Table Of ContentPerspectives on Asian Tourism
Series Editors: Catheryn Khoo-Lattimore · Paolo Mura
Ann Selvaranee Balasingam
Yue Ma Editors
Asian Tourism
Sustainability
Perspectives on Asian Tourism
Series Editors
Catheryn Khoo-Lattimore, Griffith University, Nathan, QLD, Australia
Paolo Mura, Zayed University, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
While a conspicuous body of knowledge about tourism in Asia is emerging, Western
academic ontologies and epistemologies still represent the dominant voice within
tourism circles. This series provides a platform to support Asian scholarly production
and reveals the different aspects of Asian tourism and its intricate economic and
socio-cultural trends.
The books in this series are aimed to pave the way for a more integrated and
multifaceted body of knowledge about Asian tourism. By doing so, they contribute
to the idea that tourism, as both phenomenon and field of studies, should be more
inclusive and disentangled from dominant (mainly Western) ways of knowing.
More specifically, the series will fill gaps in knowledge with regard to:
• the ontological, epistemological, and methodological assumptions behind
Asian tourism research;
• specific segments of the Asian tourist population, such as Asian women, Asian
backpackers, Asian young tourists, Asian gay tourists, etc;
• specific types of tourism in Asia, such as film-induced tourism, adventure
tourism, beauty tourism, religious tourism, etc;
• Asian tourists’ experiences, patterns of behaviour, and constraints to travel;
• Asian values that underpin operational, management, and marketing decisions
in and/or on Asia (travel);
• external factors that add to the complexities of Asian tourism studies.
More information about this series at https://link.springer.com/bookseries/15382
Ann Selvaranee Balasingam • Yue Ma
Editors
Asian Tourism Sustainability
Editors
Ann Selvaranee Balasingam Yue Ma
Nilai University University of Tasmania
Seremban, Negeri Sembilan Sandy Bay, Tasmania, Australia
Malaysia
ISSN 2509-4203 ISSN 2509-4211 (electronic)
Perspectives on Asian Tourism
ISBN 978-981-16-5263-9 ISBN 978-981-16-5264-6 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-5264-6
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Foreword
In January 2020, the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) published a boastful
report that presented tourism as a champion sector in the global economy, with an
uninterrupted growth for 10 consecutive years. The report exults sheer pride for the
effectiveness of the global tourism system in managing 1.5 billion trips (the equiv-
alent of 1/5th of world’s population) and reinforces expectations that the bountiful
growth will continue. “A 4% increase on the previous year which is also forecast
for 2020, confirms tourism as a leading and resilient economic sector, especially
in view of current uncertainties”. Acknowledging possible risks due to social
unrest, geopolitical uncertainties or tensions in international trade, the UNWTO
Secretary- General Zurab Pololikashvili reaffirmed confidently that “in these times
of uncertainty and volatility, tourism remains a reliable economic sector”. One
month later, the global COVID-19 pandemic forced the world to a standstill and
put the entire tourism system on hold for a long while. New reports from UNWTO
in 2021, at 18 months into the pandemic, announce a dramatic reduction of 85% in
international tourist arrivals, calling this halt “the biggest crisis in the history of
tourism”.
The period of inactivity imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic created a severe
economic deficit that shocked the global tourism system to its core, forcing it to
reboot. And although many are trying, it is unlikely that it will be possible to con-
tinue the same practices as before. Tourism businesses, destinations and local gov-
ernments worldwide are struggling to make sense of the new conditions under
which they need to operate: shortage of resources, high uncertainties and new per-
ceptions about safety and closeness. With patterns of demand shifted in favour of
domestic travels, destinations built for large volumes become ineffective invest-
ments and vulnerable models of development. Studies of system dynamics show
that in complex systems such as tourism, getting out of critical points, such as the
one following the COVID-19 crisis, is truly possible through dramatic reconfigura-
tions of the system itself. Radical as it may sound, a reconfiguration is also an
opportunity to rebuild and simultaneously to correct undesirable effects associated
v
vi Foreword
to paradigms of dominance, greed and control: over-tourism, the commodification
of nature, the marginalisation or acculturalisation of indigenous population, or
unethical management and governance.
As seen many times in practice, crucial elements that support communities or
destinations overcome severe crisis are long traditions of collaboration and partici-
pation, while structures of power and dominance are likely to accentuate fragmenta-
tion and inequalities. Collaboration and participation are cornerstones of sustainable
tourism initiatives, frequently associated to multi-stakeholder or hybrid partner-
ships of private and public actors. They are also core elements in building resilience
in tourism destinations, enabling restoration and renewal after crisis. According to
research, meaningful participation takes place when all social groups involved,
regardless of economic or political status, have an active say in decision-making
processes. However, the implementation of pluralistic initiatives is reduced to the
mere formalities of involving stakeholders, and little effort is put into ensuring that
multiple voices are being heard and their input is included in the decision-making
process. Identifying and understanding the factors and conditions that consolidate
stakeholders’ participation in sustainable tourism and strengthen resilience in desti-
nations remain desirable goals for policy, research and practice of tourism. So, what
can be done to encourage tourism communities to dedicate efforts and resources to
building meaningful participation with stakeholders in the aftermath of the
COVID-19 pandemic?
One of the most important lessons that can be drawn from recent events is that
singular perspectives and linear modes of thinking are not sufficient for handling
complex challenges such as systems recovery or transformation to a sustainable
society. Pluralistic forms of decision-making need new forms of learning from, and
in spite of, differences between individual forms of knowledge. Tourism businesses
have valuable experiences to share, as they make sense of the challenges to restart
business operations after the COVID-19 restrictions. Skilled at evaluating changes
in demand, businesses are well equipped for sensing and responding to new percep-
tions about travel risks. Furthermore, companies that already implement sustainable
practices can share knowledge about saving precious resources with local commu-
nities that source their workforce. Stewards of land, nature and traditions, local
communities often hold treasures of indigenous wisdom that celebrates plural views
of life and knowledge, challenging dominant views of economic and political elites.
Used to designing policies and action plans that encourage behaviours of businesses
and individuals, policymakers are able to create conditions for equitable participa-
tion of different forms of knowledge and experiences. Mending tourism vulnerabili-
ties exposed by the recent crisis, as well as creating sustainable systems for tourism
production and consumption, requires that we reframe our thinking to appreciate
differences as strengths and we learn to view insufficiencies as opportunities to
unite in creating new understandings of the future.
Important sources of ancient wisdom, Asian and African cultures have valuable
lessons to share about how solidarity and collaboration create solid ties without
Foreword vii
limiting individual freedom. Contributions presented in this book aim to question,
explain and expand our current understandings of collaborative action while encour-
aging critical thinking about the validity of such frameworks in the context of sus-
tainable tourism. Anticipating and maybe fostering a cultural shift, tourism
welcomes such alternative cultural framework that can counter the dominant
modernity-driven paradigms of growth, making a leap towards desirable sustainable
futures.
Associate Professor, Department of Management, Adriana Budeanu
Politics and Philosophy
Copenhagen Business School
Copenhagen, Denmark
Acknowledgements
This book is a collection of expertise of each chapter’s contributors. Authors who
have written within their area of specialised research fields have spent time and
effort to improve and re-draft their chapters. We would like to acknowledge our
team of authors’ contributions. They all worked tirelessly throughout the pandemic
to get this project completed.
We would also like to acknowledge our chapter reviewers for their voluntary
contribution to offer expert peer-review which helped to refine each chapter to a
quality completion. We acknowledge our chapter reviewers:
Associate Professor Harng Luh Sin, Sun Yat-Sen University and Singapore
Management University
Fei Long, National University of Malaysia
Professor Amran Hamzah, University Technology Malaysia
Dr Loita Velita, Cebu Technological University
Associate Professor Adriana Budeanu, Copenhagen Business School
Dr Xueke Yang, Sun Yat-sen University
Yesaya Sandang, Faculty of Interdisciplinary Studies, Satya Wacana Christian
University
Associate Professor Dr Mohd Hafiz Mohd Hanafiah, University Technology MARA
Professor Can Seng Ooi, University of Tasmania
Professor Heidi Dhales, University of Tasmania, Griffith University and Cambodia
Development Resources Institute
Dr Velan Kunjuram, University Malaysia Kelantan
Professor Tazim Jamal, Texas A&M University
Professor Johan Edelheim, Hokkaido University
Dr Elaine Yang, Griffith University
ix
Contents
1 The Evolution of Sustainable Tourism in Asia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Yue Ma and Ann Selvaranee Balasingam
Part I Stakeholders Perspectives and Sustainability
2 Partnerships Towards Sustainability:
The Revival of Boracay’s Wetlands . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Giovanni Francis A. Legaspi and Edieser D. L. Dela Santa
3 Local Community Participation Towards Malaysian
Homestay Sustainability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Ann Selvaranee Balasingam
4 Nurturing Sense of Place: Host Community Perspectives
for Social Sustainability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
Paulin Poh Lin Wong and Balvinder Kaur Kler
5 Sustainability and the Tourist Wall: The Case of Hindered
Interaction Between Chinese Visitors with Malaysian Society . . . . . . 81
Fei Long and Can-Seng Ooi
6 Sustainable Tourism in Emerging Regional Destinations
in China: Stakeholder Participation in Genhe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
Yue Ma and Lin Yang
Part II C OVID-19 and Its Impact on Tourism Sustainability
7 Re-negotiating the Future for Indonesian Tourism
After COVID-19: Sustainability as the New Normal?. . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
Mohamad Robbith Subandi, Karolina Doughty,
and Rene van der Duim
xi
