Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
5
Responsible Tourism and the Tourism
Industry: A Demand and Supply
Perspective
Nicole Frey and Richard George
Introduction
Responsible tourism has been a buzz word in the tourism industry for a number
of years. Its popularity has been fuelled by increasing international pressure on
the tourism sector to address issues of global warming, social inequality and
diminishing natural resources. As a result numerous policies and initiatives have
been developed around the world to build a more responsible, more sustainable,
more ethical and greener tourism industry. Evidence of responsible tourism
management in South Africa, however, is still relatively limited. Questions that
need to be raised are: (1) to what extent has responsible tourism been adopted by
South African tourism businesses? and (2) what kind of intervention is necessary
to facilitate the adoption of more responsible tourism management (RTM)
practices?
This chapter aims to juxtapose global developments in responsible and
sustainable tourism with the actual situation in southern African. The arguments
are based on findings from a recent empirical study into the responsible tourism
management practices of Cape Town tourism businesses.
At the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development it
was recognized that tourism could be an important tool for community develop-
ment. The Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism (DEAT)
subsequently published the White Paper on Development and Promotion of
Tourism in South Africa in 1996, which formed the basis for the 2002
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