Coral garden economies: international tourism and the magic of tropical nature

Abstract

This paper aims to explore the complex relationships between international tourism and the production and exchange of 'nature' in tropical countries. It is based on data gathered through an ethnographic case study approach on the changing aesthetic, economic and symbolic values attached to the coral reef in the tropical island of La Réunion, Indian Ocean. The analysis of this data shows that, from the point where the collective imaginaries in the Western world associate a 'magic' value with corals, an international institutionalisation process takes place in order to protect and preserve coral reefs and make them touristically accessible. This raises important issues related to the challenges the new value of tropical nature represents for the communication and exchange systems of communities in tropical countries. The paper first explores the meanings of the spiritual and religious value Western societies attribute to coral reefs. It then discusses the institutionalisation of tropical nature by international organisations and the problem of parallel land and natural space ownership systems in La Réunion. After that, it deconstructs the mystification policy of the coral reef operated by local institutions in La Réunion and examines the meaning of protecting the coral reef as a socially embedded 'communicative action' in La Réunion.

Keywords

• international tourism
• culture
• communication
• coral reef
• environmental economic