RURAL TOURISM: AN OPPORTUNITY FOR THE CONSERVATION OF THE CLOUD FOREST?

Abstract

Based on an interpretative approach, the deployment of tourism towards forest spaces, as a tendency of recreational  activities within the context of globalization, is discussed. The objective was to analyze the relationship between sustainable tourism and cloud forest, from the perspective of conservation. Therefore, tourism is conceived as a component of models of sustainable forest management, from the economic, social and environmental dimensions. For this purpose, a model that consists in information systems, territorial ordering and communication is outlined. It is concluded that tourism is an ambivalent activity for cloud forests, insofar as it entails risks and opportunities that may be reduced through processes of ordering, planning and regulation.