The debate on the concept of responsible tourism, with reference to the Cape Town Declaration (2002), that requires operators, governments, local people and tourists to take responsibility in making tourism more sustainable, shows that several forms of tourism are promoted under this label. Goodwin (2007), in fact, underlines that “behaviour can be more or less responsible and what is responsible in a particular place depends upon environment and culture”. In Italy, in 1998, was created the Italian Association of Responsible Tourism that now is composed by more than 60 associations, NGOs and cooperatives. They have adopted a definition of responsible tourism as a way of travelling according to social and economical justice principles, that fully respect local culture and environment. Responsibility became a quality of a new type of tourism based on an ethical dimension. Choosing this way of travelling, tourists have the opportunity, to support, with their choices, a wider development process that exceeds the individual dimension of their actions. The paper presents a case study realised in a small village of Southern Italy that has been integrated in responsible tourism destination. The research shows how a tourist offer in rural area can be characterized by a social sustainable dimension. A local Association has promoted a project seeking both the enhancement of local culture and environment and offering hospitality to refugees. These latter activities have been supported through the connection with different networks of NGOs, associations and groups that have helped the local association to promote also a widespread tourist hospitality in the historic centre. The whole project has not been sustained by public policies but has received strong support by national and international relationships with other actors engaged in the solidarity economy. The process, started in 1998, is based on the “scarce” attention paid to economical dimension and on the prevalence of social relationships based on direct personal exchange and not only on market. The experience is a truly bottom up case of promoting local sustainable development and represents a novelty in Calabria Region where regional policies pursue a conventional tourism development, only sometimes sustainable and rarely responsible. According to Marra et al (2005) “communitarian funds have been used to promote mass tourism”. The case study shows how the key elements of endogenous development can produce positive effects also in marginal areas. Following Trigilia (2005) local development is based on cooperation capacities of local actors and on their strategies implemented to overcome the binding forces of globalization and to gain the opportunities offered. This means that endogenous development recognises the relevance of a territorial dimension, in geographical (the space) and social-cultural (human resources) terms, but also the capacities (and the power) of local actors to enhance, with innovative actions, local collective resources (material and immaterial). Territorial organisations, either formal or informal, promote the process establishing horizontal relationships at national and international scale. The purpose pursued is to capture and maintain the benefits of development in the territory. The experience has been promoted by a small group of innovative subjects that have tried, according to Stohr (1981), to widespread new modalities of action, based on collaborative behaviours and endogenous motivations. Local actors are aware of the relevance of south-north cooperation (Perna, 2006) and the creation of stable relationships with external actors. The tourist promotion of the historical centre is only one of the aspects of a more complex project integrating initiatives in artisan and agriculture sectors combined with social commitment. Tourism development of the area appears as an eco-compatible project based on environmental and social dimensions (Nocifora 2003). Tourists become “new” travellers that participate, in a significant way, to the process of detaching travels and holidays from the “market principle”, sustaining with their attitudes a model of life and production founded on ethical dimension.
Role of networks for responsible tourism: a case study in southern Italy
SIVINI, SILVIA
2009-01-01
Abstract
The debate on the concept of responsible tourism, with reference to the Cape Town Declaration (2002), that requires operators, governments, local people and tourists to take responsibility in making tourism more sustainable, shows that several forms of tourism are promoted under this label. Goodwin (2007), in fact, underlines that “behaviour can be more or less responsible and what is responsible in a particular place depends upon environment and culture”. In Italy, in 1998, was created the Italian Association of Responsible Tourism that now is composed by more than 60 associations, NGOs and cooperatives. They have adopted a definition of responsible tourism as a way of travelling according to social and economical justice principles, that fully respect local culture and environment. Responsibility became a quality of a new type of tourism based on an ethical dimension. Choosing this way of travelling, tourists have the opportunity, to support, with their choices, a wider development process that exceeds the individual dimension of their actions. The paper presents a case study realised in a small village of Southern Italy that has been integrated in responsible tourism destination. The research shows how a tourist offer in rural area can be characterized by a social sustainable dimension. A local Association has promoted a project seeking both the enhancement of local culture and environment and offering hospitality to refugees. These latter activities have been supported through the connection with different networks of NGOs, associations and groups that have helped the local association to promote also a widespread tourist hospitality in the historic centre. The whole project has not been sustained by public policies but has received strong support by national and international relationships with other actors engaged in the solidarity economy. The process, started in 1998, is based on the “scarce” attention paid to economical dimension and on the prevalence of social relationships based on direct personal exchange and not only on market. The experience is a truly bottom up case of promoting local sustainable development and represents a novelty in Calabria Region where regional policies pursue a conventional tourism development, only sometimes sustainable and rarely responsible. According to Marra et al (2005) “communitarian funds have been used to promote mass tourism”. The case study shows how the key elements of endogenous development can produce positive effects also in marginal areas. Following Trigilia (2005) local development is based on cooperation capacities of local actors and on their strategies implemented to overcome the binding forces of globalization and to gain the opportunities offered. This means that endogenous development recognises the relevance of a territorial dimension, in geographical (the space) and social-cultural (human resources) terms, but also the capacities (and the power) of local actors to enhance, with innovative actions, local collective resources (material and immaterial). Territorial organisations, either formal or informal, promote the process establishing horizontal relationships at national and international scale. The purpose pursued is to capture and maintain the benefits of development in the territory. The experience has been promoted by a small group of innovative subjects that have tried, according to Stohr (1981), to widespread new modalities of action, based on collaborative behaviours and endogenous motivations. Local actors are aware of the relevance of south-north cooperation (Perna, 2006) and the creation of stable relationships with external actors. The tourist promotion of the historical centre is only one of the aspects of a more complex project integrating initiatives in artisan and agriculture sectors combined with social commitment. Tourism development of the area appears as an eco-compatible project based on environmental and social dimensions (Nocifora 2003). Tourists become “new” travellers that participate, in a significant way, to the process of detaching travels and holidays from the “market principle”, sustaining with their attitudes a model of life and production founded on ethical dimension.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
