SUSTAINABLE TOURISM DESTINATIONS AND COMMUNITIES –

Sustainability Science’s Last Resort

By Juanita Liu

Dean and Professor,

School of Travel Industry Management, University of Hawaii

As outlined by the Sustainability Science Program at Harvard University's Center for

International Development, Sustainability Science seeks to: “advance basic understanding of the dynamics of human-environment systems; to facilitate the design, implementation, and

evaluation of practical interventions that promote sustainability in particular places and

contexts; and to improve linkages between relevant research and innovation communities on the one hand, and relevant policy and management communities on the other.”

It reflects a desire to give the generalities and broad-based approach of “sustainability” a stronger analytic and scientific underpinning as it brings together scholarship and practice, global and local perspectives, and across disciplines into a “a field defined by the problems it addresses rather than by the disciplines it employs; it serves the need for advancing both knowledge and action by creating a dynamic bridge between the two."

Recognizing that the biggest challenges to attaining the goals of a sustainable tourism destination lies in implementation, a methodology is proposed from the standpoint of advancing both research and practice in order to understand, model, measure, and improve what has been called the “sustainable tourism system.”

Following the successful completion of the 2006 State of Hawaii’s Planning for Sustainable

Tourism project based on existing research and public input, this paper draws from the expertise of a multi-disciplinary team at the University of Hawaii at Manoa to identify the research questions and scope of work for three crucial areas that need further development. These are: alternative business models that promote sustainability beyond the boom and bust cycle, implementation and monitoring of sustainability indicators in facilities and infrastructure in the visitor plant, and metrics of progress in developing sustainable tourism in local communities that are environmentally and culturally vulnerable.

The process attempts to identify how application of Sustainability Science principles and process can further the information on Sustainable Tourism in Hawaii. The State economic model has been modified a number of times, but the business model has never been seriously challenged. The multi-disciplinary approach proposes to formulate new models for Sustainable Tourism, including a Sustainable Business Model, Cultural Satellite Account, and Social Marketing Plan. Another part of the process would develop and implement appropriate measures for sustainable industry practices through appropriate indicators, certifications, technologies, laws, regulations and policies for hotels, foodservice and transportation sectors that can be applied to Hawaii to ensure sustainable tourism resorts. It is also necessary to examine how sustainable systems would work in communities by examining appropriate measures of health vitality, quality of life and environment, and sense of place through host cultural values.

REFERENCES

Harvard University, Center for International Development, Sustainability Science Program.

http://www.cid.harvard.edu/sustsci/overview.html

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, SustainabilityScience.

Clark, W.C. (2007, February 6). Sustainability science: A room of its own. Proceedings of the

National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, vol. 104. Available online at

United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) (2004), Tourism’s potential as a

sustainable development strategy, Proceedings from the 2004 WTO Tourism Policy Forum, TheGeorge Washington University.

John Knox and Associates, Inc. (2004, July). Planning for sustainable tourism: Part IV:

Sociocultural and public input study: Volume 1: Summary Report.

Liu, J., (1994). Pacific islands ecotourism: A public policy and planning guide, sponsored by theOffice of Territorial and International Affairs, U.S. Dept. of Interior, Pacific Business CenterProgram, University of Hawai`i at Mnoa, Honolulu, 110 p.

DBEDT Sustainable Tourism Study:

http://hawaii.gov/dbedt/info/visitor-stats/sustainable-tourism-project/

Project reports: http://hawaii.gov/dbedt/info/visitor-stats/sustainable-tourism-

project/reports

Hawaii Tourism Strategic Plan 2005 - 2015: