Lecture :Drs. Usmar Salam MIS
Name : Maria Patricya N.
NIM : 07/254397/SP/22304
Major : International Relation
As we all know, tourism is become one of the economy pillar recently. Many countries explore their rich nature and culture to attract foreign and domestic visitors, just to develop their tourism. All of these because tourism can make a great income in one nation. We can see countries like France who can get 10% in their GDP from Tourism sector. But apart from the good side in economy sector, tourism do has a bad side. In many countries, tourism can change the way of local people life and make nature destruction. For that reason, many expert think about concept which can develop tourism but not destruct the local culture and nature.
One of the concept is sustainable tourism development. It was first mention in 1987 in a report published by the World Commission on Enviroment and Development. It defined sustainable tourism development as development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. We don’t have to think the future on too far, like our great great grandchildren era but just think about five or ten years from now. Maybe we think that many hotel and mal construction can expand our tourism sector. But what if the construction can destruct our nature? It can be affected our tourism sector, we can loss our visitor. Because tourist is come to our country not just to stay in the hotel or shopping in mal, but to see our rich culture and nature, that they can’t see in their back countries.
Sustainable tourism development give attention to four pillars. There are:
1. economic sustainability: that profitable in both immediate and long term
2. ecological sustainability: development that is compatible with the maintenance of essentials ecological processes, biological diversity, and biological resources.
3. cultural sustaiability: increase people’s control over their lives and is compatible with the culture and values of those affected and strengthens the community identity
4. local sustainability: that is designed to benefit local communities and generate/retain income in those communities.
To implement this concept need collaboration from many stakeholder. They are government, host communities, tourism industry, and local citizen. Goverment have to make a plan of policy that can encourage many people to make sustainable tourism development succes. And host communities, tourism industry, and local citizen must obey and follow government’s policy line.
Many countries already adopt this concept in their tourism industry. Although not every countries success to implement this concept. Many of them just stop in made regulation and no implementation. But not littlle, who already succed to make this concept working in their tourism sector. Countries who already make policy in their tourism industry is Costa Rica and Thailand. Both of these countries are known beauce of their tourism industry. And I will try to compare how sustainable tourism development work out in these two countries. Are system in one country better than another?
Costa Rica
Tourism industry in Costa Rica is already well known in all over the world. The main tourism’s object in Costa Rica is nature. That’s why ecotourism is base of the Costa Rica’s tourism. Natural attraction that Costa Rica offer is national parks, volcanoes, and beaches. Tourism industry in Costa Rica is already implement sustainable tourism development.
It start under the lead of President Figueres in 1994. He made sustainable development one of the central themes of his administration, and a major effort was set in motion to look at the country’s sustainable growth potential in an integrated way. This push embodied four objectives: economic efficiency, social equity, political participation and environmental sustainability.
Many strategies come out to implement sustainable tourism development, such as the Biodiversity Strategy, Biological Corridor, Law 7779 on Use and Management of Soil Conservation, National Plan of Environmental Policy, the National Plan to Reduce Poverty, the Plan for Equal Opportunities between Men and Women, the Program for Basic Equipment of for Integral Health Care (EBAIS), and the Program for Basic Agricultural Service Centers.
In 1999 all of sustainable development strategy was made under Ministry of the Environment and Energy. The main government agency in charge of regulating tourism is the National Tourism Board, which is within the Ministry of Industry and Culture
So to implement sustainable development strategy Costa Rican Tourism Board (ICT) have to consultation to ministry of the environment and Energy. The strategy have been used in Costa Rican is moved by local people with recycling, used another energy beside oil, energy retrenchment, and many more. Due to implant sustainable strategy in local people, the root of strategy has become stronger. Citizen becomes concern about environment issue in their daily life.
The Costa Rican tourism board has already made a certification program, called Certification in Sustainable Tourism (CST). CST already has credibility in regional and international. The program seeks to categorize and certify each tourism company according to the degree in which its operations comply with a model of sustainability. Some of the institutions that take part are the Costa Rican Institute of Tourism (ICT), the Costa Rican Ministry of the Environment and Energy (MINAE) and the University of Costa Rica (UCR).
The criteria for CST are:
1. Physical-biological parameters
Evaluates the interaction between the company and its surrounding natural
habitat.
2. Infrastructure and services
Evaluates the management policies and the operational systems within the
company and its infrastructure.
3. External clients
Evaluates the interaction of the company with its clients in terms of how much it
allows and invites the client to be an active contributor to the company's policies
of sustainability.
4. Socio-economic environment
Evaluates the interaction of the company with the local communities and the
population in general.
Government has also made incentive and reduce tax through ICT for stakeholder work for tourism sector like hotel, restaurant, tour agent, transportation company. Government also educates people and these stakeholders about environment and sensitive culture. So, their activities in tourism sector not bring destruction to Costa Rican nature and culture. Local people and stakeholders have to realize that sustainable tourism development program is beneficiary in their industry. The implementation of sustainable tourism development in Costa Rica is involve the main role of government, private sector, local people, and tourist itself.
Thailand
Thailand has also well known because its great nature and rich culture. Thailand has become one of the leader on tourism sector in South East Asia. Thailand starts to develop its tourism sector since the Fourth National Economic and Social Development Plan (1977–81) to stimulate the country’s economic development. One of the Thailand effort to attract visitor through the tourism campaign, Amazing Thailand in 1998-1999. in 1999, tourist arrival in Thailand reaching 8.580.332 persons (10.5% increase from 1998), the tourism industry was above the target set in the Tourism Plan.
But progress in tourism activity is not followed by environmental awareness. There are some destruction in Thailand nature. Seeing this, The Thailand Authority of Tourism (TAT) is try to find a way to protect Thailand nature. One of the program that TAT already been made is TAT’s seven greens programme:
1. Green heart: to urge tourists to be socially responsible and environmentally aware as well as to be part of global efforts to help protect and preserve the environment at all tourist attractions
2. Green logistics: to encourage more environmentally-friendly tourism-related modes of transport to minimize direct and indirect environmental impact
3. Green destinations: to promote responsibly managed tourist sites that respect the environment
4. Green Communities: to support community-based tourism in both urban and rural areas that place greater importance on responsible tourism management, and that also promote conservation of the environment, local traditions and ways of life
5. Green Activates: to promote tourism activities that are well-suited to local communities. These provide visitors with engaging and culturally-enriching experiences without compromising the integrity of the environment. This includes taking carrying capacity into proper consideration.
6. Green Service: to urge all tourism-related service providers to create positive first impressions for visitors, and to win hearts and minds by attaining higher quality assurance standards whilst demonstrating respect, care and concern for the environment
7. Green (plus): to encourage Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) among operators by encouraging them to give back to the communities in which they operate. For example, by refraining from undertaking any acts that might cause environmental damage. It also includes seeking their active participation in various activities and seeking their support for tourism business operators, manufacturers and organizations that promote energy-saving initiatives or develop renewable energy sources and environmentally-friendly products.
(Source from TAT)
Beside TAT’s seven greens programme, TAT is also have Green Leaf Certification Program. There are many criteria to get these certificate, such as policy and standards on environmental practice, waste management, efficient use of energy, Environmental friendly product purchase, and many more.
TAT is mostly like state enterprise and does not have ministerial status. So TAT more flexible to develop relation with private sector. Private sector in Thailand have important role in tourism industry. They are not just important to promote tourism but also to implement sustainable tourism development. Private sector participate in three major process; planning, implementing and auditing and policy making. One of the examples success TAT-private sector is Kiriwong Tourism Development Project, in southern Thailand.
Thailand and Costa Rica have developed tourism industry. Both of country already try to implement the sustainable tourism concept in their tourism program. They also try to implement ecotourism, because many of their object related to nature and culture, that they have to conserve.
Although both of the countries implement the same concepts, but they do have their own way to implement to their tourism program. In Costa Rica, the government take the main role. The government try to elaborate all of the stakeholders to follow the law. The government do all of the function to make sustainable tourism development working in this country. The government planning the law, implementing, and control the implementation. In Thailand government not take the main role. Private sector and TAT is take many role from promotion until conservation.
I found that sustainable tourism development program in Costa Rica can hold all of the actor. From grassroots until the elite. Local people do understand and have well education in environment subject. They do have understanding that sustainable development have beneficial in their future life. But in Thailand people not really understand what is sustainable tourism development. From the survey that held by Journal of Hospitality, Leisure, Sport, and Tourism Education (JOHLSTE), many youth in Thailand do understand about ecotourism and sustainable development in general but do not know how ecotourism should be manage and enhanced in a proper way. They also lack of understanding that ecotourism can benefit local people.
Tourism in Costa Rica also more developed than in Thailand because of the politic situation. Politic situation in Costa Rica is more stable. Moreover Costa Rica do not have military army. This situation is different in Thailand. There are many military coup d’ etat. This situation is not conducive for tourism industry. Visitor are too scare to come if the politic situation in destination country is not safe. So to have a tourism industry, Thailand have to improve their national security, politic stability, and education for people. So do Costa Rica have to improve their effort right now.
Conclusion
Sustainable tourism development is important to tourism sector. So that tourism in their country can sustain in the future. To make these concept succeed, we need collaboration from local people, private sector, and government. From the comparation between Thailand and Costa Rica, I think Costa Rica way to implementing sustainable tourism development is better than Thailand. Costa Rica’s concern to sustainable tourism development is already proof with elected Costa Rica to organize a task force international meeting in San Jose in 2008. Although implementation in Costa Rica is better than in Thailand but I do not think that Costa Rica has already perfect to implement sustainable tourism development as a strategy. But something that make Costa Rica better is because government in Costa Rica is more aware to environment issue.
Bibliography
B. Mckercher, Sustainable Tourism Development – Guiding Principles for Planning and Managemment, 2003, Presentation to the National Seminar on Sustainable Tourism Development.
International Institute for Sustainable Development Costa Rica Case Study: Analysis of national Strategies for Sustainable Development (online), 2004
Costarica Tourism Board, The Certificate for Sustainable Tourism (online),
BD, Buchsbaun, Ecotourism and Sustainable Development in Costa Rica (online), May 2004,
E. Sriphnomya, Ecotourism Policy in Thailand (online),
Thailand Authority of Tourism, Thailand Steps Up Green Tourism Drive (online), 2009
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