Do local communities perceive linkages between livelihood improvement, sustainable tourism, and conservation in the Annapurna Conservation Area in Nepal?

This paper examines relationships between household level livelihood improvement, perceived linkages between livelihood improvement and nature conservation efforts, and attitude to protected area management. Questionnaire interviews conducted with household heads (HH) in Nepal's Annapurna Conservation Area (ACA) focused on perceived livelihood improvement (PLI) due to ACA's efforts in conservation and development activities including tourism. Interviewees were also asked if they perceived any linkages between livelihood improvement and conservation efforts (LINK) and their attitudes toward ACA management (ATTI). Three hypotheses were tested. The first hypothesis tested the association between three variables representative of PLI, including perceived conservation benefits (PCB), perceived direct tourism benefits (PTBD) and perceived indirect tourism benefits (PTBI) and LINK. The second hypothesis tested whether PLI and LINK contributed to positive ATTI. The third hypothesis tested if differences in PLI, LINK and ATTI varied between households directly, indirectly, or not benefiting from tourism. Results indicated that only some household heads were able to link livelihood improvement to ACA's conservation efforts. Also, household heads who benefitted indirectly from tourism (e.g. ACA's community development programs) perceived the link more than those directly benefitting from tourism. Positive associations were found between PLI and ATTI. Management implications of the findings are briefly discussed.