Sustainable Tourism

Journal of Business Ethics (2007) 72:77–85 DOI 10.1007/s10551-006-9157-7

Ó Springer 2006

Sustainable Tourism: Ethical Alternative or Marketing Ploy?

Paul Lansing Paul De Vries

ABSTRACT. While tourism is often seen as a welcome source of economic development, conventional mass tourism is associated with numerous negative effects, such as the destruction of ecological systems and loss of cultural heritage. In response to these concerns, a term that has surfaced recently is, sustainable tourism. This article attempts to define sustainable tourism and asks the question of whether this new term is an acceptable criteria or is merely a marketing ploy to attract the morally conscious tourist. KEY WORDS: ethical marketing, false advertising, global tourism, governance instrument, sustainable tourism

Introduction Tourism is rapidly becoming one of the most important sectors of economic growth in the world. Notwithstanding temporary (regional) slowdowns due to events such as 9/11, the SARS epidemic, and the tsunami disaster, the structural underlying trend of growth is expected to continue. According to the World Tourism Organization (WTO) Tourism Vision 2020, international arrivals in the next 15 years will be 1.56 billion, compared to 703 million in 2002 and to 565 million in base year 1995. Over the period 1995–2020, an average growth rate of 4.1% is expected (WTO, 2001). While tourism is often seen as a welcome source of (economic) development, ‘‘conventional’’ mass tourPaul Lansing is a professor of Business Administration at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He received a J.D. Degree and a Graduate Degree in International Business. Paul De Vries received an M.Sc BA, in Strategic Management from the Rotterdam School of Management, RSM Erasmus University.

ism is associated with numerous negative effects, such as the destruction of ecological systems and loss of cultural heritage. In response to these concerns, a term that has surfaced in...