Ecotourism Development in Buffer Zones of Protected Areas: A Systematic Review and Adaptive Governance Framework

Abstract

The development of ecotourism in buffer zones of protected areas has not been sufficiently examined, despite these areas being considered a key opportunity to balance the trade-offs of biodiversity loss and economic development. This article presents a systematic literature review on ecotourism in buffer zones and develops an evidence-based strategic governance framework. In accordance with the PRISMA 2020 guidelines, a search was conducted for peer-reviewed articles from 2021 to 2025, published in English, and indexed in Scopus and WoS Core Collection. Of the 204 records, twenty-five studies were selected for qualitative synthesis. The review indicates that buffer zones are a unique socio-ecological space characterized by shifting conservation objectives and subsistence needs, institutional capacity, and tourism demand. The main obstacles to sustainable tourism governance are siloed governance, weak inter-institutional cooperation, unequal community participation, insufficient monitoring, and poor integration of tourism and land-use planning. This article proposes a resource-sensitive adaptive governance framework to better integrate ecological zoning with governance (i.e., institutional capacity, participation, user regulation, and monitoring) in the context of tourism planning and development.