Adoption of sustainable

tourism practices by rural

operators in BC

Canadian Association of Geographers Special Session: Rural tourism and recreation in Canada, May 25, 2009, Ottawa

Nicole L. VaugeoisBC Regional Innovation Chair in Tourism and

Sustainable Rural Development

Nicole.vaugeois@viu.ca

Phone 250-753-3245 Local 2772

Vancouver Island University

Lea Thuot, Project Coordinator for Fostering

Innovation in Sustainable Tourism

Looking ahead

▫ BC’s efforts to encourage sustainable tourism▫ Study objectives▫ Methodology▫ Insights gained Sustainable practices used Level of incorporation Method of adoption Challenges Recommendations

▫ Furthering the adoption of sustainable tourism by operators

BC’s efforts to support

sustainable tourism

http://web.viu.ca/sustainabletourism/

Study objectives• Determine the attitudes of

tourism operators towards sustainability;

• Assess the extent and type of sustainable tourism practices adopted by operators;

• Understand the forces that have influenced the adoption of sustainability practices including motivators and constraints;

• Determine ways to support the adoption of sustainability practices among tourism operators.

• Field research with 20 “Made in BC” Innovators

• On line survey with N=210 tourism operators in rural BC

• Snowball sample with list of people met during fieldwork, plus encouragement from DMO’s to send to their stakeholders

• March 2009 data collection phase

• Report to inform Strategic plan for the BC Sustainable Tourism Partnership

Key tenets of sustainable tourism are that "a sustainable tourism

business fulfills economic, environmental and socio-cultural obligations while

generating income, contributing to

employment, maintaining cultural integrity, and preserving essential

ecological processes and biological diversity”.

Insights gained

4

8

8

15

20

46

46

65

81

28

21

31

37

39

46

36

31

14

54

66

51

43

32

6

15

1

3

0 20 40 60 80 100

The costs to make a business sustainable outweigh any possible financial gains

The "eco-crisis" has been largely over exaggerated by society

There is not a good enough business case to become more sustainable (i.e. profit)

The Tourism Industry as a whole is negatively impacting the environment

Sustainability is NOT a top priority for the Tourism Industry in BC

Businesses should purchase from suppliers who provide sustainable products

We need stricter laws and regulations to protect the environment

Customers prefer businesses that are making efforts to be sustainable

Incentive programs should be developed to encourage businesses to become more sustainable

Percent

Q1. To what extent do you agree with EACH of the following statements about economic, social, and environmental sustainability?

Agree

Somewhat Agree

Disagree

4

6

11

13

13

15

17

17

20

20

30

30

33

36

38

40

42

48

59

70

70

19

8

17

40

18

21

11

32

46

41

59

24

41

35

31

25

51

45

38

23

26

50

47

39

12

44

27

17

31

27

21

9

6

11

15

14

7

4

4

2

0

1

0 20 40 60 80 100

Use of carbon offsets

Green certification

Established a "green team" or committee

Purchased and used "green" building materials

Use renewable energy sources (i.e. Solar, wind, etc.)

Grow or raise organic foods

Renovated a heritage building

Use of alternative fuel sources

Donated funds or in-kind services to green initiatives

Established environmental education programs for visitors

Limited paper-based marketing and promotional materials

Limiting visitor access to sensitive sites

Use of a low use water management system

Composting of waste

Use of low impact or no trace practices in natural …

Use green products for business (i.e. biodegradable …

Use of low energy lighting

Purchase from local suppliers

Recruit and hire local people for job opportunities

Recycling of materials

Percent

Q2. To what extent have you incorporated EACH of the following sustainable practices into your business operations?

To a great extent

To some extent

Not at all

10%

14%

47%

27%

Q3. Overall, which of the following best describes your business/organization with respect to HOW you have incorporated

sustainable tourism practices into your operations?

Our business has not incorporated sustainable tourism practices into our operations

Our business has piloted a few sustainable practices

Our business has initiated some sustainable practices and is planning more

Our business has committed to sustainability practices at many levels in the organization

5%

6%

8%

18%

64%

0 20 40 60 80

Fact checker - we researched extensively before deciding to incorporate a STP

Experimenter - we tested a few ideas on a small scale first before committing

Planner - we mapped out a strategy or plan to make our business more sustainable

Borrower - we got some ideas from other businesses and modified them to fit our business

Self starter - we decided to do it and figured it out as we went

Percent

Q4. Which of the following best describes HOW you went about adopting sustainable tourism practices (STP's) into your operation?

2%

10%

14%

15%

16%

24%

0 5 10 15 20 25

We have produced a video on our practices

We use social networking to profile our practices (blog, etc.)

We have been profiled in the media

We profile our efforts on site (posters, guides, etc.)

We promote our efforts in our marketing materials (brochures, etc.)

We describe our initiatives on our website

Percent

Q5. To what extent do you publicize your sustainable initiatives? Check each that apply.

2%

2%

12%

15%

16%

19%

21%

34%

56%

65%

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70

Approached by a partner or supplier to adopt new practices

Attracted by an incentive program

Felt some social pressure to be more sustainable

Wanted to differentiate my business from the competition

Listened to staff or family suggestions

Attracted by the potential cost savings

Wanted to attract environmentally conscious markets

Wanted to enhance the reputation of the business

Wanted to protect the resources I depend on (land, culture, wildlife, etc.)

Personal values about sustainability

Percent

Q6. Which of the following items MOTIVATED YOU to incorporate sustainable tourism practices into your business? Select the TOP THREE.

6%

7%

11%

19%

19%

24%

50%

21%

42%

50%

56%

55%

46%

36%

34%

38%

34%

19%

23%

21%

10%

0 20 40 60 80 100

Restrictive legislation

Lack of commitment to the need for STP's

Limited access to ideas on how to be more sustainable

Limited access to suppliers who sell sustainable products (organic food, alternative

fuels, biodegradable items etc)

Other business priorities leave little time to plan for sustainability

Lack of incentive programs

Lack of available money to invest (i.e. Equipment, renovations, systems)

Percent

Q7. Adopting STP's often requires businesses to overcome challenges. To what extent has EACH of the following barriers

impacted your ability to adopt STP's into your operation?

Significantly

Somewhat

Not at all

Exploring differences

1. Those that have not incorporated sustainable practices into their business operations.

2. Those that have piloted a few or some sustainable practices and are potentially planning to initiate more.

3. Those that are committed to sustainability practices at many levels in the organization.

Have not’s (10%)• Believe customers are looking

for sustainable businesses;

• Less inclined to believe businesses should buy sustainable products;

• Not in favor of strict laws;

• Believe less in negative tourism impacts;

• Not as convinced of the business case, more likely to believe costs outweigh benefits and more likely to feel eco crisis is over-exaggerated

• Incorporating less activities

• Use practices such as recycling, purchasing from local suppliers, hiring locally and using low energy lighting

• More impacted by lack of incentive programs, lack of time, limited access to information and lack of commitment to sustainability

Piloted a few… (61%)• Agree customers are

looking for sustainable businesses;

• Business should by sustainable products;

• Believe most strongly in need for incentive programs and stricter laws and regulations;

• Not as convinced as the “committed group” about the business case or whether benefits outweigh costs

• Incorporated a few of the “low to no cost” practices;

• More impacted by barriers such as lack of money to invest, limited access to suppliers than others;

• Impacted somewhat by lack of incentives, time and ideas.

Fully committed (27%)• Believe strongest that

businesses should purchase local and sustainable products;

• Believe less that sustainability is a top priority for BC and that tourism is negatively impacting the environment;

• Believe most that there is a good business case for sustainability, benefits outweigh costs and eco crisis has not been over-exaggerated

• Using a number of strategies – 100% are limiting paper based marketing, using low energy lighting, purchasing local, hiring locally.

• More likely to be using each other strategy listed

• More impacted by lack of money to invest, limited access to suppliers and lack of incentive programs.

Access to Programs and Products

Education of the Importance

Government Legislation and Support

Accreditation

Marketing of Green Initiatives in BC

Availability of Information

IncentivesRecommendations

by Operators

Supporting sustainable tourism

amongst operators in rural areas

1. Incentive programs should be a priority to advance sustainable tourism practices.

2. Strategies must emerge that recognize the differences between different levels of adoption of sustainable practices.

3. Education and information sharing should be pursued in ways that meet the needs of rural operators.

4. A platform to help businesses become identified as and promoted as sustainable operators is needed.

And on certification programs…

• If a certification program is pursued, it is strongly recommended that ample input from all sizes and locations of businesses is factored into the design, a phased in approach is used, the needs of rural and remote operators are considered in the requirements, and opportunities for continued education is embedded within it.

Thank you

Open discussion about potential collaboration, research needs