Exploring highland ecotourism potential through spatially adaptive GWR modeling

This research examines how suitable highland regions are for ecotourism by applying advanced geospatial tools alongside Geographically Weighted Regression (GWR). Key environmental and infrastructural factors—including slope, rainfall, land use, elevation, and proximity to rivers and roads—were chosen to explain variations in suitability, while a composite index captured overall potential. To ensure precision, all datasets were corrected for location errors and standardized within a GIS framework. The GWR model produced spatially explicit coefficients, local R² values, and diagnostic outputs, revealing that the influence of each factor shifts across different landscapes. The model performed strongly, with adjusted R² values above 0.77 and residuals close to normal distribution. These results highlight the importance of localized planning, showing that ecotourism drivers are not uniform but context-dependent. By capturing this heterogeneity, the study offers practical guidance for developing sustainable ecotourism strategies tailored to highland environments.