It is all too easy for one to believe that they are acting responsibly simply due to the nature of the business, but in reality the damage they are causing can go unnoticed. Corporate social responsibility and business ethics vastly influence how responsibly tour operators act. If a tour operator is more concerned with satisfying shareholders of their company, then profitability is likely to be their main incentive, presiding over the well being of local communities and other stakeholders. Shareholders often do not wish for shifts towards greater corporate and social responsibility as it is worried that methods to reduce the negative impacts created by tourism will reduce the prosperity of the company, leading to a lower return on investment (UNEP 2005, p.10). For a long time, it has been argued by tour operators that they are primarily responsible for their shareholders and looking after their business, and that destination level sustainability was not their duty to address. Tour operators often claimed that they had no direct adverse impacts from within their offices and they preferred to shift the responsibility onto local governments and tourism suppliers within destinations (Carbone et al 2005, p.261).
In more recent years, however, tour operators have taken into account that they have immense power to influence choices of holidaymakers and they have the ability to sway the practice of suppliers in order to encourage more sustainable development (UNEP 2005). According to Carbone, tour operators have begun to make vital contributions to furthering the goals of sustainable tourism development and are striving to protect the environmental and cultural resources on which the tourism industry depends for its survival and growth. Consumer awareness has been raised by the creation of trade associations and voluntary groups such as the Federation of Tour Operators (FTO), the Association of Independent Tour Operators (AITO), the Tour Operators Initiative (TOI) and Tourism Concern. Such groups of tour operators have emerged due to the realisation of the growing demand for green consumerism. Whether or not they believe that they ought to be responsible for sustainability, they have influenced demand and brought together the tour operators who provide holidays catering for these consumer desires, encouraging these organisations to become more responsible. Tour operators are beginning to learn of the practical steps they can take and are, indeed, forced to take due to the nature of demand arising. Even mass-market tour operators such as “First Choice Plc” are placing enormous emphasis on the fact that they are operating responsibly and they claim that they are “a leader in promoting sustainable tourism, committed to developing unique and innovative ways to support the environment and people” and that they “work with a wide range of organisations that help us understand the right thing to do with respect to the environment and people” (First Choice 2008). In addition to such statements being made public, tour operators have also produced reports outlining their stance on their personal corporate social responsibility. “Thomas Cook Group Plc” has made clear in its “Responsible Tourism Policy” that they feel that destination level sustainability is an important factor in their operation. They strive to conduct business in a responsible way, minimising impacts, and simultaneously maximizing financial benefit (Thomas Cook Group Plc 2007).
Despite an apparent consciousness of tour operators to become more responsible, there is no guarantee that this has arisen as a result of genuine concern for destination level sustainability. Several independent tour operators such as “Audley Travel” are operating in a way that holidays are purely designed in a way to promote responsible travel and displaying a true passion about the countries in which they specialise. This has resulted in them winning awards such as The Guardian’s “Best Tour Operator” award for 2007, and being granted the highest possible Responsible Travel rating from AITO. While these types of tour operators are making a concerted effort to be responsible for sincere reasons, it may be suggested that several of the other tour operators who have made statements claiming to be responsible are simply using this as a marketing ploy to influence demand in an increasingly growing market for sustainable tourism package holidays. It is important for tour operators to make a good impression on their potential consumers and this is being done by promoting the idea of responsible tourism through statements on their websites and laying down guidelines on their websites as to how tourists may behave correctly in order to assist the struggle towards sustainable tourism. Companies for whom profitability and wellbeing of their shareholders is key would be very eager to build up their customer base in order to increase profitability, perhaps charging higher prices for tourists to benefit from theoretically more unique eco-tourism holidays. The actions of such tour operators may appear to be ethical and moral, in the best interests of destinations with which they liaise, but in reality could be somewhat self-fulfilling. It has been suggested that “if market advantage is not the force which drives companies forwards towards responsibility, then […] is it negative PR” that encourages companies to act, or appear to act, more responsibly (Miller 2001, p.595). Certain tour operators have endeavoured to remove this preconception by sticking up for themselves and claiming that efforts to be responsible are due to them holding themselves responsible because they know they have the capacity to be, rather than putting on a front in an attempt to woo consumers. A spokesperson for First Choice has said, “the case for being serious about sustainable development is clear, and does not depend solely on our customers’ expectations” (2006 p.42). This perhaps suggests that tour operators really are opting to take responsibility, at least to some extent, for sustainability at a destination level.
At this point, one may deem it conceivable to say that responsibility is most important to consumers if there are people assuming that tour operators are acting in a manner to simply satisfy consumers rather than perhaps to absolve guilt of previous damage caused by tour operation or to reduce any further damage. Today’s tourism industry is increasingly switching away from mass-market producer-driven tourism towards being more consumer-driven, enabling knowledgeable, responsible consumers to put mounting pressure on the industry to behave more responsibly (Kamp un-dated). If this is the case, then it might be suggested that consumers themselves ought to be responsible for ensuring sustainability, rather than putting pressure on tour operators. If consumers integrate themselves into local destinations in the correct manner, disturbing indigenous communities to the smallest degree possible, yet helping them economically, then one might say they are acting responsibly with regards to sustainable tourism. On the other hand, it is extremely difficult to expect consumers to know how to conduct themselves if they are not given guidelines suggesting appropriate behaviour. Without adequate education and awareness it is difficult to expect consumers to know how to be responsible and one would expect the tour operators, who are making it possible for tourists to visit certain destinations, to produce such guidelines.
One might argue that local governments ought to play a vital role in destination level sustainability as they have the power to implement laws and regulations. However, it is notably difficult for them to know in what they are able to influence tourism and if there are ways to control tourist behaviour. It is difficult to anticipate how incoming tourists will behave as a result of their own awareness and knowledge, and so this renders local governments insufficiently aware of political and legal methods they might employ to impact the conduct of tourists (Kamp un-dated). Swarbrooke makes a perfectly valid point where he suggests, “little will change until destination governments accept their responsibility and introduce regulations to control the activities of tour operators”. It is unknown to tour operators exactly how they are to ensure sustainable operation if there is no guidance as to what they ought to be abiding to. There is also only a limited amount of action that tour operators can be forced or encouraged to take with regards to sustainability. He also goes on to say that “unless there is concentrated action by all or most destination governments, tour operators will simply withdraw themselves from those areas where there are regulated and move on to unregulated destinations” (Swarbrooke 1999, p.281). Depending on how valuable a destination is to a tour operator as a resource base and the centrality of it to business functions, too much regulation will simply cause tour operators to establish themselves in other places unless all destination governments apply the same regulations, which would be impossible to achieve. These factors make it difficult for local governments to take responsibility even should they wish to, despite their destinations being directly affected.
Non-governmental organisations (NGOs) are able to promote destination level sustainability by providing information about the complexity of tourism and the objectives of sustainable tourism. Kamp talks of how they are able to educate tourists to become more environmentally and socially aware in order to make more calculated decisions on where there choose to visit and how they choose to behave. Many NGOs have launched government-funded campaigns in order to do this and they have promoted much relevant research connected to impacts of tourism and the requirements for sustainable tourism. In conjunction with raising awareness, they have also set up schemes to observe the way in which tourists are received by local communities, initiatives taken by industries and development policies (Kamp un-dated). Whilst NGOs are clearly dedicated to destination level sustainability, it would be ludicrous to expect them to take full responsibility for it. They are not the instigators of tourism, nor do they have appropriate funding, unlike tour operators, to implement as many schemes to improve sustainability, and so it would place large amounts of pressure on such organisations and charities to claim that they ought to be responsible. Having said this, their role of responsibility is absolutely vital to sustainability and has encouraged much awareness among stakeholders.
Although local communities do not invite tourists to destinations per se, indigenous people and local business still ought to hold some degree of responsibility for their surroundings, for if they don’t show that they care, it is difficult for other groups to display an interest in helping if they aren’t willing to help themselves. Local communities can benefit greatly from tourism, which provides jobs and can help to improve the economic prosperity of communities in general. Despite suffering from disturbance of culture and effects of pollution, the economic benefits of tourism significantly balance out the negative impacts and for this reason, one would expect local communities to strive to encourage sustainable tourism. Local communities and businesses understand their environment superior to anybody else and so know the ways in which people are being affected. It is therefore sensible to assume that it is their responsibility to promote the protection of their environment and ways in which conservation may arise. Again, however, it would not be feasible for local communities to assume full responsibility for sustainable development and tourism. Local knowledge must be used alongside tour operators’ frameworks for sustainability, placing a degree of responsibility on both.
Responsibility is a very subjective concept. As can be seen from discussing the stakeholders involved, there are opportunities and challenges for many groups to enhance destination level sustainability. Having assessed the differing roles that each group may assume in order to hold some degree of accountability for sustainability, it appears that, whilst nobody can be fully liable, the greatest scope for responsibility lies with tour operators. Tour operators are exert significant influence in determining who visits destinations and they have the capacity to adopt sustainable practices and market tourism responsibly, while simultaneously looking after the needs and desires of shareholders. Although sustainable development requires vast financial and physical input which renders some smaller tour operators unable to help to a large degree due to lack of investment opportunities, larger tour operators have great potential to invest time, money and expertise in destination sustainability. This may sacrifice a small percentage of sustainability in the short run, but if tour operators are to remain fully operational in the future, it is vital that destinations are sustained and do not become exhausted. The long term benefits of future holidays to such destinations would somewhat compensate for a short-term loss of profits. As stated by Miller and Twining-Ward 2005, with better information about the social-ecological systems being managed and with improved monitoring, tour operators can commit to conceptualising, planning and managing so that sustainability may thrive. I do not feel, however, that destination level sustainability can be achieved without an integrated stakeholder approach and whilst I think that tour operators could assume the largest degree of responsibility on an individual level, I support the argument that “any successful quest for sustainability will be collective” (National Academies Press 1999, p.3) and that “it is important to work with a cross-section of stakeholders encompassing the diversity of views and interests present in the destination – including the local authorities, the private sector, civil society and NGOs” (TOI un-dated). This can be illustrated by the “Travel Operators for Tigers” initiative in which tour operators are working with local suppliers, government and communities to sustain tiger populations in India. This is a prime example of how tourists and tour operators can help to give something back to the destinations they are visiting and that destination level sustainability can be achieved if all interested parties share responsibility for, and work cohesively towards, this aim.
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References
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