Sustainable Tourism Management and Ecotourism as a Tool to Evaluate Tourism's Contribution to the Sustainable Development Goals and Local Community

Abstract

Ecotourism and other forms of sustainable tourism management are being recognized as important means to an end—the attainment of sustainable development goals to the mutual benefit of local communities and visitors. However, assessing how well these methods work in various settings is essential. The purpose of this research is to investigate how different factors in the growth of ecotourism in Kurdistan, Iraq, affect sustainability, community involvement, and the protection of natural resources. A total of 109 people were polled using a quantitative methodology, and their responses were examined with descriptive statistics, checks for validity and reliability, correlations, and a hierarchical regression model. Ecotourism growth, sustainability, community involvement, and environmental protection all appear to have positive effects on one another and be interconnected. Using a hierarchical regression model, we find that local involvement greatly moderates the connection between ecotourism growth and long-term viability. The results can be used to manage sustainable tourism in Kurdistan and to theorize about ecotourism's role in advancing sustainable development. The research suggests that ecotourism's positive effects on the environment and local people can be increased by more community involvement in the industry's growth.