Lecture sheet – 1

Definition of Sustainable Tourism

“Form of Tourism Which meet the needs of tourists, the tourism industry, and
host communities today without compromising the ability of future generations to meet
their own needs.” (Source World Tourism Organization)
“ Management of all resources in such a way that economic, social, and aesthetic
needs are fulfilled while maintaining cultural integrity, essential, ecological processes,
biological diversity, and life-support system.” (Source World Tourism Organization)

“Sustainable Tourism is a form of tourism that provides economic, social, and

environmental benefits through the knowledgeable management of resources.” (Source
Tourism authority of Thailand)

Main Pillars of Sustainable Tourism

a. Environment
b. Tourists
c. Host Community
d. Tourism Industry

Important features of Sustainable tourism

 Quality: sustainable tourism provides a quality experience for visitors, while

improving the quality of life of the host community and protecting the quality of
the environment.
 Continuity: sustainable tourism ensures the continuity of the natural resources
upon which it is based, and the continuity of the culture of the host community
with satisfying experiences for visitors.
 Balance: sustainable tourism balances the needs of the tourism industry,
supporters of the environment, and the local community. Sustainable tourism
emphasizes the mutual goals and cooperation among visitors, host community and
destination.

Goals of sustainable tourism

 To improve the quality of life of host communities.

 To preserve inter-generational and intra-generational equity.
 To protect the quality of the environmental.
 To ensure the cultural integrity and social cohesion of communities.
 To provide a high quality experience for visitors.

Principles of sustainable tourism

 Ethical practices and other principles which respect the culture and environment
of the host area, the economy and traditional way of life, the community and
traditional behavior.
 Protection and appropriate use of the natural environment in host areas.
 Understanding context of the area to be managed or developed.
 Satisfying human needs which concern for equity and fairness.
 All stakeholders need to be consulted and empowered in tourism decision-
making, and also need to be informed about sustainable tourism issues.
 Policy and planning is important part for tourism development.
 Environmental, social, cultural, economical issues be integrated in to the plan,
development and operation.
 Careful assessment, monitoring should be conducted.

Lecture sheet - 2
Tourism impact:
1. Environmental impact
2. Economic impact
3. Social-cultural impact

Environmental impact:
 Natural resources: water, air, climate.
Positive:
Give people more knowledge on the important environment
Raise awareness of environment values and create conservation for tourism
purpose e.g. water-based attraction such as lake, canal.
Improve for clean quality control of environment e.g. water, air.

Negative:
Pollution e.g. waste-water from hotel, noise pollution from tourist or tourism
activities. Over consumption e.g. water for golf course, hotel’s swimming pool.

 Natural environment: mountains, forests, sea and beach.

Positive:
Conservation for tourism purpose e.g. beach.
Gain income from visitors for conservation purpose e.g. entrance fee of national
park.

Negative:
Deterioration of the area e.g. over-visited by travelers.
Pollution e.g. oil fuel spills by boat/cruise to the sea.
 Wildlife: fauna & flora e.g. safari, bird/animal watching.

Positive:
Creation of a wildlife reserve/sanctuary or habitat restoration.

Negative:
Disrupting of animal habits.
Killing of animals through hunting or for souvenir.

 Build environment: temple, castle, village and town.

Positive:
Restoration and preservation of historic buildings and sites for tourism purpose.
Reuse of disused building.

Negative:
Visual impact
Deterioration of building e.g. over-visited by tourists.
 Pollution e.g. air-pollution in village by tourist buses.

Factors which influence tourism impacts on environment

 Amount or volume of tourism (number of tourist and extent of development to
support tourism) at the destination.
 Type of tourist activity take place at a destination.
 Type of environment of destination (Environment differ in terms of their
sensitivity and fragility).
 The management of planning of tourism at the destination.
Economic impact:
Positive:
 Generation of income (foreign exchange) to destination.
 Creation of employment opportunity.
 Increased tax revenues raised for government.
 Improved for new infrastructure.
 Multiplier effect.
Negative:
 Leakage of expenditure out of local economy.
 Inflation & higher land values.
 Opportunity cost.
 Seasonality.
 Over-dependence on tourism.
Social impacts:
 Social impacts refer to changes in the lives of people who live in host/destination
communities, and are associated more with direct contact between hosts and
tourists.
 Social impact from tourism is usually permanent with little or no opportunity to
reserve the change once it has taken place.
 Small community is more sensitive to tourism social impact than large city.
 Sources of social impacts are: Tourists and Hosts.
Issues of Social Impacts from tourism:
 Demonstration effects – there are the effects of those situation where someone
sees another person doing or using something and (as a result) wants to do or
have the same things themselves.
 Impact on employment and job for people in host community.

Positive: tourism offers many work opportunities.

Negative: tourism bring someone negative impacts on worker e.g. seasonality and
unsocial working hours.
Positive impacts:
 Increased knowledge of the host culture by visitors and lead to renewed
culture pride among the host community.
  Encourage cultural interchange and international understanding.
 Host culture can survive by tourist’s demands for traditional
entertainment, art, crafts and music.

Negative impacts:
 Commercialization of the local culture.
 Decline in traditional arts and crafts as folk art become junk art or low
quality mass product.
 Conflict between tourists and local community due to visitor’s lack of
cross-cultural awareness.
 Sex tourism, child prostitution, HIV/AIDS.
 Gambling, drugs and crime.

Principle to manage social impact:

 Equity (treat fairly).
 Equal opportunity.
 Ethics.

Lecture: Sustainable Tourism.

Strategies for Managing Tourism Impacts:
Strategies for Managing Environmental Impacts:
1. Policy/Planning
2. Development/Construction of Facilities
3. Management of Resources
4. Management of Visitors
5. Marketing and Promotion
6. Education
7. Research and monitoring

Policy/Planning:
 Development plans which set out zones or sites for tourist use, determine rights of
excess to areas, and consider what short of activities are suitable for the area.
 Develop and enforce regulations to control aspects of development and tourist
activity e.g. on environmental quality standards.
 Require environment impact assessments and monitoring for tourist development.
 Carrying capacity: the maximum use of any site without causing negative effects
on the resources, reducing visitor satisfaction, or adverse impact up the society,
economy and culture of the area.

Three major components involved in carrying capacity:

 Ecological constraints or how many people can visit an area before the
water and air become polluted or wildlife is disturbed.
 Socio cultural constraints or the number of visitors that area acceptable to
the local residents.
 Psychological constraints or the number of people that can visit an area
without feeling crowded or concerned about their impacts.

Zoning:
 A process where planners connect types of development or activity to
specific areas.
 Zoning approaches usually include several zones that range from those
with no access or very limited access for visitors to those areas where
tourist’s facilities are allowed.
 Zoning plans is the clustering of tourist’s developments into particular
areas where impacts can be dealt more easily.

Permits and Licenses:

 Permit systems require tourist operators or tourists to apply for permits to
conduct certain activities within an area.
  Permits can sometime come with a fee and such revenue can be set aside
for the provision of facilities for tourist use as well as for conservation,
restoration and maintenance programs.

Development/Construction of Facilities:
 Consider choice of sites and site design carefully to ensure minimal impact.
 Use minimal impact construction techniques.
 Use local styles of architecture.
 Use recycled materials where possible.
 Concern about design features which will minimize energy and other resources
requirements.

Example of “environmental quality standards” for developing or building resort in a

coastal area in Mauritius.
 A restriction on resort size to a maximum of 200 rooms.
 A restriction on the maximum height of building to 12 meters.
 A requirement that hotels with over 75 rooms must install water and
sewage treatment plants.
 A recommendation that regional architectural styles be incorporated in the
design of facilities/building.
 A requirement that facilities have at least 60% of their area given to
landscaping.

Management of Resources:
 Develop and use recycling, waste minimization and energy efficiency programs.
 Use environmentally friendly products and technologies.

Management of Visitors:
 Design system which control visitors flows. “Visitor Management System” is a
way to control the numbers and flow of visitors as well as their activities.
 Use interpretation/education to encourage sustainable behavior.

Marketing and Promotion:

 Consider tourism concepts and products better suited to the environment.
 Provide accurate information in advertising to ensure that visitors have
appropriate expectation.

Education:
 Use effective interpretation services to encourage visitors to engage in more
sustainable behaviors.
 Provide environmental education for tourism personnel e.g. tour guide.
 Develop codes of conduct for tourists, tourism business staff and owners.
Research and monitoring:
 Support researches which seek to improve understanding of the tourism-
environmental relationship.
 Monitor environmental change from tourism and environmental quality.

Strategies for Managing Social Impacts:

Managing social impact from tourism should based on principle for –
 Equity (treat fairly).
 Equal opportunity.
 Ethics.

Obstacles to Social and Cultural understanding between tourist and host:

 Culture shock-“A totality of reaction to new people and setting which result in
ineffective behaviors”. Culture shock may be experienced by either visitors or
their hosts.
 Cultural Arrogance-“The continued practice of followings one’s own cultural
rules while disregarding the feelings and perspectives of the host community”.
 Pre-travel information.
 On-site interpretation.
 Facility design.
 Explanation of tourism issues to community.
 Community involvement in tourism planning.
 Explanation of tourism issues to community.
 Corporate social responsibility

What is “Corporate Social Responsibility” (CSR)?

 CSR is a concept of organization being accountable for the
consequence of its decision/action which affecting the firms
stakeholders as well as communities and environment while still
pursue its business goal.
 CSR is a way organization integrate responsible practices throughout
its business operation.
 CSR means that any negative cause by business impacts on people,
society and environment should be acknowledge and corrected.

How Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) can link/connect to

sustainable tourism?
 Organizations should not make decision/take action based not only on
financial factors such as profits, but also based on the immediate and
long-term social and environmental consequences of their activities.
 CSR encourages to balance the benefit of its organization with those
stakeholders e.g. employee, supplier and investor.
 CSR helps to balance the need of tourism industry with other
important tourism pillar which is the tourists, community and
environment.
 Tourism industry with CSR will be more concern on long term
operation as well as try not to create negative impacts (environment,
economics and social) to tourist destination where its business
operate.
How tourism industry/business benefit from Corporate Social
Responsibility (CSR)?
 Create a good image of the corporation as well as its brand. This will
help to attract customer, investor as well as employee.
 CSR makes sure to develop long term and caring relationship with
employee loyalty.
 CSR activities such as “corporate employee volunteer” help the
corporation to retain good employee as well as encourage creativity,
trust and team work among employee.

CSR Example of Tourism Industry:

Singapore Airlines recognizes the importance of building strong
relationships, not only with its customers and business partners but also with
the many communities it serves. They practice good corporate citizenship
activity through the support of the arts, sports and educational initiatives,
both locally and abroad. They also committed to helping the less privileged
sponsoring programmes for the needy, involving handicapped children as
well as senior citizens and protecting the environment.