Tourist Perceptions of the Impacts of Climate Variability and Change on Botanical Gardens

Abstract

This study examines visitors' perception of the impact of climate variability and change on national botanical gardens in Gauteng, South Africa. The study used data from field observations and an online questionnaire that gathered views of 324 botanical garden visitors at Walter Sisulu and Pretoria Botanical Gardens. Data were analysed using QuestionPro Analysis tools. The study found that botanical garden visitors are apprehensive about climate variability and change impacts on picnicking, bird watching, flowering patterns, walking trails and waterfalls viewing experiences, among other activities. More than half of the respondents indicated that climatic patterns play a critical role in their decision to visit the botanical gardens. Most visitors (75%) perceived that weather events induced by climate variability and change threaten botanical gardens, with drought, flooding and extreme storms singled out as some of the most significant climatic threats to botanical gardens. The study recommends that botanical gardens management streamline climate change in their medium to long-term planning to ensure climate resilience and adaptation. This calls for the implementation of mitigation and adaptation strategies to reduce the impacts of climate variability on the recreational experience in botanical gardens.