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CHAPTER 3 A Critique of Current Thinking in Sustainable Tourism…
CHAPTER 3
A Critique of Current Thinking in Sustainable Tourism Management
Value Judgements & the Lack of Factual Evidence
Example of opinions & attitudes are proven facts
large high rise coastal resorts around the Mediterranean represent a less sustainable form of tourism than ecotourism holidays in Central America.
independent travel is more sustainable than package holiday tourism.
small-scale tourism is always better than mass tourism.
cultural tourism is more sustainable than hedonistic tourism.
Evidence
provides jobs for a large number of people.
satisfies the needs of a large number of tourists so that they do not take trips to more fragile environments, further afield.
does not cause the negative sociocultural impacts that tourists mixing with local people.
The Green Tourists
Evidence
switching from the use of private cars to public transport for holiday trips.
demonstrating against the environmental impacts of new theme parks.
insisting that hotels recycle their waste.
Research conducted by MORI (Martin,1997)
1996, 21% of consumers believed too much 'fuss' was being made about the environment compared to 11% in 1992.
in UK, only 3% of people felt the environment was the most important problem facing the UK in 1996, whereas the equivalent figure in 1992 was 11%.
only 11% of tourists questioned in the mid-1990s said environmental problems in a destinations would make them decide to not to return to the destination.
1995, just 16% of tourists said it was very important for them to deal with a tourist organization that look environmental issues into account, while 18% said it not important.
Only 6% of people questioned in 1995 believed tourism caused major damage to the environment while 30% thought it caused no damage or involved no damage.
Ecotourism
Example
treks in the Himalayan range.
expeditions in the jungles of Central America.
whale-watching holidays from California to the Arctic.
sledge tours in Lapland.
river trips by canoe in South-East Asia.
Characteristics
the desire of participants to learn more about their destination than the average tourist.
the attempt to maximize contact with indigenous people.
the small size of most groups.
The Concept of Carrying Capacity
Types of carrying capacity
Physical capacity
- the number of tourists a place can physically accommodate.
Environmental / ecological capacity
- the number of tourists that can be accommodated before damage begins to be caused to the environment or ecosystem.
Economic capacity
- the number of tourist that can be welcomed before the local community start to suffer economic problem.
Social capacity
- the number of people beyond which social disruption or irrevocable cultural damage will occur.
Perceptual capacity
- the number of people a place can welcome before the quality of the tourist experience begins to be adversely affected.
Infrastructure capacity
- the number of tourists that can be accommodated by the destination infrastructure.
De-marketing
Reasons to be ineffective
many tourists become aware of destinations from sources other than promotional literature produced by the destinations themselves.
repeat visitors are already aware of the destination.
business tourists do not choose their destination, it is determined by the demands of their jobs, whether it be a visit by a sales person to a potential client or a lecturer attending a specialist conference.
Tourist Taxes And Fair Pricing
2 main ways:
charging tourist taxes that are high enough to discourage some tourists from visiting certain places, thus reducing demand and the problems which flow from over-use.
using the funds generated by tourists taxes to help pay for the maintenance & development of the local tourism infrastructure.
3 main problems:
as it is largely only collected in hotels, tourist using other forms of accommodation such as self-catering, cottages and campsites, generally do not pay it, although they still make use of the infrastructure.
the collection of the tax is often seen as an imposition by the hoteliers and the collection rate often falls well below 100%.
as the rate is very low, typically 2-5 francs per person, it is not a major source of revenue.
Visitor Management
Initiatives
using interpretation techniques to try to direct demand to less heavily used areas of the region.
closing roads from time to time and siting car parks so that visitors cannot drive into already overcrowded or environmentally fragile areas.
Private VS Public Transport
tourists enjoy flexibility & freedom which using their own car offers.
public transport systems are often inconvenient because of the need to travel to a pick-up point and the fact that consumers have to fit in with the operator's timetables.
in a number of countries, subsidies for public transport have been declining in recent years which is taking away any price advantage it might have over the private car.
Tourist Education
2 main reasons:
we are not even sure yet what sustainable tourism is, so how can we provide guidelines that if followed by tourists, would help develop more sustainable forms of tourism?
the evidence from other well-meaning education campaigns such as those relating to sex and drugs, appears to show that their impact is severely limited unless the audience wants to be hear the message.
Community Involvement and Local Control
Problems:
communities rarely, if ever speak with one voice. There are many interest groups and individual viewpoints and there is no easy way of reconciling these to reach a consensus.
the mechanism that are used to elicit the views of the community provide an opportunity for a minority of self appointed community spokespeople or people with strong views.
professionals can sometimes under value or even ignore local views that are opposite of their own.
conflicts that debate causes within communities can be serious and can continue for a long time after the debate ends.
Factors;
the power of the tourism industry.
central government policies and funding may over-rule local preferences.
externally based organizations may already have a strong voice in the area because of their ownership of local business.
Role of Public Sector Planning
Reasons:
Scepticism about state planning and its alleged lack of achievements.
the climate of de-regulation and privatization.
the dislike of planning in Eastern Europe where it is seen as a reminder of doctrinaire old communist regimes.
the growing power of transnational corporations whose area of influence extends beyond the geographical boundaries of any government.
key elements of the tourism product
accommodation units
the tour operation function
visitor attractions except in the heritage sector
bars, night clubs, taxis and coach operators
The Role of Industry
Motives for the attitudes of the industry
convincing governments that the industry is capable of regulating itself to prevent the threat of governments introducing legislation to control the activities of the industry.
taking initiatives that reduce costs & therefore improve financial performance & competitiveness.
attempting to impress the media given that today, the media plays a vital role in influencing consumer behaviour.
The Principle of Partnership
The concept of partnership in tourism
The Visitor and Convention Bureaux, funded by both the public and private sectors, that market tourist destinations
Government encouragement of industry to take the issue of sustainability more seriously via reports and conference
Technocratic Thinking and Jargon
be unrealistic in the context of a competitive & largely commercial market
not take account of the political dimension of sustainable tourism
use jargon which may exclude non-specialists with the use of terms like carrying capacity, holistic approaches and host communities.
Power without Responsibility
Decision makers:
stop other people visiting particular places without having to offer them any alternative
force the industry to change its practices in varying ways without having any responsibility for the people who will ultimately pay the price
Self-contained Resort Complexes
One of the most controversial areas of the sustainable tourism debate has been growth
The Ethics and Practicalities of Conservation
It appears to be generally accepted that there is a strong link between conservation and sustainable tourism, for the latter is about conserving current resources so they can support tourism in the future.
Emphasis on the Physical Environment
the human resource management problems of tourism enterprises in terms of equal opportunities, pay and training which are vital to both the well being of employees and ultimately, the sustainable ability of the tourism industry
the economic viability of tourism enterprises
the needs, opinions and rights of the tourist themselves who are often cast as villains
Foreign Influences in Developing Countries
environmental & sustainable tourism pressure groups in the northern hemisphere are often involved in lecturing governments and people in developing countries on how they treat their wildlife
foreign tour operators are pressuring governments and businesses in developing countries to take action to placate the views of their clients
most of the academics and consultants who are active in the sustainable tourism field come from the northern hemisphere
Lack of Performance Indicators
2 main drawbacks:
it makes it difficult for organizations to act because there are no guidelines and no blueprint for them to work towards
organizations may feel that unless there is official accreditation of achievements
Relationship between Different key Concepts and Techniques in Sustainable Tourism
Tourism is Not an Island
need to recognize and study the links between tourism and other industries and activities if we are to fully understand sustainable tourism