The theory of  tourism impacts and challenges

Generally speaking, sustainable tourism protects people and places. It does this by addressing potential impacts of tourism on three main areas: environment, society-culture, and economy. 

In this booklet we will identify the three aspects of the triple bottom line of sustainable tourism. We will discuss threats that tourism poses to destinations and business. And we will describe the challenges Small Island Developing States have to face in sustainable tourism development. 

List of Acronyms

We will use some acronyms in this booklet in order to make reading more pleasant:

• GDP: Gross Domestic Product
• SIDS: Small Island Developing States
• SPTO: South Pacific Tourism Organisation
• T&T: Travel & Tourism
• UNEP: United Nations Environment Programme
• UNWTO: United Nations World Tourism Organization
• WTO: World Tourism Organization
• WTTC: World Travel and Tourism Council

Tourism Impacts and the Triple Bottom Line

Because sustainable tourism not only promotes economic development, but also environmental and cultural conservation — it employs the concept of a triple bottom line. 

The triple bottom line is an accounting framework that incorporates the three dimensions of performance: socio-economic, cultural and environmental. It should also be noted that the triple bottom line applies to all tourism stakeholders, not only businesses. The triple bottom line measures the impact of an organization’s activities on the world.  

For example, tourism providers can benefit communities by supporting cultural diversity and promoting tolerance and acceptance of different lifestyles and belief systems. When a tourism organization or business enhances its positive socio-cultural impacts and helps local communities maintain their cultural integrity in the face of vast economic and developmental pressures, this can greatly benefit both business and community. 

It is important to note that a net gain in the triple bottom line does not imply the absence of losses or damages across all three of these dimensions, it only means that the final tally is on net positive, where positive impacts outweigh negative impacts. Managing a destination or business’ triple bottom line is a balancing act. 

This unit focuses on each of the three components of the triple bottom line, looking at both benefits and negative impacts resulting from tourism. On the next page you will find an interactive presentation of the three pillars of sustainability. 

Case Study: Negative Social Impacts in Mauritius

In order to boost their economy, the island of Mauritius incorporated tourism into their development plan. Significant issues in their development have been the use of land for large tourist operations and increased population from foreign direct investment. Wealthy individuals were permitted freeholdings of land and permanent-resident status with the hope that they would pump new money into the economy.

While this practice generated economic benefits (netting 5% growth per year) and led to infrastructure changes, these positive impacts were felt by little of the local population. (Wortman, Donalson, and Westen, 2016). This caused a social rift as local residents felt they were being negatively affected for the benefit of a few (Wortman, Donalson, and Westen, 2016). Higher land prices and increased development resulted in locals locals being displaced from the lands that they traditionally farmed and fished (Wortman, Donalson, and Westen, 2016). Some locals felt their culture was being suppressed with the increased development on the island. New shopping centers and restaurants replaced markets, and the beaches are now lined with resorts and other tourist attractions (Wortman, Donalson, and Westen, 2016). Furthermore, the shifting population dynamics have led locals to feel more alienated and that their island is losing its culture.

Socio-cultural impacts

Human communities and cultures are major attractions. Managers must sustain these resources so tourism does not erode their value. As tourism development affects more communities around the world, the social dimension of sustainability has grown in significance. The sustainability of communities and their dependence upon tourism has to be balanced with local needs and desires. This is especially relevant for indigenous attractions. Developers must understand community attitudes and needs and accommodate them in their development plans. The challenge of course is that within any community a wide range of opinions and stakeholders compete for attention. There is no such thing as a single community perspective.

When managed sensitively, tourism can empower people to take control of their own future. Much debate centers on the socio-cultural transformations that tourism can bring to communities. Interaction between visitors and communities can dilute or even destroy traditional cultures. Conversely, these encounters can also foment opportunities for greater understanding and learning.

The culture of a destination is vitally important to the communities that live there. It is shared within and amongst social groups and has been transmitted from generation to generation. Culture is also vitally important to tourism. For example, cultural tourism, which involves the visitation to cultural and historical resources, is one of the oldest forms of travel and is currently one of the fastest growing sectors of the tourism industry - more so than any other form of tourism (Timothy & Nyaupane, 2009; Richards & Munsters, 2010). Furthermore, cultural tourists tend to spend more than other tourist types (Stone, 2006).

Elements of culture that are likely to be utilized and influenced by tourism include:

• handicrafts
• language
• traditions
• gastronomy (food)
• art and music
• history
• architecture
• religion
• education
• heritage sites
• dress

By showcasing local culture in a sustainable manner and encouraging meaningful interactions between hosts and their visitors, tourism can support these various elements by:

• Discouraging cultural imperialism
• Increasing awareness of local history and culture and fostering cultural pride
• Supporting cultural diversity and promoting cultural exchange
• Promoting tolerance and acceptance of different lifestyles and belief systems
• Preserving identity and passing on of cultural traditions
• Funding preservation of built heritage and culturally-significant sites

However, tourism has also contributed to a wide range of issues that damage local residents’ culture. Tourism places pressure on social configurations, cultural traditions and values which leads to impacts that tend to be intangible and typically permanent in the destination (Hashimoto, 2002; Oriade & Evans, 2011). The destination and its communities are affected by the social and cultural values that can be imposed by tourism structures. Tourism effects local society and culture because, like other forms of economic development, it raises incomes and has a modernising effect on the society in which it takes place. Negative impacts on culture, resulting from tourism, include:

• The demonstration effect occurs when residents, particularly young people, observe and then try to copy the behaviour, dress and attitudes of tourists. This may lead to frustration in poor countries when locals realise they are unlikely to ever obtain the wealth and possessions that tourists have. This may become a problem as it can motivate locals to turn to crime in order to obtain such goods.
• Cultural change brought about by tourism may occur very slowly through a process described as acculturation. This is thought to occur when two cultures interact over time and the attitudes of the stronger culture are gradually transferred to the weaker culture. In this way tourism is thought to have particularly pronounced effect on the culture of less developed countries.
• The process of cultural commodification can occur when traditional items, such as dances, ceremonies and handicrafts, are over-commercialised and turned into tourist products. This raises the issue of authenticity where tribal people may dress up for tourists who think that they are witnessing authentic traditional lifestyle. Zooification may also occur in the case of tribal people or distinct ethnic groups which can become tourist curiosities and attractions and tourists simply observe and stare at these groups.
• Language may be influenced by an influx of immigrant or expatriate workers, either through the demonstration effect as locals aspire to tourist behaviour or through direct social contact and commercial dealings in shops and bars.
• Heritage sites that possess significant cultural or religious value can become degraded due to the excessive pressure placed on them by heavy visitation, destructive behavior by tourists, and lack of preservation activities.

Negative cultural impacts from aboriginal tourism were found among the Tao tribe of Orchid Island, Taiwan. Notably, processes of acculturation have been observed regarding traditional taboos. Increased tourism since the 1970s has resulted in habitat destruction and continued population decline of three species that are culturally significant to Tao tradition (the Elegant Scops owl, the Birdwing butterfly, and the coconut crab).

The Elegant Scops owl is considered an “evil spirit” in Tao culture. Traditionally the species is revered, and Tao people will not venture deep into the forests where Elegant Scops owls live. However, with increasing numbers of visitors and decreasing Elegant Scops owl populations, the Tao are less wary of traditional taboo and “more willing to lead tourists into these areas, which significantly increases the human disturbance in ecologically sensitive lands” (Liu & Lu, 2014). The ecological loss of habitat for these species coincides with a cultural loss of taboos significant to Tao people and their history.

More information available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4117854/

Environmental Impacts

The environmental dimension of sustainable tourism, as with sustainable development more generally, is often publicly perceived as the central foci of the sustainability concept (Mowforth & Munt, 2009). Although this concentration tends to be on the natural habitats, the environment fully comprises:

• Natural resources
• Natural environment
  
• Farmed environment
• Wildlife
• Built environment

In this sense, environment is taken to mean the combination of natural and social systems that make up an ecosystem. In the absence of an attractive environment, there would be little tourism at a destination. The natural environment is the raw material of the tourism experience – the islands, beaches, mountains and reefs that form a central component of the tourism product. Natural resources are the raw materials that sustain the operation of tourism businesses. Consider a community sea kayaking venture for example. It is reliant on the sea, the weather and the landscape (natural environment) for the product and the land, the water and the food (natural resources) for its operations. For tourism to be successful, both the product and the operational raw materials need to be well looked after.

The farmed environment is often overlooked as part of the tourism experience but there is an increasing enthusiasm for farm tourism in many parts of the world and farmland and landscapes are a core component of rural tourism. Wildlife, including both plant (flora) and animal life (fauna), has long been considered to have considerable tourism value in a natural or semi-natural state (national or marine parks, diving, safari, whale watching tourism) or in an artificial setting (zoos, wildlife parks, museums). However, wildlife is still particularly vulnerable to adverse impacts of tourism as it is often experienced in areas that are not designed to cope with large numbers of people. The built environment includes all the man made structures in the tourism context, particularly those that have historic or cultural value, and also those structures which use land resources such as hotels, airports, roads and railways.

Tourism has potential to impact, positive and negatively, each of these five environmental elements. Due to their placement and use of environmental resources, tourism activities have caused damage, both gradually and rapidly, to both rural and urban landscapes including:

• land use change
• energy consumption
• habitat disruption or destruction
• pressures on natural resources and wildlife
• pollution and waste
• damage to biological and built systems

Many of these impacts arise from infrastructural construction such as roads, airports resorts, hotels, restaurants, shops, golf courses, and marinas. Travel and tourism providers are also now being targeted as a primary culprit of climate change. These impacts threaten the existence of the tourism activities which created them (Oriade & Evans, 2011). Subsequently, it is important to focus on the interdependence of tourism and the environment and search for methods to make their association more sustainable.

How tourism stakeholders recycle waste, utilize energy, control water usage, minimize greenhouse gas emissions, and protect natural ecosystems all contributes to environmental management. However, it is difficult to determine how much change directly results from tourism compared to natural environmental changes and resident behaviour. The precise environmental impacts and their subsequent management will vary according to each environment and there are numerous strategies (discussed further below in Week 3) to manage environmental impacts of businesses and at destinations and specific sites (UNWTO, 2011). Organized efforts to minimize negative impacts can greatly improve the chances of sustainability, a healthier and cleaner environment, and therefore a more durable and robust tourism industry. In fact, and as discussed below (section 3.4), tourism can help generate a greater appreciation for the environment, ensuring its long-term viability.

Boracay Island is tourist destination in the Philippines once known for its white sand beaches and crystal blue swimming water. But a tourism boom caused various problems including unregulated development. In 2017, almost 1.7 million tourists visited Boracay in only 10 months, including many cruise line passengers (McKirdy, 2018).

Over-development has the potential to destroy their natural environment, erode culture and disrupt residents’ day-to-day life. “No build zones” were established to protect some open spaces, the natural environment, the ambiance of the natural land and the culture. Yet tourism developments continued to grow (Trousdale, 1999). Developments included mega-hotels and golf courses, which can damage large portions of the land and environment. High levels of coliform were found in the water as a result of insufficient sewage treatment (Trousdale, 1999). The majority of the island's sewage facilities prior to the closure, 716 of 834, did not have a discharge permit and likely carried raw effluent directly into the sea (McKirdy, 2018).

In April of 2018, the island was shut down to the tourist industry for six months, allowing only locals on the island. The purpose of this closure was to clean up damage to the environment, illegal construction and insufficient waste treatment. Following the closure, tourism numbers continue to be limited and new by-laws are in place. Beach parties, casinos and single use plastics are no longer allowed, changing the image of the island once again (McKirdy, 2018).

Travel and Tourism Contributions

Direct Travel & Tourism Contribution

• Commodities (Accommodation, Transport, Entertainment, Attractions)
• Industries (Accommodation Services, Food and Beverage Services, Retail Traide, Transportation Services, Cultural, sports and recreational services)

Indirect Travel & Tourism Contribution

• Travel and Tourism Investments
• Government collective Travel and Tourism spending
• Purchase from suppliers

Induced Contribution (= spending of direct and indirect employees)

• Food and beverages
• Recreation
• Clothing
• Housing
• Household goods

Positive Economic Impacts

From a development perspective, a tourism business’s success will be reflected in its total direct, indirect, and induced economic impacts. Such effects generate employment and business opportunities while improving the bottom line, furthering economic development, and contributing to a region’s overall appeal.

Since sustainable tourism focuses on generating positive impacts, let’s take a close look at benefits for business.

Improved profitability and competitive advantage

Corporate responsibility has become a competitive advantage. Sustainability can and should be seen as an integral part of any business in good times and bad. Industry leaders now put more effort into and apply more resources toward “green” initiatives during trying economic times which enable them to cut costs as well as increase competitive advantage.

Increased market strength and customer loyalty

Research shows that when consumers perceive quality and convenience as equal, they select eco-friendly products and services when available — and some even pay 5-10% more. Thirty percent of adult Americans or 58.5 million people make purchases based on personal, social, and environmental values (Natural Marketing Institute, 2008).

Attraction of talent and enhanced employee loyalty

Sustainability is a key value of today’s new workforce. A company committed to this value holds a market advantage in recruiting talent. Both graduates and industry professionals increasingly look for green jobs. A poll on green employment in the Wall Street Journal found that 80% of young professionals are interested in a job that positively affects the environment, and 92% would be more inclined to work for an environmentally friendly company (Mattioli, 2007). To facilitate this, they need to understand their employer objectives and have a stake in setting them.

Negative Economic Impacts

Although the economic benefits from tourism are widely known, there is less awareness about the negative economic impacts. Tourism can threaten business by:

• increased operating costs, including energy due to higher demand
• increased competition
• lack of market differentiation
• decreased customer and employee loyalty
• inflation of land prices
• seasonality leading to partial unemployment or unproductive facilities

Leakage and dependency are other negative economic impacts. When a tourism provider buys supplies or services from outside the region(s) in which it operates, or when most revenues associated with a tourism service do not remain in the host economy, money is said to leak out of the local economy and thus provide fewer local direct or indirect economic impacts. To be economically sustainable for the local economy, tourism providers minimize economic leakage to the greatest extent possible. Dependency can occur if a region becomes too heavily reliant on one industrial sector like tourism. This is undesirable as it makes the economy vulnerable to sudden changes in tourist demand. A dependency situation is more likely to arise when tourism is developed in a less developed country, a small country or a small island where there are fewer economic alternatives. Tourism’s vulnerability can be reduced by attracting a broad base of tourists so that a downturn in one market will not be so damaging to the destination.

Sustainable Tourism in Small Island Developing States

Small Island Developing States (SIDS) are a diverse set of countries including some of the world’s most remote and smallest states in the world. SIDS vary in geographic range, development and population density and size. SIDS face particular challenges in development and tourism.

Future development challenges are linked to SIDS limited resources, sensitive environments, distance from markets and other traits as remote, small, maritime and tropical nations.

“Tourism is of particular significance for Small Island Developing States (SIDS) as one of the, so often, few activities for which their location, coupled with exceptional natural and cultural resources, is a strong competitive advantage” (UNWTO, 2012). The control of adverse impacts on the sustainability of their tourism industry, as well as the facilitation to receive positive benefits, is paramount.

Tourism Development Challenges for Small Island Developing States - Part 1

Special characteristics

Securing sustainable development through tourism should take SIDS special characteristics and needs into account. For example, small size impacts competition for limited resources.

Accessibility

The remoteness of SIDS impacts access to markets and services, costs of trading, and cultural sensitivity. For example, transport and communication are important in maintaining contact and linkages with the rest of the world, yet the physical remoteness and distances involved persist as barriers in proportion to the costs of improving the frequency and reliability of transportation services. The need for improved transportation services therefore needs to be balanced with the need for green transport options.

Climate change and other sources of environmental degradation

It is anticipated that SIDS will be highly vulnerable to climate change impacts even though they have historically contributed little to the issue (less than 1% compared to the global total). Economic growth, water availability, health, food production and the delicate ecosystems in SIDS are already suffering losses from weather related events. SIDS are particularly vulnerable due to climate change impacts due to isolation, small land masses, limited natural resources, high population/growth rates, high coastal population/infrastructure and limited capacity for adaptation.

Tourism Development Challenges for Small Island Developing States Part 2

Higher exposure to external shocks

Area businesses and the destination overall need to be able to achieve and sustain the tourism economy, including securing investment and attracting visitors. For example, in general SIDS experienced a decline in tourism income in response to the 2008-2009 economic crisis.

Economic Competitiveness

Achieving a successful tourism economy is linked to the destination’s ability to manage supply and demand factors, including business activity, policy response, securing investment and attracting visitors. One example of a SIDS competition is the ease of doing business.

Local Prosperity and Poverty Alleviation

Retaining income from tourism in the local economy and creating quality employment allow the opportunity for equally distributing these economic benefits to poorer groups of society. Reviewing the tourism value chain to assess income flows and the percentage that reaches poor communities helps to identify areas that need intervention.

Tourism Development Challenges for Small Island Developing States - Part 3

Social and Cultural Issues

Tourism exposure brings global interaction which prompts a sensitive approach to local culture and heritage for SIDS. The UNWTO states “In 2011 the theme of World Tourism Day was ‘Linking Cultures’. This recognised the opportunity that tourism brings to advance tolerance, respect and mutual understanding, while also underlining the need for it to be conducted in ways that respect as well as enrich local cultures” (UNWTO, 2012).

Coastal Environments and Biodiversity

The connection between tourism and local environmental quality is strong and requires the mutually beneficial relationship of protection. SIDS “make a contribution to global biodiversity that far outweighs their collective land areas” (UNWTO 2012).

Resource Management

SIDS small size, location, and individual islands as states confines their resource base and complicates the options and cost of resource management solutions. Availability of freshwater, wastewater and solid waste management, and energy sourcing are a challenge for SIDS. Opportunities for improved management are being seized by individual tour operators and developers, and includes developing responsible environmental practice handbooks by hotels and resorts.

CASE STUDY: Pacific Island Challenges

The South Pacific Tourism Organisation (SPTO) Sustainability Monitoring Program was motivated by the need to address the various environmental, socio-cultural, and economic challenges that the Pacific Island countries face. These challenges tend to be common challenges shared by small islands that are largely due to their small size, isolated location, and coastal geography.

Some of the specific challenges affecting the Pacific Islands include:

• Increased pressure on natural resources, which are inherently limited in Pacific Islands;
• Insufficient waste management infrastructure to handle waste disposal, including limited landfill capacity and lack of on-island recycling capabilities;
• Harm to marine habitats and wildlife from coastal development and marine-based activities, as well as water pollution and debris;
• Increased vulnerability to climate change impacts, including rising sea levels, natural disasters, and warming water temperatures;
• Loss of local cultural resources, traditions, and awareness;
• Limited and low-paying economic opportunities for residents;
• Economic vulnerability and leakage;
• Lack of market differentiation to distinguish the destination offering and visitor experience

Tourism growth in small island destinations has the potential to exacerbate or help alleviate these existing challenges. Because of the impact that tourism can have on islands and their inhabitants, it is particularly important to enhance the overall sustainability of the industry across the Pacific Islands region. Because the tourism industry is comprised of many individual entities and actors; therefore, to create change at a regional level requires tourism enterprises to adopt more sustainable habits and ensure that destination development support this.

Suggested further reading

Sustainable tourism in SIDS will require maintaining effective governance structures and communication, establishing appropriate policies, and using a range of management tools. 

Sustainable Tourism Agenda and Policy Guidance

The United Nations Environment Programme and the World Tourism Organization compiled a resource called “Making Tourism More Sustainable: a Guide for Policy Makers.” The guide includes policies and recommended tools collected from actual cases which successfully and effectively achieved sustainable development goals. The resource can be used as a blueprint for policies and tools by national and local governments, to be modified to the area’s particular circumstances and conditions (UNEP and WTO, 2005).

References

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• Liu, T.-M. & Lu, D.-J. (2014). The cultural and ecological impacts of aboriginal tourism: a case study on Taiwan’s Tao tribe. Springerplus, 3(347). doi:10.1186/2193-1801-3-347
• Mattioli, D (2007) How Going Green Draws Talent, Cuts Costs, Wall Street Journal. November 13, 2007. Available at: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB119492843191791132.html. Last accessed August 2015.
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• United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the World Tourism Organization (WTO) (2005). Making Tourism More Sustainable: a Guide for Policy Makers. Madrid, Spain. Available at: http://www.unep.fr/shared/publications/pdf/dtix0592xpa-tourismpolicyen.pdf
• United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) (2011) Policy and Practice for Global Tourism. Madrid, Spain.
• United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) (2012)
• Challenges and Opportunities for Tourism Development in Small Island Developing States. Madrid, Spain. Available at: https://www.e-unwto.org/doi/book/10.18111/9789284414550. Accessed May 2017.
• World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) (2018) Economic Impact 2018. Available at https://www.wttc.org/-/media/files/reports/economic-impact-research/regions-2018/world2018.pdf Accessed November 2018.
• Wortman, T., Donaldson, R., and van Westen, G. (2016) ‘They are stealing my island’: Residents’ opinions on foreign investment in the residential tourism industry in Tamarin, Mauritius. Singapore Journal of Tropical Geography, 37: 139–157. doi: 10.1111/sjtg.12151.

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