Community Empowerment in Tourism Projects With Victims of Armed Conflict in Colombia: Community Councils in Rincón del Mar and Badillo

Different studies have asserted that tourism can contribute to peacebuilding in areas affected by armed conflict. However, it is essential to identify the role of community empowerment in this contribution, since these populations suffer from fractures in social capital and consequently experience difficulties in rebuilding trust, particularly in vulnerable communities that have been classified as victims of conflict. The objective of this research was to identify community empowerment within tourism projects in two community councils that are victims of armed conflict in Colombia. This study employs a qualitative, multiple-case study approach in the Rincón del Mar and Badillo community councils, integrating the RETS 2.0 community tourism participation model to analyze empowerment dimensions in Afro-Colombian territories. The results indicate that both community councils exhibit strong levels of environmental, social, economic, and psychological empowerment; however, they display weaknesses in political empowerment and conflict resolution, demonstrating a lack of participatory planning and local governance, which in one of the cases leads to the emergence of new local conflicts. Moreover, in one case tourism has developed in a mass and disorganized manner, resulting in gentrification and cultural erosion.