Integrating agroecology and sustainable tourism: applying geodesign to farm management in Aotearoa New Zealand

Abstract

In Aotearoa New Zealand, Māori land is frequently owned by local communities and managed by trusts. For such arrangements on rural holdings, land managers often wish both to provide for their communities and implement agricultural management practices in a culturally responsive manner. Agroecology offers an alternative model of land management and provides opportunities for the development of visitor programmes to learn about and observe traditional practices. This paper reports on the integration of agroecology and tourism on a working farm in Te Wai Pounamu South Island, Aotearoa New Zealand. The programme successfully applied spatial analysis in a geographical information system (GIS) within an iterative geodesign framework to plan a route for visitor access across the farm, with suitable areas identified for information platforms located strategically along the way. These agritourism related features were visually communicated through maps generated by the GIS. Such visualisation makes the possible consequences of change more accessible and understandable to decision makers. As well as satisfying the need to verify the approach empirically, there are plans underway to apply GIS in this way to other similarly managed farms in Aotearoa New Zealand.

• Highlights:

• Iterative geodesign approach used to evolve sites for access paths and information platforms

• Approach is of public interest, hence the need for planning farm access facilities for tourists

• Agroecology-based plan for managing a traditionally run farm in Aotearoa New Zealand

• Local cultural values addressed by GIS for positive environmental and economic impact

     

The Penn Staie/USA Today Restaurant Service Survey or (un)Forkedible Frequencies

Abstract

In October 1996, a survey developed at Penn State University ran in USA Today. The 14-question study asked USA Today readers, “How does restaurant service fare?” Nearly 6,000 responses, from around the globe, have provided rich data for exploratory research.

The purpose of this paper is threefold:

1. to give the frequencies for the responses to the 14 questions;

2. to publish initial findings and points of interest;

3. to share ideas for further research.

This survey does not purport to be without statistical fault. The authors recognize that the USA Today readership is not a random sample of the U.S. population. What this study shows is a snapshot of USA Today readers' feelings about hospitality service. That aside, there are several reasons to pay attention to what these diners tell us.     

Tourism experience,events and public policies

The “intertwining model” presents a strategic tool for measuring the influence of events and their interface with the different actors involved, while providing governments with milestone theoretical practices for tourism policies applied in destinations.

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Drivers of change in regional tourism governance: a case analysis of the influence of the New South Wales Government,Australia, 2007–2013

The study of governance and policy-making for tourism is an important area of academic scholarship. This paper reviews recent theoretical concepts and approaches to governance, policy-making, and sustainable and regional tourism. Practical application of these concepts is demonstrated through a case study analysis that traces and assesses the main policy and strategic initiatives of the New South Wales Government (Australia) directed at influencing change in regional tourism governance from 2007 to 2013. The analysis compares these main drivers influencing change at a regional scale to relevant themes, concepts and interpretations derived from literature on tourism governance. In particular, it uses Hall's (2011 Hall, C.M. (2011). A typology of governance and its implications for tourism policy analysis. Journal of Sustainable Tourism, 19(4–5), 437–457.[Taylor & Francis Online], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) typology of tourism governance as a framework to explore conceptualisations of the governance structures evident in the case. The paper demonstrates the complexity of the regional tourism governance space, including the ebb and flow of various policy initiatives that have been driven by the political agendas of consecutive governments and their election commitments, as well as a pro-growth mode of governance that does not emphasise sustainable tourism. Moreover, the case suggests the opportunity to use destination management planning as a framework to drive sustainable tourism outcomes.     

Knowledge Dissemination in Tourism Education: A Case of Tourism Marketing

ABSTRACT

Knowledge dissemination among tourism stakeholders is vital to the overall development of tourism. Yet, this topic has been underinvestigated in past tourism literature. Taking the courses on tourism marketing as an example, this study examined what and how knowledge is being disseminated in the classroom. Based on the Sender-Message-Channel-Receiver (SMCR) model (Shannon, 1948 Shannon, C. E. 1948. A mathematical theory of communication. Bell System Technical Journal, 27(379–423): 623–656. [Crossref] , [Google Scholar]), the current study analyzed 43 tourism marketing syllabi to identify the senders and receivers of knowledge, knowledge being conveyed in the classroom, channels of communication between educators and students, and feedback of communication received from students. It is suggested that the study may help tourism scholars gain state-of-the-art knowledge of the content and formats of tourism marketing courses and facilitate knowledge dissemination in the tourism domain.     

An Empirical Study of Corporate Entrepreneurship in Hospitality Companies

This study tests the model of the relationship between corporate entrepreneurship and strategic management, developed for the manufacturing industry by Barringer and Bluedorn (1999 Barringer, B. R. and Bluedorn, A. C. 1999. The relationship between corporate entrepreneurship and strategic management. Strategic Management Journal, 20: 421–444. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]), in the hospitality industry. The findings show some similar and different results from the research of Barringer and Bluedorn (1999 Barringer, B. R. and Bluedorn, A. C. 1999. The relationship between corporate entrepreneurship and strategic management. Strategic Management Journal, 20: 421–444. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]). Like manufacturing companies, hospitality companies perceive that corporate entrepreneurship is influenced by four strategic planning practices: environmental scanning intensity, planning flexibility, planning horizon, and locus of planning. Hospitality companies, however, consider that financial controls, not strategic controls, positively influence corporate entrepreneurship intensity. These findings have practical applications for hospitality corporations that are attempting to become more entrepreneurial, and will also help researchers to better understand the relationship of corporate entrepreneurship and strategic planning.     

Resource Investments and Loyalty to Recreational Sport Tourism Event

ABSTRACT

Sport tourism events have a marketing possibility in the Japanese tourism industry. The ultramarathon is a very popular recreational sport event in the world. This type of sport tourism event has shared with completive and enjoyment factors in relation to participant's motivation. Loyalty is a very important factor with attendance to recreational sport events. Generally, as many researchers indicated, that participants' loyalty will lead to repeat attendance or purchase. However, there is no consensus as to how loyalty develops. In the files of recreational sport tourism event research, the process leading to participants' loyalty with a specific event is not evident.

The purpose of this article is to test a conceptual framework of the development of loyalty (Morais et al., 2004 Morais, D. B., Dorsch, M. J. and Backman, S. J. 2004. Can tourism providers buy their customers' loyalty? Examining the influence of customer-provider investments on loyalty. Journal of Travel Research, 42(3): 235–243. [Crossref] , [Google Scholar]) that is grounded in resource theory. According to the proposed model, when participants and organizers invest specific profiles of resources in each other, the participants tend to develop a bond with the customer and become dedicated to maintaining a stable relationship. The model is used to discuss the mixed results of current loyalty from recreational sport event tourists to organizers and to outline future research efforts.     

Similarities and Differences of the Effect of Country Images on Tourist and Study Destinations

ABSTRACT

The present study attempts to determine whether students hold similar or different country images when they are “buying” study abroad programs and tourism destinations. This article also tries to investigate similarities and differences in the brand personality perceptions of countries when they are considered as tourism and as study abroad destinations through the application of the brand personality characteristics model developed by Aaker (1997 Aaker, J. L. 1997. Dimensions of brand personality. Journal of Marketing Research, 34(3): 347–356. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]). A convenience sample of 360 students was split into two groups based on the motivation for visiting a specific country, whether for tourism or to participate in a study abroad program. The t test was used to calculate the significance of differences in country images between the two groups—those considering study abroad programs and those considering tourism destinations. The study concludes that the knowledge developed within the tourism context regarding images of countries may be applied to the context of study abroad programs.     

MEETING THE NEEDS OF TOURISTS: THE ROLE AND FUNCTION OF AUSTRALIAN VISITOR INFORMATION CENTERS

Visitor information centers are primarily responsible for promoting local tourism products and services; and consequently, have direct impacts upon the economic, social, and recreational well‐being of the region in which they are located. Research highlights the importance of tailoring center facilities and services to meet the needs and interests of the traveling public, yet there are few studies specifically designed to pinpoint visitors' information requirements. This study was conducted during the mid‐year school holidays and explores tourists' use and perceptions of 18 Australian visitor information centers in Queensland, Victoria, Western Australia, and Northern Territory. It uses Pearce's (2004 Pearce, P. L. 2004. The functions and planning of visitor centers in regional tourism.. Journal of Tourism Studies, 15(1): 8–17.  [Google Scholar]) Four Plus model to explore the functions of centers, identifies features that tourists regard as important, and provides an insight into the information needs and travel planning practices of those who use visitor information centers.     

A Framework for Human Resources Development Strategy at the Macro-Level

Summary

This article focuses on human resources development (HRD) strategy for the tourism sector. It describes a framework based on the strategic planning process comprising a series of steps to examine the conditions of tourism employment and the labour market at a destination and to identify barriers to HRD. Experience shows that the success of a strategic plan relies on the involvement of all players in the tourism industry in its elaboration and implementation, and it is argued that an advisory body must be created to develop HRD strategy.

A case study is presented illustrating one of the stages of the process-a situational analysis of tourism human resources and education provision in the northeastern Brazilian State of Bahia.     

World Heritage Sites: The Purposes and Politics of Destination Branding

ABSTRACT

Stakeholder management and politics have been described as key component of destination branding (Balakrishnan, 2009 Balakrishnan, M. S. 2009. Strategic branding of destinations: A framework. European Journal of Marketing, 43(5–6): 611–629. [Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]). This article investigates the impact of political influences on destination branding by examining a sample of 94 United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) World Heritage Sites (WHS) in 54 countries to determine whether democracy and political instability have a significant influence on the decisions of national tourism offices (NTOs) to promote their WHS as tourist destinations. It also examines the relative importance of political instability and democracy on the promotion of WHS by NTOs in comparison to other influences such as stewardship, economic development, and tourism. One of the key contributions of this article is that it applies a multivariate analysis to a field dominated by case study methodologies and suggests the potential complementarities between the two approaches. Democracy, it is hypothesized, facilitates the give and take inherent in reaching a common consensus among stakeholders on the nature and special meaning of a destination. It increases a society or country's civic capacity for collective action. Political instability, by contrast, is assumed to complicate the building of a consensus that enables nations to invest in and promote their heritage sites. The findings of this study suggest that the degree of democracy in a society has a significant role in encouraging the promotion of WHS as destinations. Political instability, by contrast, does not appear to have a significant impact in that regard. Democracy also appears to have a greater influence on the promotion of WHS by NTOs than influences such as economic development, quality of stewardship, and tourism.     

Geography's Changing Role in Tourism Marketing

Summary

This paper describes key travel traits of non-resident visitors to British Columbia's wine tourism destinations. It identifies Genera-list and Immersionist as being important segments of this market that merit particular attention in future destination management planning and marketing initiatives. It uses an importance-performance analysis framework to determine the key areas for management activity that need to be addressed in order to meet the travel product needs of each of these segments. The paper concludes by recommending a range of strategic initiatives that should be used by the wine industry and its tourism partners to elevate the appeal of BC wine destinations in the international marketplace. While specific to the     

Tourism and Waste Management: A Review of Implementation of “Zero Waste” at Kovalam

According to the latest concepts, waste is a visible face of inefficiency in terms of material utilization. Waste handling is a major concern, especially since improper waste treatment causes increased environmental deterioration. The last few decades have seen the emergence of new measures to handle waste effectively, but most of them are not flawless. “Zero waste”, an innovation of the 1990s in waste handling, emphasizes planning for the elimination of waste rather than managing waste (Sheehan, 2000, cited in Connett & Connett, 2000 Connett, P. and Connett, E. 2000. Zero waste: a new vision for the 21st century. Waste Not, #463, Retrieved 25 January 2007 from http://www.grrn.org/zerowaste/articles/21st_cent_vision_zw.html [Google Scholar], Waste Not, #463, http://www.grrn.org/zerowaste/articles/21st_cent_vision_zw.html, section 3). The growth of tourism as one of the largest industries in the world calls for effective waste management measures. Kovalam, an international beach destination situated in the southwestern corner of India, has been experiencing intensive tourism activities since the 1960s. Zero waste was introduced experimentally by “Thanal”, a voluntary organization based at Thriruvanthapuram at the beginning of this century at Kovalam, to ameliorate the burgeoning problem of waste in this destination. In this paper, an attempt has been made to introduce the concept of “zero waste” and to review its implementation at Kovalam.     

Policy,Support and Promotion for Food-Related Tourism Initiatives

Summary

Increasingly, regional tourism development initiatives are utilizing locally-produced foodstuffs and beverages to: strengthen areas' tourism products; enhance visitors' experiences; and help maintain and enhance the viability of local food production and processing sectors. This paper examines the ways in which food and tourism are being drawn together at a theoretical level by academics, at a strategic level by policy makers, and at an applied level by developers and practitioners. While the marketing philosophy provides a useful framework for the planning and management of food-related tourism initiatives, adopting such an approach is problematic owing to a shortfall in our understanding of consumer behavior with regard to food in the context of leisure and tourism. In the absence of such knowledge, and in the light of the positive economic and social benefits which such initiatives can create, this paper examines the ways in which food-related tourism initiatives are being promoted using the World Wide Web. The research highlights inadequacies in the web-based promotion of food-related tourism initiatives in the UK and suggests that, while this type of tourism is at an early stage in the product life-cycle (in the UK), these shortcomings are also due in part to the fragmented infrastructure for regional tourism development and promotion in the UK. Additionally, practical recommendations are made as regards design factors for the provision of web-based tourism information.     

Towards a Conceptualization of Unethical Marketing Practices in Tourism: a Case‐Study of Australia's Inbound Chinese Travel Market

This paper has a twofold purpose: to identify the types and impacts of unethical practices in an international travel market and to offer a generic model to enhance our understanding of the causes and consequences of such practices. The Chinese outbound market is used as a case study. The choice of China is timely and appropriate, given that the country is forecast to be one of the world's major outbound markets by 2010 with over 100 million leaving mainland China (World Tourism Organization [WTO], 2006 World Tourism Organization. 2006, November 7. The Chinese outbound tourism market Retrieved March 19, 2007, from http://www.unwto.org/media/Releases/2006/november/chineseoutbound.htm [Google Scholar]). The research setting is the Chinese inbound tourism market to Australia where the Chinese market has grown substantially since Approved Destination Status (ADS) was granted in 1999. The implications of this research for European and North American tourism operators are significant, given the 2005 agreement between the European Commission and the Chinese authorities that allows group travel from China into Europe. Using the long‐interview technique with industry participants in Australia and China a conceptual framework of the environment in which unethical practices occur is provided. A model illustrating antecedents, impacts, and outcomes of unethical practices is offered. Key managerial findings include the unhealthy consolidation of channel power in the Chinese market and the influence of ethnic networks across borders. Several key issues requiring further research are highlighted.     

The Indirect Effects of Destination Image on Destination Loyalty Intention Through Tourist Satisfaction and Perceived Value: The Bootstrap Approach

This study proposes a multiple mediation model, in which destination loyalty intention is jointly influenced by the interplay among destination image, tourist satisfaction, and perceived value. Data were collected on Hainan Island, China and a total of 371 observations with 5,000 bootstraps were analyzed using the structural equation modeling technique. The results indicate that all possible single and multiple meditational effects within the model are substantiated. The meditational effects as well as the bootstrap approach employed to detect these effects contribute to the tourism literature significantly. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed in the context of tourism marketing and destination management. This work was jointly supported by The National Natural Science Fund of P. R. China (71262032) and by Hainan University, P. R. China (Kyqd:1230). View all notes     

Shared decision-making in tourism land use planning

A Canadian government commission dealing with environmental resources attempted to incorporate several innovative approaches for shared decision-making into its strategic land use planning process for central British Columbia. This paper describes a framework of design and evaluative criteria for guiding such shared decision-making processes. It uses these criteria to assess the efficacy of the process from the perspective of those tourism stakeholders who participated in this planning exercise. The article offers recommendations to government as well as tourism sector organizations concerning the management of future public land use planning strategies designed to fully incorporate stakeholders into such processes.

Résumé

Les décisions partagées au sujet de la politique foncière du tourisme. Une commission du gouvernement canadien s'occupant des ressources environnementales a essayé d'incorporer plusieurs nouvelles méthodes de décisions partagées dans la planification des stratégies d'utilisation foncière pour la Colombie britannique centrale. Cet article décrit un cadre de critères pour la conception et l'évaluation des processus de décisions partagées. L'article utilise ces critères pour mesurer l'efficacité du processus du point de vue des planificateurs. Il fait des recommandations au gouvernement et aux organisations touristiques au sujet de la planification et de la future gestion de l'utilisation de la propriété publique pour que tous les intéressés soient compris dans ces processus.     

The Cognitive-Affective-Conative Model of Destination Image: A Confirmatory Analysis

ABSTRACT

Destination image influences tourist behavior before, during, and after travel, as it is an important instrument which contributes to tourists’ loyalty. Although Gartner (1993 Gartner, W. 1993. “Image formation process”. In Communication and channel systems in tourism marketing, Edited by: Uysal, M. and Fesenmaier, D. 191–215. New York, NY: The Haworth Press.  [Google Scholar]) advocates that the cognitive, affective, and conative dimensions of destination image are hierarchically interrelated, there is no empirical evidence to support the complete model. This study aims to test the hierarchical nature of the relationship between the dimensions of destination image. The results of structural equation modeling confirm Gartner's theoretical model, validating the theory that the influence of the cognitive component on the conative dimension is higher when mediated by the affective component, raising managerial implications.     

Does the geographic proximity of products influence a consumer’s decision? An evaluation in a restaurant

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Practicing What We Preach in Tourism Education and Research

Abstract

As teachers of both strategic and operational management in tourism/hospitality programs, we constantly stress the importance of research as a means of providing critical information for destination planning and development. At the same time, in our capacity as managers of academic programs, it is not uncommon for many of us to overlook the use of research in the management of these programs. While we normally undertake market assessments before establishing new programs, and regularly gather operational data on teaching performance, this paper argues that based on the existing literature, tourism education program managers generally fail to take sufficient advantage of several strategic research approaches that are heavily used in other management contexts.

Having recognized their own shortcoming in this regard, the present authors have attempted to rectify it by formally integrating a selected number of widely used research approaches into the overall management of their programs. The results, we believe, demonstrate just how valuable the use of formal program research can be in setting innovative directions for program design and development, for enhancing student satisfaction with specific courses, and for evaluating the overall efficiency and effectiveness of well established programs.

Part I of the present discussion examines the use and usefulness of one major research technique for tourism education program design and management. The technique in question is Strategic Visioning.