Tourism and Sustainability

How many of us travel in search of that special place. An oasis, a haven or utopia. Somewhere with a magical scenery, interesting culture and an idyllic society. Postcards attempt to capture feelings of happiness, warmth and wellbeing generated by these ideals. We send them home as a caricature, to encapsulate the dream that motivated us to travel to that particular location. The reality of these places is often very different. It is amazing how the memory can be selective, when the frayed, dirty edges are trimmed off with a strategically framed photograph or two.

Many places we travel to in our leisure time face a disconcerting array of problems. Travelling over the years, I have noticed many recurrent themes. I have witnessed first-hand, many of the environmental, social and cultural issues enveloping countries particularly of the Developing world. In many occasions it has occurred to me that these deficiencies are either the direct result of increasing pace of economic development, or are worsened because of it. Unsustainable deforestation, chocking air pollution, stagnant waterways, poor sanitation, child beggars, displaced people making way for progress. While there are undoubtedly other contributing factors such as over-population, poor governance and corruption, from my perspective economic development is the most important common denominator.

Tourism plays a key role in development.

In most countries tourism is a major source of tax and export revenue and can be an important trigger for regional economic development. Despite playing this central developmental role, the vast majority of business managers and owners of tourism enterprises ignore the side-effects. This attitude is a result of the cottage enterprise nature of tourism, ignorance and greedy profit-maximisation. It is a travesty that in many (if not most) circumstances, tourism businesses operate with detached responsibility, at times almost as if in a parallel reality to the community, society, natural environment within which they operate.

Environmental and social degradation.

There are many examples of tourism failing to take a lead role in issues of sustainability. On Mabul Island, a few kilometres from Malaysian Borneo’s east coast, local sea gypsies share an island marginally larger than a postage stamp with half a dozen 4-5 star resorts that protrude over the water in the popular sea bungalow style. Although these resorts rely on a pristine environment for their appeal, there are serious issues with waste management and sanitation. With the government unwilling to provide these services, the island is filthy, leaving the local community to live in squalor (see image below). Meanwhile, most of the community’s young children play in the dirt as there is no formal school for them to attend, neither is there electricity (except for a few businesses that have small diesel generators).



Mabul Island - Tourists lounging in the sun with the ramshackle shanty village of the local community in the background.



Similarly, in Kochi, the main tourism hub of the Indian state of Kerala, magnificent colonial era mansions converted to 5 star guesthouses overlook a litter strewn ‘parade ground’ that has been allowed to deteriorate into an incongruent dusty wasteland suitable for stray goats. A similar distain for waste management is obvious in Varkala, my current location in southern India (see image below). It is beyond doubt that these realities detracted significantly from each place.

A typical scene from the cliff-top village at Varkala. Waste management involves dumping and burning of plastics and plant matter.

Popular attempts at eco-existence in tourism.  

Despite a lack of interest in genuine sustainability, many tourism enterprises have been obsessed with eco labelling. As if by proclaiming one to be an ‘eco-resort’, ‘eco-tour’, or by offering customers an opportunity to ‘carbon offset’ their travel, they identify themselves as ‘eco-tourism’. Often these labels are simply marketing terms designed to tap into what is perceived as a growing consumer consciousness. The policies underpinning these concepts do not represent sustainability and is commonly referred to as green washing. Nothing rankles more than a hotel operator/marketer trumpeting themselves as ‘eco-friendly’ simply because wildlife can be seen from the property, or because they place small placards in guest rooms encouraging minimal towel and sheet washing to save water. Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is another common buzz-phrase. I am not a huge fan of this term as it implies only large corporate organisations should be responsible. Quite simply, sustainability is a step or two beyond these concepts. To be sustainable is to be continuously on-going, forever. Without degradation and destruction of the environment and all stakeholders. Sustainable development, in the words of the United Nations is "meeting the needs of the present without comprimising the the ability of future generations to to meet their own needs". A decreased rate of destruction is still destruction. To work towards greater sustainability enterprises must consider the three main pillars of their existence being economic, environmental and social. Fundamentally, tourism industries lack a conscientious approach to environmental and particularly social responsibility. Social sustainability is concerned with the communities and societies that most tourism enterprises rely on for their existence.

Mutual benefits of sustainability are plentiful for community and tourism

These issues can and should be addressed. There are mutual benefits on offer to both businesses and communities. The community gains new resources put towards fixing issues that are decaying their locale. Improved social capital, a better place to live and stronger relationships with the tourism industry. However, this is not a one-way street, sustainability programs need not be a charitable operation. What excites me is that sustainability makes economic sense for tourism businesses. From engaging in environmental and social programs, tourism enterprises can expect a number of benefits including:



-       Brand strengthening & development. Providing a point of differentiation from competitors along with new promotion opportunities such as press and website reportage.

-       Sustainability initiatives as attractions. Local school initiatives such as cultural and sport programs, sustainable farming projects and small business development can be interesting for visitors and become attractions in their own right. E.g. Sindudurg (case study in next blog post).

-       Better experience for tourists.  As mentioned above, appropriate initiatives can only increase visitor satisfaction.

-       Sustainable business model. Tourism businesses and the surrounding environment are healthy in the long-run together.

-       Tourists contribute to the project financially and/or donate resources. Personally, I have witnessed many examples of this.  

-       Government grants and NGO assistance. Some governments will provide financial assistance for social and environmental programs. 

-       Sustainable competitive advantage. By developing deep-rooted relationships with the local community, tourism businesses can create a competitive advantage that is difficult for competitors to imitate.

The specialist area of sustainability in tourism.

To begin down the sustainability path, enterprises can start small. The scale and scope of initiatives that are realistic will depend on individual circumstances. Firstly, start with a scan of the immediate environment. Identify prevalent environmental and social issues. Find out more information about what, if any, action is being undertaken. Then investigate the issue to see what solution(s) can be developed.

Collaboration should be an important aspect of sustainability. It makes sense for tourism enterprises to utilise pre-existing networks and systems built up by non-government enterprises (NGOs), local and national government, charities and the like. These organisations are normally very happy to work with private enterprise and organisations whose work overlaps with their mandated raison d’être. Expertise can be obtained, costs shared, outcomes expedited and benefits increased. A great example of such cooperation is common at micro-finance visionaries, Grameen Bank. They often work with charities such as Rotary, government and multi-national corporations to achieve their social program objectives (see the book Building Social Business by M. Yunus).

The way forward.

Specialist consultants are needed to devise suitable sustainability and community engagement strategies, to oversee the implementation of programs from concept to operational, and to track/evaluate progress. To make it easy for tourism enterprises to participate. Education of decision-makers, both managers and consumers must play a crucial role. Real innovation is needed. Innovation in business models, fund raising, maximising benefits from sustainability programs, in measuring outcomes, in collaboration. At the end of the day, it is crucial that tourism starts taking a leading role in the sustainability of the places it inhibits. For everyone's sake.

** Coming up in my next post... examples of sustainable tourism projects. Stay tuned! **