Font, X. & Sallows, M. (2002)
Setting global sustainability standards:
the Sustainable Tourism Stewardship Council
Tourism Recreation Research Vol.27(1)
About the authors:
Xavier Font, Leeds Metropolitan University, UK. Sustainable Tourism Stewardship Council lead consultant. He is co-editor of the only textbook on tourism ecolabels, and he has written extensively on tourism ecolabelling. He is a member of the Advisory Board of PAN-Parks, a WWF project on certifying national parks in Europe, and formerly he has Project Officer for a European Union project on forest tourism certification. He has recently collaborated with the WTO in their regional Americas meeting presenting on the processes of certification and accreditation, and he is also currently helping the Tour Operators Initiative for Sustainable Tourism on the preparation of an internal document regarding tourism ecolabels. Contact Details: Centre for the Study of Small Tourism and Hospitality Firms, Leeds Metropolitan University, Calverley St, Leeds, LS1 3HE, United Kingdom,
Margot Sallows, University of Greenwich, UK. Consultant to the Sustainable Tourism Stewardship Council project. She was formerly Manager, Environmental Services at Green Globe and involved in the development and piloting of the Green Globe Standards for businesses and communities. She was previously involved in the development of environmental guidance material for the Australian tourism industry, and prior to that was employed in protected area management. In particular, she was responsible for planning and setting policies for tourism and ecotourism in national parks.
Setting global sustainability standards: the Sustainable Tourism Stewardship Council
Abstract
The proliferation of schemes to certify sustainable tourism and ecotourism across the world has not succeeded in changing purchasing patterns and consumer behavior due to the global nature of the tourism industry, both in terms of supply and demand. Following the footsteps of industries such as forestry, organic farming and fishing, tourism is now the next target for a global accreditation body to regulate claims of sustainability. This article discusses the challenges of setting global sustainability standards in a diverse industry such as tourism, and the process followed by a team of consultants to encourage a wide representation of views and realities in developing an international accreditation body for sustainable tourism and ecotourism certifiers, the Sustainable Tourism Stewardship Council.
Disclaimer
The views expressed in this paper are those of the lead consultants contracted to prepare the proposals for the Sustainable Tourism Stewardship Council, and do not reflect the opinions of the Rainforest Alliance or the project’s Advisory Board.
Introduction
Ecotourism, sustainable tourism and other environmental claims by tourism providers sell. These tend to portray unspoilt destinations in only in few cases consider the needs for long term environmental management and the ethics of socio-cultural changes. Since the nineties programs to certify environmental standards have been introduced in some destinations and sub-sectors of the tourism industry, mainly in Europe and linked to accommodation provision, with more recent efforts to certify ecotourism in South hemisphere countries. Currently there are over 100 different schemes that certify environmental quality and sustainable tourism, ranging from very detailed and complex systems to merely promotional umbrellas. These certification systems lack common baseline standards, procedures, criteria and exposure, creating customer confusion and with limited marketing value.
This article reports on progress made in setting a global accreditation body in sustainable tourism, a proposal by the Rainforest Alliance with support from the Ford Foundation with the working title of the Sustainable Tourism Stewardship Council (STSC). The STSC aims to provide a platform to set internationally agreed standards for certification of sustainable tourism, including mainly environmental but also social and ethical standards. This article reports on the process of operationalising the objectives of the Rainforest Alliance and the STSC Advisory Board into a methodology that allows for wide consultation in the North and South, across a wide range of stakeholders, tourism businesses and current tourism certification programs, within a limited budget and a project timeframe of 15 months.
The proposal of a Sustainable Tourism Stewardship Council has to be understood under the umbrella of globalization in as far as this body aims to create a global system of accrediting agencies certifying tourism companies, and therefore is proposing a systematic interrelationship of business practices and their impact on social structures and natural resources across the world. It is for this reason that this paper outlines some key issues arising from globalization in the tourism industry that will have an impact on the feasibility of setting global sustainability standards, before considering how the project of the Sustainable Tourism Stewardship Council can impact on the globalization of tourism, and how its methodology has taken these likely impacts into account.
First, the process of globalization means companies are introducing homogeneous standards defying local differences and usually introduced by large corporations. In developing countries, the consumer’s fear to the unknown means that Western standards delivered by Western companies are seen as a quality stronghold. This is also becoming true in what used to be niche segments in their efforts to appeal to a broader market by providing easier and more comfortable access. The STSC proposal could be easily criticized for contributing to globalization. The tourism product relies on geographic diversity, yet at the same time the tourism industry tends to standardize the physical presence, operational procedures and staff-customer interaction to ensure consistency of service delivery (Burns & Holden, 1995). Operational cost savings and quality production controls usually are the main reason for standardizing international product marketing (Usunier, 2000). In the tourism industry quality production control is necessary due to the heterogeneity of the product, the perception of risk and to safety and sanitation requirements (Burns & Holden, 1995). This is an issue that has become of prime importance to destinations dealing with European tourists since the introduction of the 1992 Travel Package Regulations, which make the tour operator of the European country of origin responsible for health and safety of tourists while consuming products at the destination sold within the package. Standardized products sold and produced by a vertically or diagonally integrated organization are then usually embellished with a token of local flavor but consumed within the safety of a risk-free environment.
Second, anti-competitive practices of tourism businesses in the originating markets include tour operator’s domination and exertion of control over local suppliers and anti-competitive practices resulting from vertical integration, reliance on foreign investment for hotel development, control over computerized reservation systems, and concentration and strategic alliances of air transport providers which restrict competition in given routes (Diaz-Benavides, 2001).These problems of competition and anticompetitive behavior originate largely in the developed countries, rather than in developing countries: thus the developing country travel industry experiences is the effect of the industry structure and patterns of anticompetitive behavior from these developed countries. Tourist destinations have little negotiating power in this situation, competitive advantage in beach products lies in price and is usually sold through established operators; competitive advantage for specialist products lies in differentiation, but this has to be channeled through direct sale due to traditional distribution channels being controlled by the large operators and requiring high volume sales to be racked, yet direct sale is not feasible in many markets (Consumers Association UK, 1999). Setting global sustainability standards could be seen as a process to give a positive image to large corporations that are otherwise behaving anti-competitively.
Third, the tourism sector is a relatively easy sector to liberalize, this has already taken place in many instances and it has received the largest number of commitments under the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS). Trade liberalization will further facilitate increased foreign direct investment in destination countries and liberalization of transport. Economic benefits include revenues, spending and employment. Yet if development is induced by foreign investment, it is likely to mean increased economic leakages (WWF, 2001). Seen in this context, setting international standards on environmental and social performance can be seen by the countries of the South as another method for countries of the North to attach conditions to trading agreements that limit their economic and social development.
The aim of this paper is to respond to the potential criticisms outlined above, and suggest that instead the STSC aims to encourage effective global environmental politics, by addressing some of the issues that Paehlke (2001:8) has identified as pre-requisites: “1) on-going visibility of sustainability concerns… 2) a linking of equity and environmental issues to the democratization of media access and control, 3) a growing interest in work time reductions… and 4) the development and articulation of global-scale environmental and social policy ideas”. The paper will start by outlining the principles of an accreditation body, and the rationale for studying the feasibility of a tourism accreditation body. The goal of STSC is to achieve a widely accepted set of sustainability standards that can be meaningful and communicated to the target audience, and at the same time are achievable by the tourism industry with good sustainability practice despite their location, company size and organizational structure. This paper analyzes the opportunities and also the challenges that envisaged in the process, reflecting on wider North-South divides and the technical and political feasibility of setting global environmental and social standards for tourism certification and accreditation.
North-South divide issues will arise from this effort to set international standards. Most certification programs are based in Europe, and currently target accommodation providers; very few target transport providers or tour operators. Current ecolabels will have a vested interest in ensuring that their standards are met, and will attempt to use this as an opportunity to set international standards that agree with their practices. European tour operating chains, under pressure to meet the EC’s 1992 Travel Package Regulations will benefit from these standards, since the EC’s legislation places the responsibility in the tour operator for the quality of the whole package, including health and safety, at the destination’s hotels. Tourist destination governments are likely to favor a stepped certification, where companies with lower performance can receive a “bronze” certificate, and work their way up, yet environmental NGOs are likely to point out that this is greenwash and that even the “bronze” standards need to be strict, not just as an easy way in. The underlying issue throughout will be how a system of this style should be policed, and who should finance it: governments, applicants or the tourists or another organization. The authors reflect on how the potential conflicts identified above have been foreseen in the preparation of a methodology that aims for specific deliverables through a transparent process.
The proposed Sustainable Tourism Stewardship Council
The feasibility study for the Sustainable Tourism Stewardship Council (STSC) will investigate the viability of a global accreditation body for sustainable tourism and ecotourism certifiers. The proposed body would be a multi-stakeholder fora that creates market-based mechanisms to stimulate the production and consumption of certified sustainable products. The proposals for a tourism accreditation body came from the Rainforest Alliance, an international non-profit that pioneered sustainable forestry certification and works closely with industry partners in forestry, tourism, and agriculture, has been studying the current strengths and weaknesses of tourism certification, with financial support from the Ford Foundation (see Sanabria, 2002). If found feasible, the STSC will set international standards for certification of tourism industry organizations that want to claim being sustainable or practicing ecotourism. The proposal is supported by a multidisciplinary coalition in the form of an advisory board that includes key certification and accreditation experts from World Tourism Organisation, World Wide Fund for Nature, The International Ecotourism Society, Ecotrans, Caribbean Alliance for Sustainable Tourism, Conservation International, as well as representatives from a wide range of NGOs, tourism certifiers and several internationally recognized sustainable tourism and ecotourism expert consultants. In addition, the project involves multi-stakeholder dialogue with a wide range of individuals and organizations globally. More information on the project can be found at
Stewardship councils accredit certifiers based on their performance and help ensure that certification is being conducted in an objective and transparent manner. Being accredited works as a “license” to perform certification based upon agreed principles and standards. Accreditation bodies develop internationally recognized brands that facilitate consumer choice, and protect consumers, industry and certifiers against false claims. Internally, they help certifiers in developing their schemes by becoming a forum to share industry expertise, setting benchmarks and encouraging a harmonization of policies, procedures, and standards. As a joint front, accreditation bodies represent certification schemes at an international level and lobby on their behalf. Accreditation bodies help certified companies gain access to green funds, and attract political and financial support.
Stewardship Councils are a mechanism that goes against the economic liberal premise of market regulation and minimum state intervention. The finite nature and irreversible impact of tourism on natural and social attractions has proved in many contexts that this does not work, and that the economic liberal perspective that globalization will lead to increased efficiency and prosperity is only true for those in control of the system. The state, and NGOs where the state is not active, must provide the necessary infrastructure to encourage competition from a fair standpoint. One of the premises of the economic liberal argument is that the marketplace can distinguish between products and services on offer, and this is a task that can be allocated to governments and NGOs in an imperfect marketplace such as tourism and hospitality.
The mechanics of certifying and accrediting in a North-South context
The process and terminology of conformity assessment are important to set the scene of setting global sustainability standards (Toth, 2000; Font, 2002; Honey, 2002, see also figure 1). This process can be critically seen within a North-South debate and raise some issues for discussion in this paper.
A standard is a document approved by a recognised body that provides for common and repeated use of a prescribed set of rules, conditions or requirements (Toth, 2000). Standards can be process based (that is, the implementation of a management system) or performance based (that is where actual achievements are measured and performance monitored against benchmarks. Standards vary across the tourism ecolabels. The main difference is between programs that have been devised for a relatively standardized industry or a small destination, which tend to include benchmarks and are performance based, and those programs working at an international or global level, which tend to focus on the use of management systems and be process based. The criteria range between performance and process, with a few programs using a combination of both. Performance criteria prove the commitment to a threshold level, being minimum standards or benchmarks. These require external and regular updating as industry moves along. They tend to be context-specific and therefore harder to apply the same criteria across different countries or even destinations. Process- based labels prove a commitment to improvement, rather than to meeting certain benchmarks. These are based on the implementation of management systems within each company, and by their own nature these are self updating. They are generic, and transferable not only across countries but also industries. Critics will emphasize that they are not a guarantee of sustainability, and that the improvement can be token gestures and not necessarily where most needed (Krut & Gleckman, 1998).
Environmental Management Systems are slowly taking over as criteria in tourism. The global nature of tourism as an industry is fuelling this process, not only due to the increasing number of multinational companies aiming to use the same processes across the board, but also due to the international nature of traveling, which requires consistent products and communication strategies. Green Globe 21, the Green Tourism Business Scheme, the Nordic Ecolabelling of Hotels, Committed to Green and in the near future the Blue Flag are examples. Globalization means process-based labels will extend, and will have to include social and other sustainability elements besides the environment. Because process-only labels are open to criticism, some of these are introducing benchmarks to their systems to determine minimum requirements. This increases costs, and also further increases the need for staff to be trained and to keep paper trails.