Continuous monitoring and evaluation

CBT ventures need to be continually monitored to maintain quality standards, keep track of any adverse impacts of tourism on the local community and ensure the product is suitable for the market. Effective management involves identifying and mitigating negative tourism impacts while using feedback to improve the performance and outcomes of the CBT project. Monitoring the project over time helps to identify issues, track progress, generate information for decision-making, and identify areas of necessary skill development for personnel.

Measure impact
Identifying and selecting ‘impact’ indicators will help the community determine when the acceptable environmental, social, or economic limits of change have been breached. The carrying capacity of the environment or the community (i.e. the ability to absorb the impacts of tourism in the area) should be decided on in advance, and impact indicators to measure change should be built into each part of the project’s operations. Indicators should be relevant to the CBT venture, quantifiable (quantitative or qualitative), and specific (where and who) (Mountain Institute 2000, p 70).

Systems for continuous monitoring
Best practice would entail the community discussing the systems and structures for monitoring that enables them to measure the effectiveness of management structures.