Journal of Tourism & Hospitality
Open Access

Abstract

The Effect of Museums and Tourism Operations on the Millennium Development Goals: Case of Garden War Museum of Sacred Defenses, Iran, Tehran

Shahab Nazariadli

In 2000, world government leaders and the United Nations assembled a resolution comprised of eight primary Goals, known as the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). They are the most broadly supported, comprehensive and accurate global development Goals upon which the world has ever agreed. Two principal components that the United Nations took into account when formulating these Goals were tourism and museum. With MDGs, they form an intertwined triangle, which this interplay constitutes the paper’s conceptual framework. This paper evaluates how the Garden War Museum by the adoption of United Nations Global Compact’s (UNGC) ten principles, and tourism industry practically and potentially contribute to reaching the MDGs. This study adopts the case study method to evaluate how Garden War Museum of Sacred Defenses, as a memorial war museum in Iran, Tehran, symbiotically functions with tourism towards its Goals in addressing the MDGs. Its geographical placement and a huge number of visitors highlight its importance and success over the in-situ eco-war museums in remote areas of the country. The study exercises systematic appraisal of archival records and field notes, and provides some holistic managerial recommendations and derived Golden factors in approaching the predefined MDGs.