ABSTRACT
The above quotation aptly describes the dilemma that has existed for some time in humanity’s struggle to balance natural resource utilisation with preservation. Globally, we have been slow to recognise how our economic development activities and patterns of consumption have come to modify the resource base, which is a legacy of domination that is firmly entrenched within Western society. However, although the implications of our socio-economic actions are debated, we are decidedly ambivalent on how best to temper development-oriented activities. In this chapter, a general discussion of resources, conservationism, and parks is used to describe the polarisation of thought on the value and role of resources within society. The purpose is to provide a backdrop from which to venture off into a more specific discussion of ecotourism as it relates to economics, parks, and so on. An attempt is made to highlight some of the main considerations of the development of a conservation philosophy in light of the pressures that humans have placed, and will continue to place, on the natural world. Parks and protected areas are discussed as settings that have an important role in balancing ecological integrity and touristic demand.
