International Centre for Responsible Tourism

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International Centre for Responsible Tourism
By invitation of the Sustainable Tourism Society
at Ryerson 20th October 2008
Responsible Tourism how can you make a
difference?

• Prof. Harold Goodwin

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This is your evening .

• ICRT
• Responsible Tourism
• Opportunities
• Your Questions

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International Centre for Responsible Tourism

• 8 staff
• 12 PhD students
• 70 MSc students (most years one or two from
  Canada) Tourism Hospitality
• Associates
• Alumni
• www.icrtourism.org

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ICRTs around the world

• South Africa
• The Gambia
• India
• Germany
• Belize

• Spain
• Canada

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M.Sc. Responsible Tourism Management

• The only masters in responsible tourism
  world-wide, with reputation for high quality and
  student centred approach
• Excellent and active alumni network
• Can be with limited attendance in Leeds
• Run from Leeds Met with field trips and London
  base
• 1-4 years

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The modules

• Responsible tourism management theory and
  practice DL
• Tourism for local economic dev. and poverty
  reduction DL
• Responsible tourism marketing DL
• Tourism mgmt in protected landscapes DL
• Managing cultural heritage for tourism Blended
• Responsible tourism in destinations One week
• Research Methods or Technical Skills 2 weekends
• Dissertation or Technical report

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What is Responsible Tourism?
Market opportunity for the industry and local
communities Approach to managing tourism in
destinations

• Better places for people to live in better
  places for people to visit

Diversity
Global thinking - local action
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Culture Tourism

• Your everyday life is someone elses
• adventure
• Swedish NGO fly-posting in
• Ljubljana, Summer 1997

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Our holidays their homes
Tourism in unusual in that it is an export
industry where consumers travel to the factory
to consume the product. But there is pollution
negative impacts Opportunities for additional
sales of goods and services added value
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Sir Colin Marshall, British Airways 1994

• Tourism and the travel industry is
  essentially the renting out for short-term lets,
  of other peoples environments, whether that is a
  coastline, a city, a mountain range or a
  rainforest. These products must be kept fresh
  and unsullied not just for the next day, but for
  every tomorrow

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The Responsible Tourism Movement

• Tourists and Travellers
• Outbound Industry
• Inbound industry accommodation
• Media
• Destination Management
• Travel and the particular issues around peak oil
  and GHG emissions

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Destinations are made
Multi-stakeholder partnerships what will
business contribute?
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Campaigning from ethical to responsible tourism

• VSO advocacy
• WorldWise campaign
• Travelling in the Dark league tables
• 1999 research for AITO
• Tearfund
• Industry and consumer surveys

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Avoid the Ghetto .

• Do not narrow you career opportunities
• Read way outside the tourism literature
• Make linkages media, film, local government,
  national parks, archaeology, economic development
  

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Ethical Consumerism CSR

• Travel and Tourism has lagged behind
• 1999-2004 the market share for ethical products
  has grown 22

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people who reported that they had
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Guilt free consumerism a USP?
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MS
Plan A
Because there is no Plan B
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UK Consumer Demand 1999
Ipsos-RSL on behalf of Tearfund November 1999
(n2032)
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Change is taking place in holidaymaker aspirations

• Companies are making explicit responsible tourism
  commitments.
• When asked whether or not they would be more
  likely to book a holiday with a company if they
  had a written code to guarantee good working
  conditions, protect the environment and support
  charities in the tourist destination
• 1999 45 said yes
• 2001 52 said yes.

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Association of Independent Tour Operators (AITO)
2000

• we recognize that in carrying out our work as
  Tour Operators we have a responsibility to
  respect other peoples places and ways of life.
• We acknowledge that wherever a Tour Operator does
  business or sends clients it has a potential to
  do both good and harm,
• we are aware that all too often in the past the
  harm has outweighed the good.

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AITO

• Protect the Environment its flora, fauna and
  landscapes
• Respect local cultures traditions, religions
  and built heritage
• Benefit local communities both economically and
  socially
• Conserve natural resources from office to
  destination
• Minimise pollution through noise, waste
  disposal and congestion

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Becoming Mainstream

• Mintel by 2010 outbound UK ethical market
  forecast to be 2.5m trips per year.
• Jane Ashton head of CSR at First Choice
• Were not experiencing a huge demand from the
  average consumer, but we do believe that
  awareness is increasing, and in a few years time
  we will have needed to have integrated these
  principles into our supply chain.

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Mintel January 2007

• Over one million responsible holidays taken in
  2006, worth 409m in 2006
• 1.2 of the UK market in 2006
• Mintel predicts year on year growth of 25
• Only 2 of public currently offset carbon on
  their flights but one fifth prepared to do so
• 9 expressed a desire to volunteer on an aid,
  teaching or construction project as part of a
  future holiday

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UK Federation of Tour Operators
Responsible Tourism Committee since 2003

• Millions of people travel to holiday resorts
  each year and these visitors can make a real
  difference to destinations both good and bad.
  By following responsible tourism practices we can
  help protect the natural environment, traditions
  and culture the things that make holidays
  special!!

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UK Federation of Tour Operators

• Responsible tourism is about making a positive
  difference when we travel
• Enjoying ourselves and taking responsibility for
  our actions - respecting local cultures and the
  natural environment
• Giving fair economic returns to local people
  helping to spread the benefit of our visit to
  those who need it most
• Recognising that water and energy are precious
  resources that we need to use carefully.
• Protecting endangered wildlife and preserving the
  natural and cultural heritage of the places we
  visit for the future enjoyment of visitors and
  the people who live there.

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Taking responsibility
You cannot outsource responsibility .. It is your
responsibility
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Whose responsibility? Everybodys and Nobodys

• Hotels and accommodation owners
• Airlines car hire companies
• Tourists
• Communities
• Overseas Tour Operators/Organisers
• Ground Handlers/local agents
• Journalists, Guide Book Writers and Guides
• National and Local Government
• Police Judiciary etc

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Why should business play their part?

• Cost savings
• Enlightened self interest
• Staff motivation expectations
• Responsibility to stakeholders communities,
  license to operate
• Customer expectation
• Marketing and PR
• Risk management consumers investors

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The purchasing decision

• Destination/activity
• Price
• Availability/ trip length
• USP or added value- non-price competition
• For some consumers that can be a responsible
  tourism element
• Brand positioning and repeat business and
  referrals
• Market trend towards more experiential holidays

Not just a stamp More than a certificate
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Responsible Travel takes a variety of forms, it
is characterised by travel and tourism which
Cape Town Declaration 2002

• minimises negative environmental, social and
  cultural impacts
• generates greater economic benefits for local
  people and enhances the wellbeing of host
  communities, by improving working conditions and
  access to the industry
• involves local people in decisions that affect
  their lives and life chances.

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• makes positive contributions to the conservation
  of natural and cultural heritage and to the
  maintenance of the worlds diversity
• provides more enjoyable experiences for tourists
  through more meaningful connections with local
  people, and a greater understanding of local
  cultural and environmental issues
• provides access for physically challenged people
  and
• is culturally sensitive and engenders respect
  between tourists and hosts.

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The Responsible Tourism Movement

• Tourists and Travellers
• Outbound Industry
• Inbound industry accommodation
• Destination Management
• Travel and the particular issues around peak oil
  and GHG emissions

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Kerala March 2008

• Reviewed Progress since 2002
• Looked at what had been learnt about what
  different stakeholders in destinations can do
• Provided an opportunity to the radiators to
  radiate and for people to make contacts and
  network.

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Belize May 2009

• Cruising
• Coastal and Marine
• Condominiums
• Tourism and Local Economic Development
• May 21-25 2009
• http//icrtbelize.org

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Register www.wtmwrtd.com Support the Cape Town
Declaration Principles Do something to
contribute to achieving Responsible Tourism
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www.aRTyforum.info
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www.irresponsibletourism.info
There is an excellent cheating site
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The Responsible Tourism Movement

• Tourists and Travellers
• Outbound Industry
• Inbound industry accommodation
• Media
• Destination Management
• Travel and the particular issues around peak oil
  and GHG emissions

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Employed or not

• Campaigning
• Writing
• Lobbying from within or from without
• The way you and your friends travel
• Partnering and supporting SMEs

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Laura McGowan

• www.theresponsibletraveller.ca
• Contribute to Register of Responsible Tourism
  Experiences in Canada
• To register your interest email
  laura_at_theresponsibletraveller.ca

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Further information

• www.haroldgoodwin.info
• www.icrtourism.org
• www.responsibletourismpartnership.org
• www.icrtourism.org/capetown.shtml
• www.icrtourism.org/Kerala.shtml
• www.irresponsibletourism.info
• www.responsibletravel.com
• harold_at_haroldgoodwin.info