Papers by DIMITRIS PROKOPIOU
European Scientific Journal, ESJ, Sep 18, 2014
Sustainable tourism can be defined as the tourism that takes full account of its current and futu... more Sustainable tourism can be defined as the tourism that takes full account of its current and future economic, social and environmental impacts, addressing the needs of visitors, the industry, the environment and host communities. From the above definition it is mention that sustainable development ties together concern for the carrying capacity of natural systems with the social and economic challenges faced by humanity. Carrying capacity is defined as the maximum number of people that may visit a tourist destination at the same time, without causing destruction to the physical, economic, sociocultural environment and an unacceptable decrease in the quality of visitors' satisfaction. Today, controlling tourism growth has become a central policy issue for the tourism trade and it is noteworthy that carrying capacity assessment has become an important tool for facilitating planning and developing policy issues for the industry. In this paper we use present a model for assessment the carrying capacity.It is the first time that we apply the valuation of carrying capacity indicators of Greek islands in a new prototype model, which examines twenty indicators regarding environmental and tourism for the island of Rhodes. Based on the proposed model first the results from Island of Rhodes are compared with the indicatorsfrom all the Greek islands, the islands in North Aegean Archipelagos and the islands in Dodecanese Archipelagos. At least a comparison between the municipalities of Islands of Rhodes is presented.
WIT Transactions on Ecology and the Environment
Many researchers have studied the challenges concerning the carrying capacity of tourist destinat... more Many researchers have studied the challenges concerning the carrying capacity of tourist destinations. Carrying capacity has been defined as the ability of an ecological system to sustain the development of human activities without negatively impacting the ecosystem services inherent within the system. It is a common belief that the carrying capacity approach has proved to be both significant and functionally supportive of tourist destination sustainable management. Considering the challenge of sustainable growth, it is important to emphasize that tourism causes various negative impacts that may risk longterm growth and that overlooking the interdependence between the concept of carrying capacity and sustainability of tourism growth will, most likely, exacerbate the many problems that arise in areas of unique socio-cultural and ecological value. Previous research has developed specialised measurement instruments and indicators, as well as a comprehensible methodological guide for their use, in order to estimate the carrying capacity and limits of a tourist destination. Many Greek islands and coastal areas have been studied in an attempt to identify the factors influencing a tourist product and its ecological, social and economic subsystems , including infrastructure, environmental characteristics and tourism entrepreneurship. The above were applied to Paros, a Greek island in the central Aegean Sea, which hosts as many as 500,000 tourists per year, in an attempt to further involve local societies and stakeholders in addressing and understanding the impacts on existing non-renewable resources, the transport infrastructure and primary production. This endeavour aims to design a comprehensive, diverse and socially integrated sustainable tourism strategy policy for the island of Paros.
WIT Transactions on Ecology and the Environment, 2017
Traditionally Tourism Destination Management organized and promoted a region in becoming successf... more Traditionally Tourism Destination Management organized and promoted a region in becoming successful tourism destination based on a wide range of knowledge and experience, both in the international and local level. The concept of Tourism Sustainable Development however has added several novel factors in this process, including sustainability performance indicators. In this study, the authors present the island of Poros in Greece where carrying capacity estimation has been applied in order to support tourism promotion in an effective and sustainable manner.
The concept of carrying capacity in tourism is rooted in the notion of sustainable development. A... more The concept of carrying capacity in tourism is rooted in the notion of sustainable development. Alternative tourism is a new trend for the structure of the tourism product. Health tourism is related to high-quality services to tourist patients. In this study, we have used environmental and tourism indexes to estimate the impact of tourism to address the structure of the tourism business. We examine the potential opportunities for health tourism as we analyze the port management and development of the island. Crete is the largest island in Greece and concentrates more than 5 million tourists per year. It covers an area of 8,303 km2 and has 170 km of beaches. There are approximately 630,000 inhabitants in Crete. Tourism supply in Crete includes more than 270,000 beds. The Cretan environment, both natural and manmade, can sustain a polymorphic tourism product for the island. The physical and human environment includes an extended coastline with many sandy beaches, picturesque cities, a...
Sustainable development and its quantification procedure with specialised measurement instrument,... more Sustainable development and its quantification procedure with specialised measurement instrument, consist a vital element for the environmental condition of the Greek island destinations; as the tourist product is a blend of ecological, social and economic sub-systems. For that reason an adapted amount of sustainable indicators is selected and a comprehensible methodological guide for their use is created, aiming to reliable measurement of selected parameters that are considered to be important for our region. We believe that using this approach, the local societies and the stakeholders involved as well, are able to understand the size of impact on the existing and mainly not renewable resources, in order to proceed with strategic planning and terms of sustainability for their future developmental course.Η βιώσιμη ανάπτυξη και η διαδικασία ποσοτικοποίησής της με εξειδικευμένα όργανα μέτρησης, αποτελούν ζωτικό στοιχείο για την περιβαλλοντική κατάσταση των νησιωτικών ελληνικών προορισ...
Sustainable Development and Planning VII, 2015
The tourist industry is one of the most important economic activities in Greece. The country rece... more The tourist industry is one of the most important economic activities in Greece. The country receives over 20 million visitors per year. In an era where tourism is one of the fastest growing sectors of the developing countries the competition with existing tourism destinations, such as Greece, will intensify. Greece has enjoyed increasing numbers and revenues from tourism due to the unique environment, both natural and man-made, making it a high profile tourist destination. However, it is already clear that the uncontrolled growth of the industry can bring serious environmental and social problems, leading to a decline in the quality of tourist product and services provided. Tourism development is related with environment and natural resources management. Carrying capacity indices is a tool for evaluation of the impacts caused from tourism policy. In previous studies we produced a model of carrying capacity evaluation. In this study we go one step further using the results of our analysis for the Greek island of Rhodes to design a sustainable tourism policy scenario.
The concept of carrying capacity in tourism is rooted in the notion of sustainable development. A... more The concept of carrying capacity in tourism is rooted in the notion of sustainable development. Alternative tourism is a new trend for the structure of the tourism product. Health tourism is related to high-quality services to tourist patients. In this study, we have used environmental and tourism indexes to estimate the impact of tourism to address the structure of the tourism business. We examine the potential opportunities for health tourism as we analyze the port management and development of the island. Crete is the largest island in Greece and concentrates more than 5 million tourists per year. It covers an area of 8,303 km2 and has 170 km of beaches. There are approximately 630,000 inhabitants in Crete. Tourism supply in Crete includes more than 270,000 beds. The Cretan environment, both natural and manmade, can sustain a polymorphic tourism product for the island. The physical and human environment includes an extended coastline with many sandy beaches, picturesque cities, a...
Coastal Cities and their Sustainable Future III, Nov 20, 2019
The tourism industry is one of the most important economic activities for Greece. Over 25 million... more The tourism industry is one of the most important economic activities for Greece. Over 25 million tourists per year visit Greece. This means that at the peak of the season, July and August, the number of visitors equals the number of people in the country's population: about 10 million. One of the most famous tourist destinations in Greece is Paros, in the Cyclades island archipelago. Tourist development requires a multidisciplinary approach, because it is a function that includes a wide range of actors, such as: the natural resources; ecosystem management; and the effects of human activities on fauna, flora and the coastal zone; as well as economic and social parameters. For the Greek islands, the environment, especially that of the coastal zones, plays a crucial role in keeping the tourism industry. This is reflected in the volume of scientific research that focuses on the study of the environmental impact of tourist development, as there are many entrepreneurs in the tourist industry that are trying to enlarge the tourist product. The purpose of this paper is to examine the present and the future of tourism in Paros, according to environmental indexes, living conditions and the condition of the tourist product itself.
European Research Studies Journal, 2012
The tourist industry is one of the most important economic activities in Greece. The country rece... more The tourist industry is one of the most important economic activities in Greece. The country receives over 14 million visitors per year. In an era where tourism is one of the fastest growing sectors of the developing countries the competition with existing tourism destinations, such as Greece, will intensify. Greece has enjoyed increasing numbers and revenues from tourism due to the unique environment both natural and man-made making it a high profile tourist destination. However, it is already clear, that the uncontrolled growth of the industry can bring serious environmental and social problems, leading to a decline in the quality of tourist product and services provided. Such negative effects can be controlled and reduced using environmental and tourism indices to estimate the impact of tourism and other businesses on the environment. The purpose of this paper is to apply the principles of coastal environmental management for the Islands in the central Aegean Sea islands via the carrying capacity assessment methodology in order to develop environmental performance indicators necessary for formulating a novel sustainable development policy proposal for Greek tourism.
Sustainable Development and Planning X, Sep 4, 2018
The tourist industry is one of the most important economic activities in Greece. The country rece... more The tourist industry is one of the most important economic activities in Greece. The country receives over 32 million visitors per year. Greece has enjoyed increasing numbers of people and revenues from tourism, due to the unique environments that are both natural and man-made that make it a high-profile tourist destination; however, it is already clear that uncontrolled growth of the industry may bring serious environmental and social problems, leading to a decline in the quality of tourist product and services provided. According to the triple bottom line (TBL) philosophy developed by Elkington (1998), sustainable tourist development must be balanced at the same time with economic, social and environmental aims, from a microeconomic point of view, as tools to measure environmental impact. The Prokopiou-Tselentis model is an integrated assessment system for environmental management and impact estimation of a tourism destination. In this paper, we propose the implementation of the Prokopiou-Tselentis model as the economic, social and tourism situation demands data to estimate the development of tourism and its impact on the Greek islands of Cyclades.
Coastal Processes III, 2013
Τourism is the main economic activity in Greece. Carrying capacity assessment is now important fo... more Τourism is the main economic activity in Greece. Carrying capacity assessment is now important for the sustainable development of tourist destinations as it is also an antiquated approach to managing the impacts of the tourist industry on the environment. Northern Sporades consists of four islands; accommodation comprises of over 30,000 beds and more than 400,000 visitors per year, differing by their development limits. The environment, both natural and manmade, characterizes the tourist product for the islands. For the Greek Islands, the environment plays a leading role in the tourist industry. It is the purpose of this paper to apply the principles of carrying capacity assessment to Northern Sporades islands in order to state the tourism business opportunities. In this study we have used environmental indexes to estimate the impact of development on the environment, in order to suggest a sustainable tourism development proposal.
Coastal Processes III, Apr 9, 2013
Τourism is the main economic activity in Greece. Carrying capacity assessment is now important fo... more Τourism is the main economic activity in Greece. Carrying capacity assessment is now important for the sustainable development of tourist destinations as it is also an antiquated approach to managing the impacts of the tourist industry on the environment. Northern Sporades consists of four islands; accommodation comprises of over 30,000 beds and more than 400,000 visitors per year, differing by their development limits. The environment, both natural and manmade, characterizes the tourist product for the islands. For the Greek Islands, the environment plays a leading role in the tourist industry. It is the purpose of this paper to apply the principles of carrying capacity assessment to Northern Sporades islands in order to state the tourism business opportunities. In this study we have used environmental indexes to estimate the impact of development on the environment, in order to suggest a sustainable tourism development proposal.
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Papers by DIMITRIS PROKOPIOU