Linking Culture and the Environment

172 Community Perspectives in Sustainable Tourism
the various tourism committees and the local government. Most posts cannot
be held for more than a year, creating good opportunities for participation as
community leaders. Authorities are not only expected to lead but to participate
in the very decisions they make, and leaders are dismissed for incompetence
or other factors. Tourism on Taquile has become such an important part
of daily life that it has become interwoven with local politics. For example, at
the time of the survey, most residents (77%) belonged to the Manco Capac
Cooperative, which required a minimum of 3 weeks of administrative work
from every member (this work could be substituted by a close relative of a
member).
In contrast, few Chiquian respondents held any kind of administrative
role in the community (15%) or attended tourism meetings (18%), only 8%
were involved in some capacity in tourism administration, and most of those
employed in tourism (apart from local restaurant and hostel owner- operators)
worked for Huaraz-based or other tourism agencies. Many feel that only
those already working in tourism are invited to take part in meetings and
event planning (only 65% of respondents agree that local authorities encourage
participation). Several respondents comment that only those working in
tourism ‘participate’ in tourism service provision, since most people are
either busy working on their farms or are simply not interested. At least one
person attributes the lack of participation as a consequence of terrorism and
its socio-psychological impacts on the community.
It is apparent, then, that greater participation exists in the overall administration
of socio-political aspects of Taquile compared to Chiquian. Many
Chiquian respondents indicate that tourism management is highly selective
and geared towards those working in the industry, whereas many Taquileans
have roles in local government or one of the several municipal or cooperative
committees. Ecoventura (1994–1996) in Chiquian has created a perception of
high community participation when in reality only a select few were involved
in organizing the event. Training opportunities in trekking and climbing are
not currently extended to those lacking experience. On the other hand, high
participation levels for Taquile say little about the intensity of individual
involvement or the type of participation. Public meetings on Taquile tend to
be ‘information sharing’ by local leaders on recent achievements and upcoming
projects rather than actively soliciting public input.
In addition, gender appears to play an important role in the variety (or
intensity) of tourism meetings attended for both communities. Interestingly,
Taquile women are visibly present at most community meetings but this was
not the case observed in the male-dominated tourism committee meetings in
Chiquian. Still, soft-spoken members of Taquile community such as the generally
shy women are rarely encouraged to speak out except during ‘special’
sessions on domestic-related issues. This may be an indication that: (i) men
have more spare time to attend such meetings; (ii) men are more interested in
tourism meetings than women; and/or (iii) it may be a cultural role assigned
to men. Differences attributable to gender are likely a combination of all three
possibilities, but last one in particular is a characteristic common to traditional
Andean cultures.