Tourist–resident interfaces: using reflexive photography to develop responsible rural tourism in Indonesia

Abstract

This study examines how Indonesia can responsibly develop rural tourism within the tolerance range of local people, particularly for controlling their unique landscapes. It employs reflexive photography as a tool to involve residents for rural tourism development in Sambi village. Data were collected in Sambi using reflexive photography procedures, including a photo-making process and photo-interview. Twenty-eight residents were issued a single-use camera and requested to take photographs of what they deemed important to them. Cameras were provided for a two-week period followed by individual interviews; 618 useable photos were taken. They were coded into 15 topics, and then consolidated into five themes that residents wanted to share: their way of life, environmental features, built structures, people, art and ceremony, while also protecting the cemetery and mosque from tourists. Two strategies (time and space) were utilized by the residents to negotiate what they wanted to share as well as conceal. Residents view time in terms of sacred time (residents time spent alone, family time and time for religious prayer) and impartial time (devoted to working and other daily routines). A model based on four time and space zones was formulated to understand how residents control their landscapes for tourism development.