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either on a regional basis �as with the European
Monetary System) or by having certain currencies
pegged to a major currency such as the US dollar
or the French franc. The European Monetary
System is a currency union set up among the
member states of the European Economic Community
in 1979. Following the Treaty of Maastricht
and the conversion of the Community into
the European Union in 1991, the European
monetary system took on the role of an intended
first step towards European Monetary Union, or
the introduction of a single European Union
currency �the Euro) in 1999. The basis of this was
a system of bands within which the weighted
average exchange rate of each participating
currency into the other participating currencies
is permitted to vary. Since its inception, Denmark
and the United Kingdom left this monetary
system, and Italy and Spain devalued their
currencies within the European monetary system.
Since the euro's introduction in 1999, the
exchange rates of the participating currencies
have been fixed in terms of the euro.
See also: currency control
SIMON ARCHER, UK
foreign independent tours
Organised by tourists themselves, foreign independent
tours or FITs are high quality and low
impact international travel to less known and
relatively undisturbed destinations, where learning
about cultures and appreciating the natural
environment are often prime motivations �see
also nature). The self-reliant tourists are often
characterised by a desire to interact with the host
community.
foreign investment
DEBORAH GRIEVE, UK
Foreign capital channelled into a country for
tourism development is referred to as foreign
investment. A host country can use different
channels to secure foreign investments, including
direct investments by entrepreneurs and joint
ventures, as well as borrowing from governments,
financial institutes or individuals for tourism
projects. A method of obtaining capital on a large
scale is to issue stocks on international capital
markets so as to raise foreign equity.
forest recreation
ZHENG GU, USA
Forests are major sites for tourist recreation
activities such as bushwalking and camping.
Short and long walks �such as trekking) can be
undertaken, as can fishing and rafting where there
are water resources. Forests are also sites for
nature tourism, adventure tourism and ecotourism.
Where naturally occurring forests have
special significance for nature conservation, they
may be protected as national parks.
formulae
DAVID G. SIMMONS, NEW ZEALAND
Formulae are special expressions with incantatory
power. Desire to travel, for example, can be
aroused by such imperatives as `escape' and
`forget', while attractions may be enhanced by the
employment of mystery-laden words �e.g., `kabash')
or the replacement of the humdrum by the
enchanting unfamiliar �e.g., `morne' for `hill').
Overuse of formulae can reduce their effectiveness,
as in the well-worn bliss formulae of island
paradises.
Fourth World
Fourth World 237
GRAHAM M.S. DANN, UK
Indigenous minority peoples incompletely integrated
into nation-states constitute the Fourth
World. They generally live in geographically
peripheral regions and are politically and economically
disadvantaged. Often considered `primitive,'
Fourth World people have been a focus of
anthropology and are a growing attraction