Co-creating ecological restoration experiences at Aotearoa (New Zealand) eco-sanctuaries: An environmental philosophical approach

With the continuing biodiversity crisis in New Zealand, an increasing number of eco-sanctuaries have been established to restore local ecology through the active management of invasive predator species, in combination with the translocation of endangered endemic wildlife. Seeking to achieve the (near) complete restoration of pre-human ecosystems, many of these projects are community-led social enterprises where tourism is developed for operation revenue and conservation advocacy. This paper explores perceptions of ecological restoration and tourism by individuals involved in the management and operation at New Zealand mainland eco-sanctuaries and considers implications for the co-creation of visitor experiences. Informed by theories of environmental philosophy, it presents an analysis of 14 in-depth interviews. The findings reveal that the philosophies of the participants can either challenge visitors to reflect upon their ecological perspectives or pay increased attention to visitor interests and accommodate diverse perspectives in the provision of the tourist experience. This paper contributes new knowledge by identifying participants’ eco-centric and shallow anthropocentric environmental ethics and dilemmas facing tourism development at community-led ecological restoration sites. In doing so, it considers the possibility that co-created visitor experiences at eco-sanctuaries can challenge the environmental philosophies of visitors.