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Abstract
This paper examines the evolving and innovatory role of the African Wildlife Foundation (AWF), an NGO with charitable status, in dealing with the challenge of protecting wildlife outside state-protected areas. Drawing on the theoretical framework of institutional entrepreneurship, we historically trace AWF's engagement in conservation tourism, describing the complexities of how its actions evolved into the new organizational form of tourism conservation enterprises. We identify four key mechanisms – its “glocal” scope of action, awareness of policy and market voids, experimentation and hiring business professionals – that explain why AWF became aware, motivated and open to developing this organizational form. Lessons emerging from this process include that conservation NGOs should act as “opportunity seekers”, focus on incremental rather than radical innovations, note voids and ambiguities in governmental policies that provide opportunities for non-state actors to assume the role of institutional entrepreneur, and hire staff skilled in business, tourism and strategic management besides staff with the more conventional conservation skills in order to effectively engage in conservation tourism. Overall, the paper notes the importance of commercial conservation tourism approaches for the work of protected areas worldwide, and in using tourism as a poverty alleviation tool in less developed countries.
旅游中的机构创新：非洲野生动物基金会的变革
本文检测了非洲野生动物基金会的改革和创新作用。非洲野生动物基金会是一个有慈善特征的非正式组织，目的是保护洲际保护区之外的野生动物。基于制度创新的理论框架，本文历史追踪了非洲野生动物基金会在旅游保护中的作用，描述了他们的行为融入新旅游保护组织的复杂性。我们定义了四种机制-行为的``政府地方"方面、政策的意识和市场空虚、实验和业务人员的招聘- 解释了为什么非洲野生动物基金会意识到、致力于和以这种组织形式发展。我们从这个过程中得到的启示包括：以保护为目的的非正式组织应当作为``机会寻求着"，侧重于增值而不是激进的创新，也发现了政府政策中的空洞和含糊的地方，为非政府组织和企业机构的发展提供了机遇。雇佣有技术的员工，有传统保护技巧的旅游策略管理者可以增加旅游保护的效率。整体上说，本文意识到了在野生动物保护区中旅游商业保护方法的重要性，以及在欠发达国家利用旅游作为扶贫工具的的重要性。
Acknowledgements
We wish to thank editor Bernard Lane and the two anonymous reviewers for their insightful comments and suggestions, and also special thanks to Nowella Anyango-van Zwieten for her research assistance.
The content of this paper is the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the views of AWF. Any errors or omissions are the authors’ responsibility.
Notes
1. SWARA magazine is published by the East African Wildlife Society, to inform readers about conservation issues, to show how its conservation work addresses these issues, and to encourage informed debate. SWARA is Swahili for Antelope (eawildlife.org/swara).
2. These organizations include the following: AWF, Nature Conservancy, World Resources Institute, Conservation International, Jane Goodall Institute, Wildlife Conservation Society and WWF (abcg.org).
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Notes on contributors
Jakomijn Van Wijk
Jakomijn Van Wijk is an assistant professor at Maastricht School of Management, the Netherlands. Her research interest is on processes of institutional change toward sustainability in the global tourism industry.
René Van der Duim
René Van der Duim is a special professor in Tourism and Sustainable Development at the Cultural Geography Group at Wageningen University, the Netherlands. His research focuses on the relationships between tourism, conservation and development in sub-Saharan Africa.
Machiel Lamers
Machiel Lamers is an assistant professor at the Environmental Policy Group at Wageningen University. His research interest is on transnational governance of sustainable tourism and nature conservation.
Daudi Sumba
Daudi Sumba is vice president for Program Design and Government Relations of the African Wildlife Foundation. His research interest is on conservation and development and development economics.