Carol Patterson

Ecotourism is not a fad. It's a trend and one of the fastest growing areas in the tourism industry. Labeling your business venture as 'ecotourism' requires a careful understanding of the term and its underlying principles. In The Business of Ecotourism, author Carol Patterson discusses the key elements of sustainable tourism and provides ideas and examples on how to succeed in the industry without compromising environmental principles. She also covers such topics as building important partnerships, developing cultural tourism strategies, building tour packages, organizing festivals, and understanding business risk. The Business of Ecotourism provides sound advice on helping keep your business sustainable during both good and bad economic times. Balance both nature and profit while maintaining integrity in the ecotourism industry. Learn how to... - Start or upgrade your ecotourism business. Helpful to both the small businessman and greening up a large enterprise. - Turn obstacles into opportunities. Understand and minimize risk. Learn how to develop innovative marketing techniques and diversify your product to stay competitive. - Develop a strong business sense. Practical advice on forming partnerships, writing business plans, obtaining financing, managing cash flow, and hiring the right employees. - Cultivate exceptional customer service. Keep existing clientele happy and learn ways to attract new customers.

'Carol Patterson deserves much wider recognition for her brilliant mastery of the short story form. Each story immerses the reader in an entirely different, vividly depicted setting with complex and contrasting characters. Patterson brings these characters to life as they confront a range of human dilemmas and emotional challenges. Her work is superbly crafted with control of syntax, voice and style.' - Janet Upcher'In these stories, there is a voice of wisdom, a voice of experience, a voice of clarity. The author has tremendous sensitivity to the characters, which allows her to breathe true insight into every scenario. They are the kind of people one may meet in day-to-day life and often encourage us to pause and reflect on our own experiences in comparable scenarios. There is a dynamic interplay between the physical surroundings and history of each narrative with the impact on the characters' thoughts and reflections. Above all, the writing has grace and elegance.' - Dr Paul Goodey-Adevisyan

'These stories draw us into the many worlds of Carol Patterson's imagination and experience, and we immediately become invested, as readers, in the characters and the dilemmas they face. The narrative thrust, along with skilfully constructed dialogue, lead us through the underbrush of human emotions, make us scale the dangerous slopes of risk and loss, hope and abandonment, and take us through torrents toward still waters, or beckon us to further reaches beyond.' - Dr Terry Whitebeach'What a wealth of lived experience and imagination Carol brings to her writing. And lovely, compelling imagery. She has the ability to transform her experience into something unique and beautiful.' - Jianna Miller'Carol Patterson writes with consummate subtlety of the vast submerged inner lives of ordinary people. With her careful craft and sensitive touch, Patterson deserves our recognition as one of our most outstanding short fiction writers.' - Robyn Friend

Sustainable Tourism: Business Development, Operations, and Management lays out a road map to launching and building a business in one of today's most exciting industries. It simplifies the process and outlines real-life requirements while clearing the path to new business success in the cultural, heritage, nature, and adventure fields. Written by an eco-development pioneer, the book offers guidance on developing and implementing a comprehensive sustainable-business plan. From analyzing the market all the way through hiring and training the right people, the text focuses on the principles of both tourism and business. It prepares those embarking on new careers to tackle the complexity of sustainability issues by thinking like entrepreneurs and acting like business owners. Students and professionals can rely on this text as both a start-up and ongoing implementation reference that will stack the odds of success in their favor. Sustainable Tourism provides an overview of exciting developments in the sustainable-tourism industry. It helps new entrepreneurs assess the viability of ideas and products against sustainable criteria. Through sequential chapters, it delivers step-by-step instructions for minimizing environmental impact, establishing sustainability practices, obtaining financing, and marketing to and reaching customers. The standards-based text also examines how the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) Sustainability Guidelines shape sustainable tourism, providing a global framework from which to build the skills needed for success. Key features include the following: • 13 online video case studies of sustainable tourism destinations from around the world give students a global text from which to build their own businesses and provide a model for how sustainable tourism works. • An online workbook guides learners through the completion of a business plan by the end of the term. • An online image bank presents photos, figures, and tables from the book that may be downloaded for use in presentations. • Forms and worksheets from the book are available for download. • A professional development workbook, "Creating a Tourism Career from Scratch" (appendix B), is a reference for entrepreneurs starting or advancing in their careers. Loaded with case studies, the book illustrates what works and what doesn't when starting a sustainable tourism business. It describes how to integrate sustainability practices into daily operations, maximize the use of the web and social media in marketing, and overcome challenges in sustainable tourism. The text covers every important topic in a business start-up, including financial forecasting and analysis, customer service systems, hiring, training, and managing turnover. Sustainable Tourism: Business Development, Operations and Management is the starting point for all who want to develop an eco-friendly product, integrate sustainability principles into their businesses, and turn their dreams into a business reality.