NRRT 320 International Issues-Recreation and Tourism [CRN 19457]

Overview of Course

“The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only one page.”—Saint Augustine

Embark on a global journey of discovery with NRRT 320, where you will explore the complex issues shaping recreation and tourism worldwide. This course goes beyond textbooks, using our Semester at Sea itinerary to investigate real-world challenges across diverse cultural and natural settings. As we visit each port, you will explore how local communities balance tourism's benefits with the need to protect cultural heritage and natural resources, while aligning with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Through hands-on field studies, collaborative group projects, and thought-provoking lectures, you will investigate how tourism impacts communities and ecosystems. The world is discovered through recreation and travel—to learn about other people, places, and ourselves. This is the essence of Semester at Sea. Tourism is also a means to sustainable livelihoods. Travel and tourism can be an instrument to achieve the United Nations SDGs. This course analyzes the role of governmental, business, and “third sector” organizations in sustainable tourism and the associated trends and issues via the SDGs. Instruments for sustainable tourism development are examined and discussed in case studies from the countries on this voyage. Methods and techniques to reconcile the different stakeholder interests are discussed and applied in various contexts: urban as well as rural areas in the north and south, and from east to west. Central issues are sustainability, globalization, and intervention strategies.