The COVID-19 pandemic has allowed a break from business as usual in tourism and opened up a window of opportunity to rethink tourism for greater social and ecological justice. This hub is dedicated to rethinking and transforming tourism in the interests of and for the wellbeing of local communities. Tourism has been usurped by particular interests for private profit accumulation when it is in fact a means for learning, cross-cultural engagement and wellbeing. This hub intends to revive and foster this public good focus of tourism so that tourism can play its beneficial part in building the new economy.
Objectives of the Hub:
- To enable NENA members to meet for discussions, organise events, meetings, film screenings and other activities that bring people together to promote and support the development of new economy thinking in tourism
- To prioritise Indigenous worldviews, values, wellbeing, rights, benefits and resurgence in the efforts of rethinking tourism for the new economy
- Work together to identify core issues in tourism which need to change, in order to build the new economy
- Work together to identify strategies for progressing the change needed in the sector
- Provide advice, resources and updated information about the sector to other members of the Network
- Identify and contribute strategic goals from the Sectoral Hub, into the NENA Annual Strategy and other strategic documents
- Broaden the scope of the tourism sector by incorporating localism and place based language and biophilia assets into primary level curriculums
Resources for Rethinking Tourism
Organisations of Interest
- Rise Travel Institute
- Fairbnb
- The Tourism Colab
- Christie Walk, Urban ecocity, Adelaide
- Equality in Tourism
- Adelaide Chronicles
- Global Exchange Reality Tours
- Local Futures: The economics of happiness
- Via Campesina
- Transition Network
- Black Travel Movement
- Western Australia Indigenous Tourism Operators Council
- World Indigenous Tourism Alliance
- Localhood strategy, Wonderful Copenhagen
Further Reading and Viewing
- A Local Turn in Tourism Studies, by Freya Higgins-Desbiolles and Bobbie Chew Bigby
- Time for DMOcracy, by Group NAO
- What would sustainable tourism really mean for New Zealand? Let’s ask the river, by Jason Paul Mika and Regina Scheyvens
- As borders reopen, can New Zealand reset from high volume to ‘high values’ tourism?, by Regina Scheyvens and Apisalome Movono
- Rethinking tourism: Less could be more, by Susanne Becken
- Who’s a tourist? How a culture of travel is changing everyday life, by Susanne Becken
- Socialising tourism for social and ecological justice, by Freya Higgins-Desbiolles
- Rethinking tourism so the locals actually benefit from tourism, by Freya Higgins-Desbiolles
- A taste of sustainability: case studies of sustainable cafes in Australia, by Freya Higgins-Desbiolles, Gayathri Wijesinghe and Emily Moskwa
- How Indigenous tourism can help bring about reconciliation in Australia, by Freya Higgins-Desbiolles
- Traditional skills help people on the tourism-deprived Pacific Islands survive the pandemic, by Regina Scheyvens and Apisalome Movono
- Degrowing tourism: Rethinking tourism, by Freya Higgins-Desbiolles, Sandro Carnicelli, Chris Krolikowski, Gayathri Wijesinghe and Karla Boluk
- Conscious Cities, by Sue Gilbey
- “Things have to change”: Tourism businesses look to a greener future, by Jane Dunford
- Localising tourism for sustainability and justice (video), by Freya Higgins-Desbiolles
- Byron Way Pledge
- Pono Pledge, Hawai’i
- Lirrwi Tourism Guiding Principles
- What is Slow Tourism?, by Joana Dickinson
Contacts for the Hub:
- Freya Higgins-Desbiolles, Freya.HigginsDesbiolles@unisa.edu.au
- Sue Gilbey, gilbeysue@gmail.com
More about the Convenors:
- Find more about Sue Gilbey
- Find out more about Freya Higgins-Desbiolles