Community-based Tourism Projects Research Articles

Applying the Sustainable Livelihoods Framework to Examine the Efficacy of Community-Based Tourism at Equitably Promoting Local Livelihood Opportunities

ABSTRACT Community-based tourism (CBT) projects often fail to enhance rural livelihoods because of poor fit with the local livelihood context and inequitable participation opportunities. Through a mixed-methods study on a CBT initiative in Carmelita, Guatemala, this research applied the Sustainable Livelihoods Framework (SLF) to understand how tourism contributes to local livelihoods and residents’ perceived barriers for participation. The authors applied ethnographic research methods (observation and semi-structured interviews with 43 Carmelita residents and 10 key informants) and analyzed wages and job distribution from tourism employment records. CBT supported a high, albeit gendered, distribution of tourism jobs across the community. Tourism was a fundamental, but not stand-alone, livelihood activity. Residents perceived few barriers to participate in tourism, but increasing formalization changed how they worked with tourists. Understanding tourism development within the local livelihood context and how CBT initiatives distribute tourism job opportunities is critical to meaningfully generate equitable income-earning opportunities within communities.

Sustainable tourism and city branding: Balancing growth and authenticity

Background: The rapid growth of tourism has necessitated a re-evaluation of its impacts on local cultures and economies, highlighting the need for sustainable practices. This paper explores the intersection of sustainable tourism and city branding, focusing on how destinations can balance economic growth with the preservation of authenticity. Method: Through a comparative case study analysis of Indonesia and the Philippines, this research examines the strategies employed by major cities in these countries to attract tourists while maintaining cultural integrity and promoting sustainability. In Indonesia, cities like Bali and Jakarta have implemented various initiatives aimed at fostering sustainable tourism, such as community-based tourism projects and environmental conservation efforts. Similarly, destinations like Manila and Cebu have developed branding strategies in the Philippines that emphasize cultural heritage and ecological sustainability. This study identifies common challenges faced by both countries, including managing the environmental impact of tourism and ensuring local community involvement in tourism planning. Result: The findings suggest that while Indonesia and the Philippines have made significant strides in integrating sustainability into their tourism and branding efforts, substantial hurdles remain to achieving a perfect balance. Conclusion: Key recommendations include enhancing policy frameworks, increasing stakeholder collaboration, and fostering greater awareness among tourists about sustainable practices. This paper contributes to the broader discourse on sustainable tourism and city branding by providing insights that can inform policy and practice in other regions facing similar challenges. Novelty/Originality of this study: They are developing a holistic and adaptable comparative framework for evaluating sustainable tourism strategies, integrating economic, social, cultural and environmental aspects, and considering each destination's unique characteristics. Various tourism destinations can adopt and adapt this framework to develop and implement tourism practices that effectively balance economic growth, cultural preservation and environmental sustainability in their local context.

Community Based Tourism: A Global South Perspective

The analysis of the impact of Community Based Tourism (CBT) has revealed a significant divergence in assessments. This paper aims to analyse the factors contributing to the observed "Duality Dilemma" in CBT projects. The research seeks to leave behind a simplistic binary perspective that categorises CBT solely as either beneficial or problematic. The paper identifies three key variables contributing to this dual perspective: a) the Context Variable, which displays how the outcomes of CBT projects m can vary based on the specific circumstances in which they are implemented; b) the Methodological Variable, which underlines the importance of developing long-term and longitudinal fieldwork to avoid a biased analysis based on the short-term observations; c) the Paradigm Variable which takes into account that the researcher's theoretical framework inevitably shapes their focus, potentially emphasising certain outcomes over others. Finally, the paper draws on empirical evidence based on a 30-year longitudinal ethnographic study conducted on Amantaní island (Lake Titicaca, Peruvian Andes)

CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS OF A SUBURBAN HOMESTAY: INSIGHT OF DESA CINTA KOBUNI HOMESTAY IN INANAM, SABAH, MALAYSIA

Several homestays in Malaysia are located in rural regions with the goal of providing guests with a genuine rural living experience and enhancing the economic well-being of local residents. While research on homestays in rural regions is increasing, there is a lack of studies on homestays in suburban settings. Founded in 2017, Desa Cinta Kobuni (DCK) Homestay, situated in a suburban region in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, has achieved many significant successes. This research intends to examine the practices and success factors identified by stakeholders of Community-Based Tourism (CBT) in a suburban area, with a specific emphasis on DCK Homestay. This research used a qualitative technique to connect with ten key stakeholders of DCK Homestay, interviewing them to acquire insights into their views and experiences. The data was analysed using theme analysis, identifying four crucial characteristics - people, process, strategy, and enabler - that have significantly influenced the success factors of DCK Homestay. Key factors contributing to the success of CBT were effective collaboration with neighbouring villages, mutual support via frequent meetings, and the development of community culture. Collaborative projects and activities with other communities were seen as crucial factors in improving the overall tourist experience. DCK Homestay's success was attributed to creative relationships, community participation, sustainable methods, and cultural promotion. These factors have enhanced the favourable view of CBT in a suburban environment and promoted mutual support and cultural interaction among community members. This research illuminates the distinctive characteristics of suburban cognitive-behavioural therapy, with a focus on DCK Homestay. The results highlight how community engagement, sustainable methods, and smart collaborations are crucial for the success of suburban CBT projects. Stakeholders can improve the tourist experience, help the local community, and promote the cultural diversity of the area by comprehending and using these important variables.

Warunki dla rozwoju turystyki opartej na lokalnej społeczności w Kandovan (Iran)

This article investigates local communities’ attitudes towards cooperation to promote community-based tourism and local heritage preservation in Kandovan, northwest of Iran. Drawing on data gathered by means of qualitative interviews, questionnaires, and participant observation, the article evaluates locals’ willingness to cooperate among themselves as well as with external stakeholders. The findings reveal a positive inclination to collaborate among locals and diverse intentions in cooperating with other stakeholders. The article advocates for a collaborative, inclusive approach that fosters mutual understanding in community-based tourism and heritage preservation to accomplish developmental objectives and promote local welfare. It adopts a novel approach in that, rather than examining the results of an ongoing or completed community-based tourism project, it focuses on issues relating to such tourism where it has not yet been established.

EXPLORING CROWDFUNDING POTENTIAL FOR SUPPORTING COMMUNITY- BASED TOURISM IN MALAYSIA

This paper discovers the potential of the Islamic crowdfunding model for supporting community-based tourism in developing states Malaysia in particular. Community-based tourism has provided a great opportunity for rural areas to empower the socio-economy of local people to earn main or additional income, and crowdfunding is seen as a potential fund for supporting community-based tourism. This study applies a library research method as its data are collected through literature related to community-based tourism and crowdfunding topics. The special model of Islamic crowdfunding proposed by this study can potentially support community-based tourism if it is applied to a real platform. As a result, it can reduce the burden of the government in providing funds for tourism. While crowdfunding creates an alternative opportunity for community and tourism-based projects, it promotes job opportunities and economic growth within society including business and services. However, this approach could be challenging to apply because of awareness among people. Nevertheless, a suitable Islamic crowdfunding model with a proper campaign can be a practical solution for funding community-based tourism projects. As this study is conceptual, the outcomes may not be limited. However, it still provides a substantial contribution in terms of offering a practical model of Islamic crowdfunding in Malaysia.

Exploring the Role of Social Capital in Community-Based Tourism in Bum Bum Island, Semporna, Sabah, Malaysia

The application of social capital theory or concept in tourism studies is a growing phenomenon, but the studies related to community-based tourism are still in their infancy in the context of developing countries. This study explores the role of social capital in a community-based tourism project in Bum Bum Island, which is located in the District of Semporna, Sabah, Malaysia. The primary data were collected through in-depth interviews with 19 informants from government, private agencies, local heads, tourist, Non-Government agencies and the local community. The results present evidence on the role of social capital in the development of community-based tourism projects. In addition, this research contributes to the enhancement of the body of knowledge studies related to social capital and community-based tourism. Finally, this paper concludes with some practical implications and suggestions for future research directions.

Impact of Community-Based Tourism Projects’ Empowerment on the Adoption of Sustainability Practices by Community Tourism Entrepreneurs in Sri Lanka

<p class="Default">Community-Based Tourism (CBT) has emerged in many countries as a tool for poverty reduction and sustainability enhancement. Even though sustainability practices are essential for promoting community-level tourism, due to lack of capacity and know-how, poor attitudes, reluctance to change, etc. cause to lower the application of sustainability practices by community tourism entrepreneurs. Therefore, CBT projects were initiated and greater efforts were taken to indoctrinate the sustainability practices among the micro and small scale tourism entrepreneurs (MSSTEs). However, several past researchers argued that those efforts were unable to build fruitful results. This was reported in several community tourism villages, especially in the Sri Lankan context. Therefore, this research endeavors to study the impact of empowerment efforts of CBT projects on the adoption of sustainability practices by the MSSTEs. The structured questionnaire survey was applied for data collection from a sample of 200 MSSTEs in six villages of Sri Lanka who were empowered by two selected CBT projects. Empowerment efforts were the independent variable, and capacity building, financial assistance, education and training, network building, monitoring and evaluation were the five sub-constructs of it. Sustainability practices were the dependent variable and economic, social and cultural, and environmental sustainability were the three sub-constructs of it. Findings revealed that CBT empowerment efforts affect significantly on the adoption of the three facets of sustainability practices by the MSSTEs. Economic sustainability was the highest achieved practice and it implies that CBT project empowerments were able to eliminate poverty in the rural community and strengthen their economic status.

Factors supporting the success of community-based tourism in ciletuh geopark

Compared to 15 villages located in Ciletuh Geopark, Tamanjaya is the center of geotourism activities and the village has the most rapid progress, as well as has active tourism management. Therefore, this study was aimed to identify the factors supporting the success of the Community-Based Tourism (CBT) project in Tamanjaya Village and explore the community's constraints in participating in the project. The data was collected through observations and interviews with various stakeholders and local residents. The analysis results suggested that the success factor of the CBT project in Tamanjaya Village cannot be separated from some involved parties, ranging from the private sector, academia, and governmental institutions. Meanwhile, the local residents' barriers to participation in the tourism activities include the community's lack of interest in the tourism activities, busy activities in household affairs, and lack of tourism knowledge of Ciletuh Geopark.

Impact of competitive capabilities empowered by community-based tourism projects on tourism businesses success in rural tourism destinations

This paper endeavors to reveal the impact of competitive capabilities which were promoted by Community Based Tourism (CBT) empowerment projects on the success of rural tourism businesses and also key competitive capabilities which effect business success. The positivism approach was applied and a 250 sample of micro and small-scale tourism entrepreneurs (MSSTEs) from the rural tourism destinations of Panama and Arugam Bay in Ampara district and Kanneliya, Vihrahena, Mederipitiya, and Godahena in Galle and Matara districts who were empowered by the CBT projects namely, International Labour Organization and Ruhunu Tourism Bureau was selected by using the random number generator with the list of the MSSTEs of the two selected CBT projects. A structured questionnaire was used in collecting data and five hypotheses were formulated and tested to reveal whether any significant impact creates by the competitive capabilities empowered by CBT projects on tourism business success in rural destinations and which competitive capability affects mostly on creating a variance in business success. Results were obtained mainly through correlation and multiple regression analysis. Findings revealed that empowerment efforts of CBT projects affect significantly the business success of MSSTES. Among the five constructs of competitive capabilities, capacity enhancement, community collaboration and cohesiveness, and business know-how and management are the only predictors which affect significantly business success. Facilitating network building and sustainability practices are not good predictors. Though the impact of network building and sustainability practices on business success was reported as insignificant, a positive but weak correlation exists between these variables. This positive relationship implies that success of rural tourism businesses can be further enhanced by promoting these two capabilities and the concentration need to be given by policy planners and practitioners on the inappropriate assistance of the CBT projects for network building and sustainability practices among the MSSTEs in rural tourism destinations.

Barriers to community participation in Zimbabwe’s community-based tourism projects

ABSTRACT Several barriers to the inclusion of local people in the development of tourism exist in most underdeveloped nations. The aim of this article is to present these impediments to the inclusion of local people in community-based tourism projects in Zimbabwe. A qualitative content analysis of community-based tourism projects in Zimbabwe was done, which involved a systematic search of community-based tourism projects’ documents. The 48 documents found identified a total of 84 projects, and 22 of these projects experienced some constraints to the inclusion of local people in tourism. These impediments to local people’s involvement in tourism were classified into operational, structural, and cultural barriers and include the absence of a legal system to defend community interests, lack of capacity, failure to devolve power and authority to local communities, domination by a few elites, lack of communities’ involvement when making decisions, financial constraints, limited time and apathy. Recommendations on how to mitigate these obstacles to community inclusion in tourism development are given, and areas of future research are suggested.

Impact of Social Capital Empowerments on the Businesses Success among the Micro and Small-Scale Tourism Entrepreneurs in Sri Lanka

This paper aims to reveal the impact of social capital which was empowered by Community Based Tourism projects on the business success of micro and small-scale tourism entrepreneurs (MSSTEs) in rural tourism destinations and to determine is there any distinction of the variation created in the business success by the construct of social capital between the MSSTES who were empowered and who were not empowered. Further, determining of which type of social capital either structural or cognitive does affect highly on the business success was focused. Positivism research approach applied and a sample of MSSTEs in rural tourism destinations from two provinces from Sri Lanka was selected. A pre-tested structured questionnaire was used for primary data collection. Three hypotheses were formulated and tested to reveal the impact of social capital on business success. Independent sample T-Test, correlation and multiple regression analysis were applied to test the hypotheses. Findings revealed that social capital affect significantly on creating a variance in business success. Both structural and cognitive social capital affect significantly on the business success while structural capital shows more power to create a variance on business success than cognitive social capital. This implies that tangible social capital attributes such as well-functioning of community associations, strong interpersonal and institutional networks, regular gathering, etc. are perceived as very important for business success. Also, cognitive type social capital such as shared vision, values and norms, trustworthiness, equality in sharing resources and benefits, etc. creates a significant impact on the business growth.

Experiences of community-based tourism in Romania: chances and challenges

&#x0D; Purpose&#x0D; &#x0D; The purpose of this paper is to analyse community-based tourism (CBT) initiatives in the post-socialist rural Romania in terms of the holism of the tourist project and the implementation of the local participation. The paper focusses on chances and challenges of CBT.&#x0D; &#x0D; &#x0D; &#x0D; Design/methodology/approach&#x0D; &#x0D; Once the main objective was established, three research interests arose: How and why tourism played a significant role in the economic and social development of the rural local community? How has the local community participated in the starting and maintenance of the CBT projects and who played a key part? How can the level of success of the CBT implementations be qualitatively measured? Qualitative methodologies (interviews, on-site observations, informal discussions) were applied to survey the four case studies.&#x0D; &#x0D; &#x0D; &#x0D; Findings&#x0D; &#x0D; Natural and cultural features ensure a versatile potential for touristic exploitation of the Romanian rural area, but the villages are endangered by post-socialist economic and social transformations. Innovative approaches of CBT in rural areas ignited by charismatic leaders with entrepreneurial spirit develop based on the existent social, natural and cultural capital, but on the other hand, endeavours can be vulnerable because of hindering local municipalities or sustainability issues.&#x0D; &#x0D; &#x0D; &#x0D; Practical implications&#x0D; &#x0D; The findings facilitate recommendations in favour of effective CBT ventures.&#x0D; &#x0D; &#x0D; &#x0D; Originality/value&#x0D; &#x0D; Learning about the contribution of CBT to a sustainable development of rural regions with no/little tradition of private entrepreneurship can contribute to the revitalization of rural areas facing post-socialist challenges.&#x0D; &#x0D;

Women, Fishermen, and Community-based Tourism at Djoudj Bird National Park, Senegal: an Application Of the Actor–structure Livelihood Framework

While community-based tourism (CBT) has delivered on economic opportunities in some cases, researchers have questioned the viability of its impacts, often citing inequitable distribution of benefits as a critical debilitating factor. CBT is often based on normative principles that assume all actors have equal aspirations, power, voice, and access to resources. Yet tourism activities are embedded in the same uneven social structures that envelope and define local livelihoods. In this qualitative case study of a fishing community outside of Djoudj National Bird Park in Senegal, we analyze the way a CBT project fits within women's and fishermen's livelihood strategies, focusing on the social and cultural norms structuring their participation in tourism. We apply the actor–structure livelihood framework to unveil the interactions between the norms embedded in the community-level social structure (i. e., social and cultural norms) and individuals' agency as they seek out meaningful livelihood opportunities in CBT. The results of our study show that social norms, implicit biases, and cultural identities associated with women and Black Moorish fishermen, normalize their nonparticipation in certain positions within the CBT project. Through this analysis, we highlight norms shaping other livelihood activities and how they spill into the CBT sphere. We situate our findings within the broader scholarly discussion on CBT as a tool that encourages the equitable distribution of benefits and empowerment of local communities. We also discuss livelihood perspectives, specifically actor–structure framework, as a viable approach to explore failures, challenges, and opportunities of tourism as a community development tool.

Community tourism – Development of rural areas in developing countries

Research background: Community-based tourism has become a very popular form of sustainable tourism in the world. Tourism is supposed to be developmental in nature benefiting the local community by improving the Quality-of-Life and the standard of living for locals and local commerce. It is therefore imperative to understand that the community around tourism development is important and has to be involved in the development from the initial planning of the development as the sole beneficiaries of the development. Purpose of the article: The aim of this work was to evaluate the prerequisites for the development of community-based tourism and Bridging the technology gap for community-based tourism projects in Cambodia. Methods: The theoretical part is focused especially on community-based tourism, its origin, history and possibilities of development. The practical part of the thesis consists of a descriptive part which characterizes the studied area from the point of view of living conditions and tourism, and, also, contains the results of analysis of interviews conducted conditions and tourism, and, also, contains the results of analysis of interviews conducted with the local people and person by the implementer during the stay in the Cambodia were analysed using the Grounded theory method. Findings &amp; Value added: The result of the paper is to set the prerequisites for the development of community-based tourism and recommendations for a subsequent research.

Issues with Applying the Concept of Community-Based Tourism in the Caucasus

In Armenia and Georgia, tourism has become part of the development strategies that aim to revitalize those mountain areas experiencing a rural exodus and anemic economic structures. Association agreements between the European Union (EU) and Georgia (2014) and the EU and Armenia (2018) promote community-based tourism (CBT), emphasizing the importance of facilitating cooperation between stakeholders and inclusion of local communities. This study describes the current application of CBT in Georgia and Armenia to elucidate the understanding and perception of the concept by different stakeholders and to provide recommendations for the development of comprehensive CBT practices in the South Caucasus. We used qualitative methods within our research. Our overall analysis includes policy documents and semistructured interviews with tourism and rural development authorities, civil society organizations, and entrepreneurs. Our key findings reveal the various factors that influence the sustainable development of CBT projects, especially in mountainous areas. We recommend integrating tourism and community development practices, elaborating specific guidelines for CBT projects, and filling the knowledge gap of community development facilitators regarding tourism practices. We also suggest focusing more on diversifying community-based products to expand cooperation among service providers.

Implementing community-based tourism (CBT): Lessons learnt and implications by involving students in a CBT project in Laelae Island, Indonesia

Lack of community participation is a major reason leading CBT to fail. This study discusses and illustrates how to involve students into a CBT project in order to achieve two major aims: a) use the students as key informants and stakeholders in CBT implementation with the purpose to provide useful insights and advice to local communities; b) provide a practical example on how to enhance students’ learning experiences and practice-based learning identify the challenges addresses; and c) identify the challenges experienced by the students in order to inform how to better design field-based educational experiences. The student findings revealed useful information about the socio-cultural issues inhibiting CBT implementation (e.g. focus on short-term financial benefits rather than long-term sustainable programmes), which in turn are used for providing useful suggestions to the local community. Consequently, three ways to better implement CBTprojects are identified: understanding the socio-cultural condition of the community and of obtaining community support, having a clear purpose and firm foundation for CBT, and creating a tourism and environmental awareness group. Findings also revealed that students faced three major challenges in participating in the CBT project: different attitudes and responses from the local community on the CBT project, the issue of palimbang and the reclamation megaproject. The paper concludes by discussing the implications on how to better integrate students in CBT projects, as the latter represent an important way in which educational institutions can provide community service.

Family Relations and Socio-Ecological Resilience within Locally-Based Tourism: The Case of El Castillo (Nicaragua)

Although family-run micro and small businesses largely form the crux of the locally based tourism sector, either as part of a community organization or as independent units of private enterprise, in El Castillo (Nicaragua) can be found an example of how, even in the absence of a community organization to provide a structural framework, the development of local tourism has sustained practically all businesses set up and run by households, organized largely through family relationships. This structure is pivotal in stoking resilience, not only with regard to private businesses, but also to the system of tourism (specific) and, by extension, to the whole of local society and the surrounding socio-ecosystem, or socio-ecological system (SES) (general). The case study presented here, developed on the basis of long-term ethnographic fieldwork, highlights the role of the family structure within Locally-Based Tourism (LBT) in general and also in specific cases, such as the one studied here, in which it takes on a particularly central role. The confirmation of the importance of families and family relationships as key elements in the robust development of tourism in El Castillo, and of the specific characteristics that its local society presents for this, must be taken into account in order to support Community-Based Tourism projects by institutions and organizations interested in promoting sustainable local development. Indeed, once further case studies are conducted, with a view to providing comparative evidence of these findings, it might even be proven advantageous to create a distinctive subcategory within LBT: Family-Based Tourism.

Towards a Tourism and Community-Development Framework: An African Perspective

This article examines the perceptions of local people concerning the potential of tourism to alleviate poverty and bring about community development in the Manicaland Province, Zimbabwe. In-depth interviews, direct observations, and informal conversations were used to collect data in the four districts of Manicaland where there were functional community-based tourism (CBT) projects. After establishing a poverty criterion, data were collected from 43 local poor people in the four districts of the case study area. The results show that tourism development in Manicaland brought about community development through social, economic, environmental and cultural benefits. The authors suggest that there are interrelationships between tourism, poverty alleviation and community development. They show these interrelationships through a tourism and community-development framework which they developed based upon the results of the various methods of data collection used in this study.

FACTORS ON DEVELOPMENT OF COMMUNITY-BASED TOURISM (CBT) IN PHITSANULOK PROVINCE OF THAILAND

This qualitative research by case study approach focuses on identifying the factors on the development of community-based tourism (CBT) in Phitsanulok Province of Thailand. The in-depth interview is the primary tool, gathering data from 10 key informants who are community leaders, CBT and homestay operators as well as a CBT project founder from June to July 2019. Cluster random sampling technique was used in three dominant CBT villages in Phitsanulok Province. An open coding technique by Nvivo12PLUS program was used to analyze the data. The findings show that the seven most important factors covering community participation are: ownership, outside support and supportive policy, marketing, value creation and supply chain, empowerment and people potential, leadership, and partnership. Surprisingly, three new effective factors are entrepreneurship skill, type of activities, and tour package design. It implies that visitors could accommodate one more night in Phitsanulok due to the activity types that appear to be an effective factor in developing and encouraging their stay.