Território, participação cidadã e turismo: um estudo sobre as experiências participativas em turismo no município de Porto do Mangue/RN

Abstract

The aim of this study is to investigate the participative experiences in Porto do Mangue/RN, in the tourism directions, focused on the relationship between society, the government and its institutions, to understand how tourism is developed there. The specific objectives that we outlined for the development of this work were: a) Present the conceptual articulation and the logical principles that guide the empirical analyzes of this study, especially on territory, citizen participation and tourism; b) Distinguish the municipality of Porto do Mangue, evidencing the local tourist processes and the Programs of the Public Policies of Tourism, focusing on the participation of the social agents / actors; c) Identify the types of participation provided by the Participation’s Ladder and their occurrence in Porto do Mangue/RN .A qualitative approach, an exploratory and descriptive methodological contribution was adopted. In addition to this, we had an aid of bibliographic and documentary research techniques. Participatory field research was used, following the following steps: 1) Application of semi-structured interviews with agents / social actors of the public power (municipal and state), civil society and local entrepreneurs linked to the tourist activity; 2) organization of the information contained in semi-structured interviews; 3) Meetings to confirm and legitimize information by civil society actors / actors. To treat the information collected in the field, the technique of content analysis was used. The response to the objectives is based on the analyzes carried out on the levels of society participation in Porto do Mangue/RN in the elaboration and implementation of Public Policies for the development of tourism in this city. In such wise as to, it can be observed that, in general, participatory experiences in this municipality are concentrated in non-participatory and figurative participation modes, based on the classification proposed by the Participation’s Ladder. Without losing sight of the complexity of the tourist phenomenon, the reflections of this study allow us to understand the importance of citizen participation as one of the instruments capable of transforming collective decisions into social interest projects, focusing on the reality of the territory. Therefore, the results of this work identify the current tourism reality in Porto do Mangue / RN, and thus help in the challenges of planning, organizing and managing the tourism activity and its interface with other sectors of society.