Sensory Ecofeminism for Heritage, Tourism, and Sustainability in Mauritius

Abstract

Worldwide, UNESCO provides a global and authorized set of protocols for the conservation of heritage. The organization has long framed the discourse and practice of cultural heritage management. At the Hangzhou International Congress in 2013, UNESCO declared culture as key to development, thereby confirming the role of culture and cultural heritage in sustainable development. In this article, attention is given to emerging sensory ecofeminism and its links to heritage and tourism in Mauritius, specifically in “unauthorized” heritage management locales and hotel settings. The research problem engaged in this study is that globally, heritage conservation is perceived as being of primary interest to UNESCO, the prerogative of authorized professionals and nominated heritage sites. The goal of the research is to understand the manifestation of cultural heritage and its management in coastal locales and how coastal sites and “unauthorized” heritage managers, hitherto not included in national heritage discourse and practice, may advance inclusive heritage management. Using the anthropological research methods of semi-structured interviews and participant observation to produce ethnographic data in 2022, this study finds that a selection of luxury hotels in Mauritius advances a gender-influenced and ecofeminist discourse that supports heritage, tourism, and sustainability in Mauritius. The conclusion of this study is that “unauthorized” heritage management processes and practices in luxury hotels and tourism establishments can be gender and community inclusive, sensitive to various social hierarchies, and required to achieve environmental sustainability. It is recommended that national heritage institutions and practitioners give more attention to the diverse, often unexpected locales for heritage conservation and inclusion.

Implications of Ecofeminism in Efforts to Preserve the Environment of Coastal Settlements

“…Tugas seorang perempuan bukan hanya bekerja dirumah untuk merawat keluarga tetapi juga bekerja ke luar untuk merawat lingkungan, karena para perempuan yakin bahwa menjaga dan merawat alam adalah tugas seluruh makhluk hidup, tanpa terkecuali dan tanpa diskriminasi (Hidayat, 2019). Ormal heritage managers could also consider and include gendered, intangible manifestations of cultural heritage-not merely for the purposes of equality but for the purpose of sustainability, since ICH expression is fundamental to the local valuation of resources, the inclusion of marginalized groups in heritage use, and it is important to cultural education and the protection of diversity (Boswell, 2023). However, I feel that this presents a future task for this research, as I certainly experienced the hotel settings as gender liberating and expressive, allowing for multiple iterations of a sensory identity to emerge.…”

“…However, I feel that this presents a future task for this research, as I certainly experienced the hotel settings as gender liberating and expressive, allowing for multiple iterations of a sensory identity to emerge. Capturing the transient expressions of ecofeminism in the tourism setting may yield valuable information about the form and substance of gendered sustainability efforts and experience in the tourism setting (Boswell, 2023).…”