Gebeyaw Ambelu Degarege and Brent Lovelock
The purpose of this paper is to identify pathways to improve the performance and competitiveness of Ethiopia's tourism sector using coffee as one essential tourism experience…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to identify pathways to improve the performance and competitiveness of Ethiopia's tourism sector using coffee as one essential tourism experience, thereby improving the socio-economic conditions of the local communities who depend on coffee for their livelihoods.
Design/methodology/approach
Based upon qualitative focus group discussions undertaken with key informants in both the coffee and tourism sectors in Ethiopia.
Findings
Despite the existing tourism development potential, Ethiopia has not yet fully exploited this position. While the country uses coffee to assist its destination marketing strategies, practical interventions to position coffee as a primary tourism product are absent and remain of critical importance.
Research limitations/implications
In this exploratory study key informant participants from government and industry share their experience within this policy domain. It is acknowledged that future research aiming to provide a fuller picture of governance in this domain would also include the perspective of community-level coffee growers.
Practical implications
Paramount among the implications of this study is the need to enhance cross-sectoral planning and collaboration and to establish a bridging organisation that will help integrate the agricultural (coffee) sector and the tourism sector.
Social implications
This study identifies key governance-related obstacles to addressing rural poverty through coffee-related agri-tourism initiatives in Ethiopia.
Originality/value
This paper addresses, from a governance perspective, the obstacles and opportunities for coffee as a tourism product/experience in Ethiopia. The paper identifies what interventions and innovations in policy and practice are necessary to enhance the role of Ethiopia's coffee culture in the performance of the country's tourism sector.
Details
Keywords
To better understand the key issues surrounding Global Ecopolitics, it may be beneficial to examine the background to the environmental movement over time. The environmental…
Abstract
To better understand the key issues surrounding Global Ecopolitics, it may be beneficial to examine the background to the environmental movement over time. The environmental movement is perhaps the most significant contemporary global movement to have emerged in recent decades. The relationship between humankind and nature has been the subject of much debate and enquiry over time. The environmental movement had its cultural origins in literary accounts of humanity's relationship with nature, beginning from the romantic poets such as William Blake, John Keats, Percy Bysshe Shelley, and Lord Byron, whose works were concerned with the reconciliation of man and nature. This aesthetic could also be found in subsequent transcendentalist American literature, such as Henry David Thoreau's Walden, published in 1854 (Shabecoff, 2003, pp. 37–71). The transcendentalists were interested in the spiritual connections that connected humankind and nature with God and could be seen as the forefathers of deep green ecologists. Charles Darwin's Origin of the Species was published in 1859, creating further interest in the understanding of nature. George Perkins Marsh wrote of the destructive impact of agriculture in his book Man and Nature in 1864. President Teddy Roosevelt would develop the National Parks with Gifford Pinchot of the Forestry Service in the early 1900s. In the aftermath of the Industrial Revolution, concerns about protecting wildlife led to the emergence of a progressive conservation movement, alongside federal regulation of natural habitats and the establishment of national parks. Influential conservation groups included the National Audubon Society, founded in 1886, and the Sierra Club, founded by John Muir in 1892. Muir and Pinchot would become adversaries in the campaign to prevent the building of a dam in Yosemite National Park in the early decade of the nineteenth century (ibid.).
Linne Marie Lauesen and Shahla Seifi
All forms of organization have governance requirements and procedures. Often, these are quite similar despite the form and mission of the organization in question. They only…
Abstract
All forms of organization have governance requirements and procedures. Often, these are quite similar despite the form and mission of the organization in question. They only consider governance in the organization environment and rarely look beyond their immediate stakeholders. In many corporations, the immediate stakeholders are even considered to be the investors and only those regardless of the apparency of other close stakeholders such as workers, customers, suppliers, authorities, and interest groups or non-governmental organizations. Even corporations with such narrow views and organizations with a broader stakeholder view are relatively unrealistic and are inappropriate in the modern global world, which we inhabit. Organizations of any form and size need to recognize both the need to consider radical changes in the modern global environment and the opportunities and possibilities presented by the current environment. Therefore, this chapter takes a broad approach and considers governance requirements in the modern world seen from a global perspective for all forms of organization. With global perspective, organizational governance is, here, called New Governance, and it includes the idea, that even the smallest decision can have a dramatic social, economic, or geopolitical impact in other parts of the world. The idea of New Governance is to put on the global lenses when making decisions to consider the potential effect – positive as well as negative – on the local as well as the global perspective, even on the unknown future and on future generations to come. Some may call this sustainable governance, but in this chapter, it is embedded in the New Governance as a concept, which can be nothing else but sustainable in its core idea. The future requirements for New Governance in any kind of organization are discussed, as the relationship between organizations and its global and future stakeholders, and how they form these requirements.
Details
Keywords
David Crowther and Shahla Seifi
The logic of the economic system under which the world operates is predicated on an assumption that development is possible and that the pricing system mediates the acquisition of…
Abstract
The logic of the economic system under which the world operates is predicated on an assumption that development is possible and that the pricing system mediates the acquisition of the additional resources required for that development. The chapter investigates where those resources are and focuses particularly on the BRIC counties. These countries have access to a large proportion of the remaining natural resources of the world while also having large populations and therefore great scope for rapid economic growth. These four countries contain a significant proportion of the world’s reserves of raw materials, but they are also rapidly developing countries with that development fuelled by their raw materials. One consequence of this is that the resources available to other countries in the developed world are constrained by this rising demand, with a number of possible consequences. The discourse in the developed world is towards the conservation of resources and towards energy efficiency. This is reflected in both manufacturing resources and consumer purchasing decisions. So it is generally accepted that resource depletion will affect the economic environment. It is not yet fully recognised, however, that development in other parts of the world will exacerbate this pressure and lead to a greater need to compete for the available resources. This competition will be economic but could also become physical as the world adjusts to a new geopolitical environment. This is an important topic not being addressed elsewhere.
Details
Keywords
Dominic Elliott, Kim Harris and Steve Baron
Proposes exploring the opportunities for reciprocal learning between the fields of crisis management and services marketing, and stimulating research on crises experienced by…
Abstract
Purpose
Proposes exploring the opportunities for reciprocal learning between the fields of crisis management and services marketing, and stimulating research on crises experienced by service organisations through the adoption of an interdisciplinary approach.
Design/methodology/approach
Initially, an overview and summary are given of a crisis management approach by organisations, in order to demonstrate the contrast between the research perspectives adopted in the fields of crisis management and services marketing. To demonstrate the potential for reciprocal learning, a key construct from each field is identified and its potential contribution to learning in the other field is critically evaluated.
Findings
The comparison between the approaches of crisis management and services marketing highlights that a concentration, in services marketing, on service failures and recoveries at individual service encounters draws attention away from the “bigger picture” and the multiple stakeholder roles that may trigger a crisis and, while a crisis management approach acknowledges customers as key stakeholders in a crisis, it fails to give enough attention to the roles adopted by customers in service organisations, especially through customer participation in service production.
Research limitations/implications
The selection of one construct from each field is a limitation in itself, and the suggestions for further research are not exhaustive. The paper should stimulate new direction in services research.
Practical implications
The interdisciplinary approach has provided implications for both services marketers and crisis managers.
Originality/value
The paper is breaking new ground by linking the disciplines of services marketing and crisis management as a means of furthering an understanding of crises experienced by service organisations.
Details
Keywords
Paul Conrad Henry and Marylouise Caldwell
To delineate the range of consumer responses to life‐conditions where sustained powerlessness is experienced. To provide a framework to understand the ways in which these…
Abstract
Purpose
To delineate the range of consumer responses to life‐conditions where sustained powerlessness is experienced. To provide a framework to understand the ways in which these consumers try to reclaim degrees of self‐empowerment and wellbeing.
Design/methodology/approach
Goffman's conceptualization of stigma is employed to study a heavy metal music enclave consisting of lower socioeconomic consumers, who exhibit a range of stigmatizing attributes.
Findings
A taxonomy of ten consumer remedies for their situation is developed. These include: resignation, confrontation, withdrawal, engagement, concealment, escapism, hedonic, spiritual, nostalgia, and creative. Each can potentially have negative or positive consequences. However, we found consumers often use a blend of these remedies as pathways to self‐empower.
Practical implications
Understanding the strengths and weaknesses of each of the remedies will potentially guide public policy makers in shaping programs better able to foster self‐empowerment among disadvantaged consumers.
Originality/value
The paper advances understanding of consumer response to sustained powerlessness as consequence of disadvantaged life conditions that are resistant to change.
Details
Keywords
The paper seeks to investigate whether the demographic and socio‐economic characteristics of complainers in a monopolistic market are different from those in a competitive market.
Abstract
Purpose
The paper seeks to investigate whether the demographic and socio‐economic characteristics of complainers in a monopolistic market are different from those in a competitive market.
Design/methodology/approach
A literature review is undertaken, with particular emphasis on the socio‐economic characteristics of complainers. An empirical study is then presented. The empirical study consists of a large survey of satisfaction among consumers of the Norwegian Office for Social Insurance – a monopolistic governmental service provider.
Findings
The study reveals that complainers in this monopolistic market belong to lower socio‐economic groups. They typically have low incomes, are outside the labour market, have a modest standard of accommodation, and live alone.
Research limitations/implications
The study analyses only one type of monopolistic institution in only one country. The generalisability of the findings might, therefore, be limited. The study demonstrates that consumer complaint behaviour in this monopolistic market differs from behaviour reported in competitive markets. Moreover, the study indicates that complainers in this monopolistic market are confronted with different complaint barriers when exit is closed.
Practical implications
The findings of the study suggest that a monopolistic institution should encourage dissatisfied consumers to complain, and should make internal switching possibilities known to consumers.
Originality/value
This paper is the first to study complainer characteristics in a monopolistic market structure empirically. The paper questions previous assumptions that complainers necessarily belong to upper socio‐economic groups.
Details
Keywords
The notion of “sustainable development” has had a short and tumultuous history, including a departure from economic reductionism by focusing on a multidimensional aspect and…
Abstract
Purpose
The notion of “sustainable development” has had a short and tumultuous history, including a departure from economic reductionism by focusing on a multidimensional aspect and addressing the issues of its scope across many disciplines. It has become a project enabling a rethinking of capitalism based on the concept of a reformed type of capitalism. The purpose of this paper is to study this issue.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper is based on the following arguments: the presentation of sustainable development as a “vague” theory, an empirical proof of this vagueness with regard to corporate actions whose justification is based around the notion of sustainable development, and finally the ambiguities of the notion.
Findings
The notion of sustainable development raises the question of an apparent consensus on its correlates: solidarity, responsibility, equity, etc. It tends to establish a protean sense of the firms' responsibility, particularly the larger ones. The largely political dimension of the notion has today consequences on its usage. Sustainable development as addressed in the firm tends to take on the dimension of a management issue, which is likely to persist due to its larger political dimension.
Originality/value
The paper provides insight on the catch‐all dimension of the notion and its appealing rhetorical character and bases the ambiguity related with references to an “in‐between.” On the institutional level, it refers to a social and fair economy that stands arguably in between the state and the market. On the methodological level, it refers to heuristics of fear and hope.
Details
Keywords
Tamagn Urgo Woyesa and Satinder Kumar
This is a conceptual study to analyze the potential of enset-based culinary tourism for sustainable rural development and to obtain a place as a niche tourism market in…
Abstract
Purpose
This is a conceptual study to analyze the potential of enset-based culinary tourism for sustainable rural development and to obtain a place as a niche tourism market in South-Western Ethiopia. It assumed enset agro-biodiversity as the effect of ages of environment, genetic resources and cultural interaction as a distinctive regional image.
Design/methodology/approach
This an exploratory paper based on an in-depth interview, field observation and content analysis of documents. By means of in-depth interviews, the researchers managed to gather extended information from community elders and experts in culture and tourism offices selected based on a snowball technique. Besides, it has gone through systematic reviews of about 180 empirical and conceptual articles, books and conference papers with a critical reading of the content, identification of categories, examination and interpretation of ideas, to supplement the in-depth-interview. The thematic analysis applied to identify various ideas, concepts, categories and relationships to produce themes presented under discussion and results.
Findings
The study found enset-based culinary tourism not only improve the local economy and regional image, but also it would enhance conservation of traditional farming system, biodiversity, food heritages, genetic varieties and livestock. It also identified 18 enset food varieties compatible with the principle of balanced diets. Finally, the study advised rural development planners to consider enset-based culinary tourism so that it would revive lost food traditions and consumption patterns, enhance the regional heritage and destination branding.
Research limitations/implications
The research is a conceptual study that lacked empirical investigation concerning the livelihood impact, gender implication and actual tourist data. Therefore, future research needs to focus on the aforementioned limitations.
Practical implications
This study addressed SW Ethiopia, which is the primary center of Ensete ventricosum, and argued that enset-based culinary tourism would help to build regional image and obtain a place as a niche rural tourism destination. It would also contribute to the conservation of food heritages, environmentally sustainable farming system, soil conservation, crop diversities and livestock population in addition to producing tourist experience. Moreover, it would encourage the revival of traditional consumption, reinvent lost food traditions and identities.
Social implications
It was hoped that rural tourism would eventually improve the livelihood and enhance the capability of resilience. It is also expected to maintain the traditional social-economic structure based on the enset farm while fostering cultural development.
Originality/value
To the knowledge of the researchers there is no previous work on enset based-culinary tourism in Ethiopia and probably there is no published culinary tourism paper elsewhere.