review In this chapter, the literature review consists of the various issues such as: residents perceptions towards tourism, positive and negative environmental impacts of tourism, tourism development and environmental sustainability in Mauritius. Chapter 3-Methodology This part covers the type of methodology that was used for conducting the survey and also highlights the limitation of the survey. Chapter 4-Results and Discussions This part shows the results obtained from the questionnaires that were distributed to residents in different regions. Data has been analyzed using graphical and Statistical Package for the Social Science (SPSS) Software. Chapter 5-Conclusions and Recommendations The last part identifies the possible solutions for the problems encountered with the poor involvement of locals and of the positive perceptions of residents towards environmental impacts of tourism, leading to a concluding note of the project. CHAPTER TWO LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 Introduction The Tourism Industry is regarded as one of the most important and fastest growing industry around the world. Travel has been of great interest to people since the beginning of the civilization. Recently, it has been noted that there has been an increase in tourists arrivals, especially in small island states. According to UNWTO, tourism will continue to grow in 2011. Tourism sector has suffered from the global financial crisis in 2008 and 2009, but thanks to the improved economic conditions worldwide, international tourism has been able to recover from the decline brought in the financial crisis (United Nations, 2010). The travel and tourism industry is one of the largest and most dynamic industries in the world and this industry is expected to generate about 9% of global GDP and provide for more than 235 million jobs representing 8 % of global employment (Merco Press, 2010).The WTO has set up the long-term forecast of the assessment of the development of tourism up to the first 20 y ears of the new millennium known as the Tourism 2020 vision.UNWTOs Tourism 2020 vision predicts that international arrivals are expected to be over 1.56 billion by the year 2020. Among the worldwide arrivals in 2020, 1.2 will be within the same region and 0.4 will be long distance travellers. The top three receiving regions will be Europe with 717 million tourists, East Asia and the Pacific around 397 million and the Americas with 282 million, followed by the Africa, Middle East and South Asia (UNWTO, 2011). As such, the tourist will continue to be a flourishing industry in the coming years. Tourism has been described as the smokeless industry that can bring maximum benefit to a community as compared to other economic activities. 2.2 Tourism impacts There are many academic researchers that have been done on the impacts of tourism. Many local communities believe that tourism bring changes in social, cultural, environmental and economic positions where tourism activities have had a close connection with the local communities (Beeton, 2006; Richards Hall, 2000).It is imperative to understand and assess tourism impacts so as to ensure that sustainability is maintained in the long-term of the tourism industry (Diedrich Garcia-Buades, 2008).As such, it becomes important to understand tourism impacts towards the community. Thus, the model at figure 1 helps to illustrate tourism impacts on the community. 2.2.1 Model of Support for Tourism development In the twenty-first century, researchers on tourism believe that there are two categories of impacts which are the positive and negative impacts and they have a direct occurrence on the host community as a result of tourism development (Fredline and Faulkner, 2000; Upchurch and Teivane, 2000). For example, as Ryan (1991) states that the greatest impacts of tourism will occur when there is a greater gap between the culture and income level of both host and tourist. Locals perceptions towards the tourism impacts can vary significantly. According to Sharma (2004), if residents have more positive attititudes towards tourism impacts, tourism development will be more successful in a community. If residents benefit from tourism development they support additional tourism planning and development in a community. Gursoy Rutherford (2004) outlines that tourism developers need to consider the perceptions and attitudes of residents before investing in scarce resources. In addition, understanding of residents perceptions towards tourism impacts can also help in identifying the types of tourism which have the potential for building community capacity (Moscardo, 2008, p.86). So, there exist different types of tourism impacts which have been discussed in details. 2.2.1 Economic impacts In the beginning, tourism was encouraged because of its economic impacts. It is highly accepted that tourism provides economic benefits to the community..Economic impacts are easier to research in a local community because it is small and generally it is more accessible. Moreover, tourism bring positive benefits on local economies and creates a visible impact on a countrys national GDP growth which can be an essential component for community development and poverty reduction. (Ashe, 2005). For instance, tourism creates employment for locals, investment opportunities, business opportunities, tax revenues for government and it also help small and medium enterprises for countries, regions and communities to expand (Ryan, 1998; Choi Sirakaya, 2005; Dyer, 2007) but on the other hand tourism can have negative economic impacts on the society such as: too much dependency on foreign capital, inflation , leakages and a low education trap for locals (Giannoni Maupertus, 2007). Yet, more impor tant is the benefits spread to the residents of local communities (Scheyvens, 2001). 2.2.2 Social and cultural impacts According to (Law, 1993) social and cultural impacts refer to changes to residents everyday experiences as well as to their values, way of life and intellectual and artistic products such as: arts, artifacts, customs, rituals and architecture. Social and cultural impacts are strongly interrelated and not limited only to the host area population (Glasson, 1995, p.34).In many destinations, the nature and traditional meanings of culture may be substantially changed when culture is redefined as market share (Earrington and Gewertz, 1996). Because of this, a host community may face cultural problems of the commercialization of culture, religion and the arts together with the misuse of indigeneous culture as attractions and be forced to adopt cultural habits of the tourists, such as their language, dress and manner to satisfy visitors (Cohen, 1979).Another downside of tourism development is seen in many parts of the world where tourism developments threaten the displacement of local people . On the other hand, (Glasson, 1992) argues that along with the downside of development, there are cultural benefits and intercultural communication between hosts and visitors that increase good understanding between them and without tourists, local culture and tradition may have been lost completely, as there is no market for traditional products. 2.2.3 Environmental impacts Environmental impacts occur as a result of tourism development in many regions of the world as communities struggle to find an optimal balance between optimal and conservation. Recently, it has been found that tourism activities are highly dependent on the environment. Research has shown the impacts that tourism has on natural resources (Green, Hunter and Moore, 1990).Most of the researchers have been conducted on natural or semi-natural areas, with very little research done on urban settings (Green, 1990).Specific sites have been examined such as Alpine areas (Goodman, 1989; Rodriguez, 1987), islands (Wilkinson, 1989), coastal areas (Martinez-Taberner, Moya and Forteza, 1990). In addition, most research has been focused around the negative impacts that tourism has on natural resources after the damage has taken place. As such, tourism is always blamed to be responsible for resource degradation (Farell and McLellan, 1987). Broader perspectives of the environmental impacts of tourism are discussed in the next paragraph. 2.3 The Environmental Impacts of Tourism â€Å"The environment is probably one of the most important contributors to the desirability and attractiveness of a destination. Scenic sites, amenable climates and unique landscape features have an important influence in tourism development and the spatial distribution of tourism movement.† (Coccossis and Nijkamp, 1995, p.4) Tourism and the environment are interrelated as tourism is dependent on natural resources to survive. There are studies that have identified both the positive and negative environmental impacts of tourism (Burns Holden, 1995; Puckzo Ratz, 2000). Some of negative and positive impacts of tourism on the environment are illustrated in table 2.3. Table 2.3.1 Balance sheet of environmental impacts of tourism For the negative impacts of tourism, Puckzo and Ratz (2000) observed that tourism development that are not well-planned often leads to increased stress on destinations and in negative changes in the destinations physical and socio cultural attributes. According to Wood (1991), it is possible to identify broad categories of impacts that may affect all destinations. Therefore, it is important to elaborate on the positive and negative impacts of the environment. The negative environmental impacts of tourism can be as follows: 2.3.1 Water Pollution Water pollution is believed to be one of the environmental impacts caused by tourism. It can affect surfaces such as rivers, lakes and oceans. Chemical and oils spills from boats can cause devastating water pollution that kills water birds, shellfish and other wildlife. Tourists can also contribute to the degradation of the marine life also through:snorkelling,scuba diving and sport fishing can threaten fisheries and other marine resources. For example, tourism is known to have contributed to inappropriate development around Lake Tahoe in the United States (Iverson, Sheppard Strain, 1993) and at Pattaya in Thailand (Mieczkowski, 1995); oil pollution in water at King George island (Harris, 1991). 2.3.2 Waste Disposal Apart from the consumption of large amounts of natural resources, the tourism industry also produces considerable waste and pollution. In fact, disposal of liquid and solid waste generated by the tourism industry has posed a problem for many developing countries and some countries are incapable of treating these waste materials. This has led to reducing the availability of natural resources such as fresh water. For example, in Kerala state the tourist industry collapses after two decades of fast growth because there was inadequate disposal of solid waste. Tourists also contribute to land pollution from solid waste and the contamination of marine waters and coastal areas from pollution generated by marinas, hotels and cruise ships. For example: the cruise ships in the Caribbean Sea alone produced more than 70,000 tons of liquid and solid waste a year during the mid-1990s (UN,1999).the cruise sector around the world are facing this problem. In fact, the expansion of the cruise sector e nsures that the environment is protected across the world oceans and between the worlds tourist destinations (Johnson, 2002). 2.3.3 Coastal area degradation Tourism has already had adverse effects on coastal areas, especially in small islands developing states. Beaches are destroyed by sand quarrying and are normally not being replenished because of the destruction of coral reefs by waste disposal and pollution. Erosion occurs because of tourism facilities and infrastructures built too close to beach destruction and coastal degradation. Destruction to coastal areas is the removal of the mangrove forests which act as a home for birds and other animal which act as a barrier against damage to sea. Marine life can be disturbed by intensive use of thrill craft, boat tours and boat anchors. Anchor damage is regarded as one of the danger to coral reefs in the Carribean Sea as there are a growing number of both small boats and large cruise ships in the region (Michael Hall, 2001). 2.3.4 Climate Change External environmental shocks could be threatened to tourism, especially climate change such as: global warming and sea-level rise. Rises in sea level could threaten tourism activities particularly in coastal regions and small islands. Global warming is expected to change climate temperature and provoke climate events such as: tropical windstorms, coastal flooding and storms that may affect tourist activities in a destination (UN, 2000). 2.3.5 Land Degradation and littering Land resources include minerals, fossil fuels, fertile soil, forests, wetland and wildlife. Pressures on natural resources have been increased due to intensive tourism development. Tourism can lead to the clearance of native vegetation for the development of new facilities and infrastructure; demand for fuel wood will be increased and even forest fires. Fragile areas such as: rain forests, wetlands and mangroves are threatened by tourism activities. Littering cause by tourists degrade the physical appearance of the environment. For example: tourists on expeditions leave behind their garbage and belongings. Such practices by tourists degrade the environment and some areas have few disposal facilities. 2.3.6 Damage to ecosystems The delicate ecosystems of most small islands are damaged by tourism activities, because they rely heavily on tourism. Tourism activities which are not properly controlled can also cause severe disruption of wildlife habitats and increased pressure on endangered species. For example, in Africas national parks tourists vehicles approach wild animals and very often distract them from hunting and breeding, (Masny, 2001). Trampling occurs by tourists, they use the same trail and trample the soil, causing damage which lead to loss of biodiversity and other impacts. Habitat loss, fragmentation and erosion in Nepal (Croall, 1995); destruction of wildlife at Zakynthos in Greece (Prunier, Sweeney Green, 1993); disturbance of animals and loss of area for production in Kenya (Sindiga Kannunah, 1999). 2.3.7 Air pollution Tourists contribute towards air pollution. Transport by air, road and rail are continuously increasing. Moreover, polluted air and water, dust, fumes from traffic congestion also degrade the quality and natural beauty of tourist destination (Williams, 1998, p.2) .Air pollution is the result of emissions from vehicles. Although, tourism is not so concerned for the overall emissions problems, recent issues such as: ozone destruction, greenhouse effect and global warming make tourism related to air pollution (Wheatcroft, 1991).But tourism is responsible for a large share of emissions, it accounts for more than 60% of air travel. 2.3.8 Noise pollution and visual pollution It is a fact that noise pollution from airplanes, cars, buses, discotheques and recreational vehicles are becoming an ever growing problem for modern life. Noise pollution cause disturbance and annoyance to the lives of people, stress for humans and it also causes distress to wildlife in sensitive areas. For example, noise generated by vehicles of tourists can cause animals to change their natural activity patterns .There is a lack of planning that fails to integrate tourism structures. Large resorts may clash with indigenous design. Building and structures; poorly designed do not comply with local building control and cause negative impacts on the picturesque scenery (Williams, 1998, p.2). These may include violations congestion of buildings and structures that are not harmonious with the natural landscape. 2.4 Preservation and conservation On the other side, tourism also contributes positively towards the environment. Tourism is regarded as the catalyst for preserving natural areas. Doswell (1997) argues that tourism lays emphasis to conserve and protect the environment. Tourism also draws attention to subjects regarding biodiversity, natural resources,endangered species and human impacts on the environment. Tourism is also used as a means to preserve natural areas rather than to develop them for alternative uses such as: agriculture, forestry and mining (Master, 1998). Mathieson and Wall (1982) further argued that tourism has fostered the protection of many species since they serve as major attractions. For example, in Ghana tourism has helped in maintaining the natural reserves.. In this way, natural areas become valuable and this can lead to creation of national parks and wildlife parks. National parks in East Africa were developped almost exclusively because they attract large number of international tourists .For example, in Hawaii, new laws and regulations have been set to preserve the rainforest and to protect native species. 2.4.1 Improvement of infrastructure The government is encouraged to invest more in infrastructure and recreational facilities when there are large number of tourists coming to a destination. As such, there is an improvement on road system, sewage disposal, and telecommunications among others which tourists use. Tourism can also act as a medium for improving the environment, according to Youell (1998) revenue received from park-entrance fees can be used to pay for protecting and managing sensitive areas. On the hand, in some places government collect money from tourists in indirect ways. For example: revenue obtained from recreation of equipment, license fees   obtained from hunting and fishing can help the government to fund and manage natural resources and finance infrastructure. As such the community will be able to benefit from facilities such as: attractive places, signage, lighting, litter bins and renovation of parks. 2.4.2 Creating environmental awareness People of the community become more environmental conscious of the problems prevailing in the environment. Tourism makes people becomes more environmental conscious. As such, peoples behavior towards the environment will change. Ross Wall (1999) suggested, tourism has the potential to contribute to both conservation and development and it involves the creation of positive synergetic relationships among tourism, biodiversity, and local people through the application of appropriate management strategies. 2.5 Residents perceptions towards tourism Sustainable tourism development can be achieved normally when all stakeholders are involved in tourism development process (Bryd, 2007). Sustainable tourism believes that the community is the focal point of tourism and planning process (Choi and Sirakaya, 2005).In addition, investigating the residents perceptions towards tourism is important because it influences their behaviour towards tourism (Andriotis and Vaughan, 2003). Studies show that the perceptions of residents towards tourism differ from resident to resident. Sustainable tourism development largely depends on the hosts acceptability of tourists and tourism-related programs, offerings and activities by locals (Musa, Hall, and Higham 2004). The active support of the local population is required for tourism development to occur in a community. One indicator that affects tourism development in a destination is the host attitude (Lepp, 2007). In a destination area, the attitudes of the tourists and residents are taken into acco unt. Another factor that is likely to influence the negative and positive impacts of tourists destination is residents attachment to community. Some researchers, Canan and Hennessy (1989) states that the longer the residents live in a community, the more negative they are towards tourism development. The lengths of residency of locals have a direct impact on tourism development. Theories such as the attribution theory (Pearce, 1989); dependency theory (Preister, 2008), the social representation theory (Andriotis Vaughan, 2003), Butlers (1980) tourist area life cycle, Doxeys Irridex model (1970), the intrinsic and extrinsic framework (Faulkner Tideswell, 1997) and the social exchange theory (SET) (Ap, 1982) have been developed   in an attempt to better understand the host perceptions towards tourism. However, it is the SET that have received the greatest attention by scholars attempting to study residents attitudes towards tourism and their support towards tourism development (Gursoy Rutherford, 2004). 2.5.1Social Exchange Theory In a tourism context, social exchange theory would mean an exchange of resources between the tourists and the host population where each of them supply each other with valued resources (Ap, 1990).SET implies that residents who gain benefits from the tourism industry are likely to perceive the industry as positive and thus support tourist industry, while those who perceive themselves incurring costs because of tourism would display negative attitudes towards tourism thereby opposing such development. Social exchange theory firmly believes that a need exists to measure the level of active participation of residents in the planning and development process associated with tourism development (Wang Pister, 2008). But, the theory has been criticized by stating that humans are isolated individuals and they respond like computer machines (Pearce, 1996). Furthermore, this theory needs to be further tested due to the complex nature of residents both in isolation and as collective individuals (Zhang, 2006). So, to have a better idea of resident attitude it is important to look at the intrinsic and extrinsic model. 2.5.2 Factors affecting residents attitudes towards tourists 2.5.2 Intrinsic and Extrinsic Model The factors that affect residents attitudes towards tourism are intrinsic and extrinsic variables (Faulkner Tideswell, 1997).The intrinsic variables refer to â€Å"the characteristics of the host community that affect the impacts of tourism with the host community† (Faulkner Tideswell, 1997, p.6) and includes factors such as: employment, length of residence, proximity to tourist zones and involvement within the tourism industry. Length of residency affect tourism development in a community, native born of the community have been found to have more negative perception of tourism development because they are attached to that place (Madrigal, 1995). On the other hand, Bisle and Hoy (1980) found a positive relationship between distance of residence from the tourist zone and perceptions. As regards to community attachment, studies showed that the longer a host has been a resident in the area; as such they become less attached to tourism (Weaver, 2001). Residents who are dependent and involved in the tourism sector are more likely to have positive attitudes towards tourism (Lindberg, 1