Tourists and community development: corporate social responsibility or tourist social responsibility?

Abstract

Corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities are usually determined, in large part, by head office and by shareholder interests. This article explores the unique case of tourism CSR which has a distinctive relationship with local communities. CSR programmes of hotels and resorts in the Global South are increasingly creating opportunities for tourists to engage directly with communities, yet the relationship between tourists and CSR – and how this impacts on community development outcomes – has so far been overlooked. Based on two separate research projects undertaken in Zambia and Fiji which examined hotel CSR from community perspectives, we show how these programmes were largely motivated, driven and financed by tourists. This suggests that, in the accommodation subsector of tourism, CSR is not only being shaped by head office, but that tourists can play a key role, leading us to coin the term TSR (tourist social responsibility). For community development initiatives in particular, this gives rise to both challenges and opportunities.

Keywords:

• Tourists
• corporate social responsibility
• community development
• hotels
• Fiji
• Zambia

Notes

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to acknowledge helpful comments of anonymous reviewers in revising this article.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

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Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Royal Society of New Zealand [MAU1206] and the New Zealand Aid Programme.

Notes on contributors

Andrew Chilufya

Andrew Chilufya is Chief Tourism Development and Research Officer at the Ministry of Tourism and Arts, Zambia. His research examines tourism and community development in Zambia.

Emma Hughes

Emma Hughes is a Research Associate in Development Studies at Massey University. Her research examines community development and tourism from community perspectives.

Regina Scheyvens

Regina Scheyvens is a Professor in Development Studies at Massey University. Her research focuses on the relationship between tourism, sustainable development and poverty reduction.