proposed tourism development in a wider sense to consider its overall impact in the context of better public facilities and regional progress.
･ Manageability
The proposed development must be affordable and not too great an economic burden on the people or the nation. The proposed development should not be too far in advance of or threaten the community's cultural framework and traditions. As well, the local communities affected must be fully consulted and allowed sufficient time to adjust to the planned development to ensure it is feasible and acceptable.
･ Sustainability
The proposed development must be sustainable in all senses including financial for it to be acceptable. Economic, social, cultural and environmental impacts in the short and long-term must be carefully analyzed and planning and regulatory steps must be taken to ensure that any negative impacts are minimized.
V. Conclusion
In my view, the power of culture and tradition has to be continuously renewed; it cannot be locked away or hidden under glass. It is dynamic and ever-changing, which means that there are sometimes differing, even conflicting, views regarding the pace of change.
The responsibility therefore rests with government to ensure that there is a balance between continuity and change as no society remains static and all must deal with change. If government does not take steps in terms of regulation or planning, this will simply mean that change takes place anyway. But often it will be an undesirable or disruptive transformation, and may be dominated by short-term commercial interests. Doing nothing also has negative impacts and it is incumbent upon the authorities not to abdicate their responsibilities in the complex process of planning tourism and heritage management.
Linkage of Local Culture and Tourism: Korean Cases
Seungdam Choi, Ph.D.
Director of Tourism policy Research Dept.
Korea Tourism Research Institute(KTRI), Republic of Korea
?. Introduction
Local culture is a major component in tourism development. It is a useful element that makes tourist attractions unique. The benefits from cultural tourism developments are strong and diverse. Cultural tourism development gives local communities an opportunity to appreciate and evaluate the real value of their cultural assets. It contributes to the promotion and conservation of cultural assets such as rituals, arts, and traditional manufacturing methods of craftworks. It also enhances the pride and cohesion of the people in the community. In addition, cultural tourism development is an effective way to revitalize local economies by attracting more tourists and generating more tourism dollars.
Recognizing the diverse role of cultural tourism development, the Korean government is concerned with the linkage between local culture and tourism. In particular, the government has put great emphasis on cultural tourism development since the end of 1994 when the Tourism Administration moved to the Ministry of Culture and Sports from the Ministry of Transportation. The Korean government formulated a basic plan pertaining to the linkage between culture and tourism in 1995. The plan identified several goals and formulated strategies to boost cultural tourism. Among them, one of the major measures has been the support of cultural tourism festivals in local communities.
In this presentation, I would like to talk about cultural tourism festivals in Korea. First, I will introduce the major strategies adopted by the Korean government to boost cultural tourism festivals. Second, as an example of a cultural tourism festival, the Kumsan Ginseng Festival will be discussed in some detail. Third, lessons from the case of Korea pertaining to cultural tourism festivals will be discussed.
?. The Strategies to Boost Cultural Tourism Festivals in Korea
The major strategies adopted to boost the cultural tourism festivals in Korea can be summarized as follows.
First, rather than supporting all cultural festivals, several selected festivals are given strong government support. Factors such as cultural uniqueness and potential in terms of attracting tourists are major criteria for selection. In 1996, from among more than 300 cultural festivals nationwide, 8 cultural festivals were selected for government sponsorship. This strategy is chosen as we expect the positive effects
