Crisis has enveloped the more than 200,000 nationally and regionally protected natural and cultural heritage sites around the world. Heritage managers those who manage natural sites such as national parks, wilderness areas, and biosphere reserves, as well as those who manage cultural sites including historic monuments, battlefields, heritage cities, and ancient rock art sites face an urgent need to confront this crisis, and each day that they don't, more of our planet's common heritage disappears. Although heritage management and implementation suffer from a lack of money, time, personnel, information, and political will, The Future Has Other Plans argues that deeper causes to current problems lurk in the discipline itself. Drawing on decades of practical experience in global heritage management and case studies from around the world, Jon Kohl and Steve McCool provide an innovative solution for conserving these valuable protected areas. Merging interdisciplinary and evolving management paradigms, the authors introduce a new kind of holistic planning approach that integrates the practice of heritage management and conservation with operational realities.
Industry Reviews
"The authors make extensive use of case studies from throughout the world as well as synthesizing the works of leading academics in the field . . . There are fourteen chapters of moderate length, each with its own list of references, which is supplemented by suggested further reading sources for certain chapters. The chapters are wide ranging in their scope, as you would expect in any serious examination of the complex issues involved in the subject matter . . . . Problems and issues that face parks can be many and various due to the multitude of stakeholders and interest groups, each of whom may hold different values and goals for a park or protected area . . . . The book covers comprehensively the major aspects of planning and managing tourism in national parks and protected areas, and as such it should be indispensable to practitioners, academics, as well as students, and interest groups." Andrew Ralton, Assistant Secretary of ScotWays, the Scottish Rights of Way and Access Society" "Readers who turn these pages will discover a new and compelling real-world view of planning - a view that treats planning as a continuous, facilitated conversation among heritage area community members. In this planning model the temporary action plan produced at the outset merely marks the beginning of a continuous decision-making process that lives on indefinitely - forever." --Sam H. Ham, PhD, Professor Emeritus, Communication Psychology and Conservation Social Sciences, University of Idaho "In The Future has Other Plans, the authors demonstrate how contemporary planners need to work within legal and planning frameworks that were developed in an era when we believed the future could be predicted while in an era when we have come to realize that the future is highly uncertain and dynamic. First, they illustrate the assumptions that underpin the two eras. Then they help the reader understand their personal mental models about how change can be influenced. They conclude by merging the two together which provided an excellent basis to both critique and creativity develop planning projects. Through numerous case studies and clear explanations, complexity is something that becomes welcomed rather than feared, and the evolution of our understanding of planning for protected areas grows immensely. This book was well received by my upper division undergraduate students and graduate students alike." --Wayne Freimund PhD, Professor and Chair, Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism Management, Clemson University "It is a rich, and sometimes provocative, source of information and ideas on this important aspect of tourism management." --Tourism "I would prescribe it as high-priority additional reading, because of its clarity and strong practical focus." ---Journal of Ecotourism "The book would make an excellent introductory text for students of park, recreation and heritage management courses in universities and colleges. It would also be a useful addition to park and protected area libraries or to anyone interested in the modern management of such areas. This is a good effort by credible authors." Tourism Management" "The book balances the difficult task of covering a wide array of topics while remaining readable and very useful." CHOICE"
