Issue ? 48. February 2015

Eco-tourism as an Environmentally-responsible Social Practice in the Management of Specially Protected Natural Territories of the Russian Federation

Ekaterina S. Zvyagina — graduate student, Institute for Problems of Chemistry and Sustainable Development, D. Mendeleyev University of Chemical Technology of Russia, Moscow, Russian Federation.
E-mail: Ryzhova-ek@mail.ru

Marina V. Rybakova — Ph.D., Professor, School of Public Administration, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russian Federation.
E-mail: Rybakovamv2005@yandеx.ru

The article explains the relevance of the formation of ecological culture and society’s responsibility to the environment, given negative environmental situation prevailing in many regions of Russia. The author considers the category of responsibility as a component of social environmental practices, in particular the new social practices of eco-tourism in management of protected areas. For a long time protected areas and nature reserves in Russia were isolated from the social, economic and cultural life of society. In recent years there has been a major transformation of the federal concept of protected areas. Emerging culture of visiting nature reserves and other areas of protection, formed a new class of protected areas — national parks. Today, the need to maintain an open access to protected areas for environmental education through eco-tourism, bears the same function as the social and economic integration of protected areas into modern society. The article highlights the primary problems associated with the development of innovations and how they can be overcome. Protected areas represent a unique platform for the development of innovative environmental business sector of social and eco-responsibility practices, innovative products in the field of environmental and economic activity and new methods of management of protected areas in Russia.

Keywords

Social practices, eco-responsible practices, eco-tourism, protected areas.