International Centre for Responsible Tourism

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International Centre for Responsible Tourism
"Making better places for people to live in and
better places to visit" - is there anything which
the third sector can contribute?

• Prof. Harold Goodwin

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We are for Responsible Tourismresponsibility has
two meanings
the ICRT has attitude..

• Accountability holds people to account and seeks
  to ensure good behaviour.
• Respons-ability requires the willingness to
  respond and to take respons-ability for improving
  our world phronesispractical wisdom

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What is Responsible Tourism?
rebellious tourists and rebellious locals
Jost Krippendorf

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

Diversity
global thinking - local action
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Taking responsibility
You cannot outsource responsibility .. It is your
responsibility
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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 RT Movement
From ethical to responsible

• ResponsibleTavel.com
• Small companies
• Large companies
• More sectors
• Movement
• Vanguard
• Laggards charlatans
• Diversity

• Campaigning
• Research consultancy
• Policy formulation
• Philanthropy
• RT Awards
• Education research

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after Animal Farm

• Business Profit Bad
• Government Bad
• NGOs Good

Dual standards we are insufficiently critical of
the Third Sector of NGOs, charities and feel
good companies
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After Animal Farm

• Business Profit Bad
• Government Bad
• NGOs Bad
• Surely organisations should be assessed by
  outcomes and the efficiency in achieving those
  outcomes

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The Third Sector is an elusive concept

• The middle way between the private sector
  privately owned and profit motivated.
• the public sector owned by the state
• the social economy
• Community and voluntary organisations,
• NGOs
• not-for-profit social enterprises.
• Charities providing public goods
• Subcontracted to provide government services more
  efficiently? Better? at lower cost?

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What is an NGO?

• Non-profit, voluntary group of citizens with a
  common interest no participation or
  representation of government.
• Implies independence of government.
• Previously civil society organisations
• Pressure Groups
• Interest Groups professional associations,
  trade unions
• Cause Groups - more altruistic?

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Typologies

• Voluntary associations
• Charities
• Companies with social purposes beyond profits
• Enterprises and organisations registered as
  non-profits.

• World Bank operational (relief and development)
  and advocacy
• USAID private voluntary organisations.

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Social Enterprise

• businesses with primarily social objectives
  whose surpluses are principally reinvested for
  that purpose in the business or in the community,
  rather than being driven by the need to maximise
  profit for shareholders and owners.

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However -

• Margins, surpluses and profits are often a
  function of book keeping and decisions made about
  distribution
• Profits gt shareholders owners
• Reduce profits gt reinvestment
• Reduce profits gt salaries fees
• Reduce profits gt philanthropy, internal and
  external social benefits

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Three ways of thinking about the Third Sector

• Form company, limited by guarantee, friendly
  society,21
• Function purpose trading, campaigning,
  politics
• Outcome closely related to purpose, what are the
  consequences, the benefits, of the activity

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MS
Plan A
Because there is no Plan B
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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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Tourism is complex

• Experience
• Tourists/visitors
• the visited
• Industry
• Community
• Aspirational language of hosts and guests
• Intervene
• Originating markets
• Destinations

• Industry/Sector
• Agents Operators
• Transport
• Accommodation
• Attractions activities
• Services
• Marketing Advertising
• PR and Media

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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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Community as attraction

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

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Our holidays their homes

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Middle way holding the ring?

• Used to be the role of government
• Concerted action through multi-stakeholder
  partnerships
• In the UK public private partnerships local
  government and private sector
• Destination Management Organisations

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Middle way holding the ring?

• Used to be the role of government
• Concerted action through multi-stakeholder
  partnerships
• In the UK public private partnerships local
  government and private sector
• Destination Marketing Organisations

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How might the Third Sector contribute to
improving tourism a Typology for Tourism

• Campaigning and advocacy
• Philanthropy
• Volunteering
• Social businesses
• Multi-stakeholder partnerships

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UK Sustainable Tourism Initiative

• Travel Foundation
• Responsible Tourism Unit in the Federation of
  Tour Operators
• Philanthropy
• Destination partnerships
• Engaging consumers
• CSR
• Doing business differently

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A Challenge to Conservationists

• June 2003 consultative group on Biodiversity
  concern expressed
• WWF, CI TNC given millions of dollars
  indications that they are excluding, from full
  involvement in their programs, the indigenous and
  traditional peoples living in territories the
  conservationists were trying to protect. ..
  Conservationists were being abusive.
• Mac Chaplin World Watch Institute 11/12 2004

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The road to hell is paved with good intentions
tales.

• clientism undermines independence
• Better salaries undermining government
• Demanding interns building CVs
• Learning at the expense of the community
• Advocacy talking and listening
• game keepers becoming poachers
• development pizzas and silver service
• banks and mortgages
• carbon offsetting

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Unfinished
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People and Placeswww.travel-peopleandplaces.co.uk

• Sparked by anger at the state of the sector and a
  
• Sense of responsibility to change the dominant
  mode of practise
• Choice campaign or establish a social enterprise
  to do it better

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People and Placeswww.travel-peopleandplaces.co.uk

• Responsible volunteers do it with respect and
  never take a local persons job and meet all the
  costs of their volunteering
• Truly accountable, ethical, responsible,
  sustainable volunteer travel.
• Ethics create a point of difference and a
  campaign which engages potential clients through
  encouraging them to ask questions.

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Unused
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Social purposes achieved through People and
Places

• Development for communities
• Development for Project Management Teams
• Personal growth for skilled volunteers
• Sets a standard which others are pulled to
  meet.

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2005
2006
2005
2005
2006
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people and placesresponsible volunteering

• Our commitment to volunteers
• you will work with, not instead of, local people
• your skills will be matched to their needs
• you will know where and how your money is used
• your work will be part of a sustainable programme
• Our commitment to the community
• we will ensure that volunteer placements are
  beneficial, not exploitative
• our priority is to match community needs with
  volunteer skills
• we will ensure that local people will not
  subsidise volunteers
• our relationship is long-term and sustainable
• Our commitment to volunteers and communities
• rewarding, challenging and safe experiences for
  volunteers and local people alike, where at least
  80 of volunteers' funds are spent in the host
  country

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www.irresponsibletourism.info
Whistle blowing
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Fly Smart

• Travel Distribution Company
• Consultancy
• NGO/Social Enterprise

• Objection to carbon offsetting for profit
• Carbon efficiency
• Fly less
• If you must fly, fly efficiently
• Carbon Friendly meta search engine 57 choosing
  cheapest greenest
• Carbon Responsible Philanthropy
• Campaign for tax on airline fuel

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• Founded in 2008, TravelPledge was set up to
  respond to the growing requests from travellers
  to be able to contribute financially to
  charitable social and environmental projects in
  the destinations they visit.
• TravelPledge in consultation with travel
  companies identifies and screens local projects
  that can be easily supported by cash donations
  from willing travellers via a common platform.

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For more information. Contact Nick
Chaffe nick_at_travelphilanthropy.org.uk
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RESULTS8 months through 1 Travel Industry
Supporter
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The responsibility imperative.

• The Third Sector is not always responsible or
  ethical caveat emptor.
• We need to focus far more on outcomes and
  impacts.
• Efficiency matters
• Never mind the patter watch the hands
• Do not confuse form with outcomes

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Further information

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