“Air France, ‘Les Prestations’ Air France ‘7ACTCC Airline Catering: Code of Good Internal Moment0 Commercial 1992 I (1 Catering Practice London (1992) September) ‘*Roberts, R, Gilbert, R J, Nicholson, R, 16Forte Airport Services The Management Christopher, P and Dailley, R ‘The micro- Challenge of Airport Services Forte plc biology of airline meals’ Environmental (1992) Health 1989 97 (3) 56-62

Putting research into practice - the WTTERC

In September 1991, the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), a global coalition of chief executives from all sectors of the travel and tourism industry, established the World Travel & Tourism Environment Research Centre (WTTERC). This centre aimed to bring together the elements needed to provide good environmental practice in the travel and tourism industry and to provide a catalyst for responsible tourism policies. Rebecca Hawkins, Senior Researcher at WTTERC, describes its objectives, programmes and future plans.

In the 199Os, the need to adopt more sustainable forms of development is high on the political agenda. Govern- ments around the world have reacted to the need to prevent certain types of unsustainable activity, but it has be- come increasingly clear that the issues of global environmental change can- not be tackled as isolated phenomena, nor can they be resolved by regulatory provision alone. Sustainable develop- ment will be achieved only if the pri- vate sector is a part of the solution.

As the world’s largest industry, travel and tourism has an essential role to play in carrying forward the sustainable development agenda, not least because the environment is at the core of our business. In the last few years, governments, academia and travel and tourism organizations have launched a range of programmes to examine ways in which the industry can become more sustainable. Recent initiatives include the English Tourist Board’s ‘Maintaining the Balance’ programme, the Australian Govem- ment’s ‘Ecologically Sustainable De- velopment’ study, James Cook Uni- versity’s International Institute for Ecotourism Research and the Interna- tional Federation of Tour Operators’ ECOMOST programme.

At industry level, initiatives are also being implemented - hotels are en-

gaged in schemes to reduce water and electricity consumption; travel agents and tour operators are working with communities; and airlines are switch- ing to less polluting planes. For the most part, these initiatives have col- lected a wealth of information, but they have been of short duration, or have focused on specific aspects of the tourism product (such as ecotourism). In addition, these programmes have provided no central focus for informa- tion collection or dissemination about the wide range of issues that influence the environmental performance of the travel and tourism sector. The need for a global research centre therefore became evident.

It was for this reason that the World Travel and Tourism Environment Re- search Centre was established, and located within the Oxford Centre for Tourism and Leisure Studies at Ox- ford Brookes University. The work of WTIERC is guided by an internation- al board which includes individuals with a reputation in the fields of travel and tourism and/or the environment.’

Sponsored initially by four WTTC member companies (British Airways, Thomas Cook, Steigenberger Hotels and American Express) and the Brit- ish Tourist Authority, WTTERC is now a central part of WTTC’S policy, which seeks to: convince governments

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of the economic and strategic import- ance of travel and tourism, promote environmentally compatible develop- ment and eliminate barriers to growth of the industry.

Objectives

The objectives for the first years of operation were to:

develop a world-wide focal point in the field of travel and tourism and the environment; design international datab.ases to monitor and communicate good environmental practice; monitor the nature of international agreements and voluntary codes of practice which influence the prog- rammes of travel and tourism com- panies; over time, promote scientific re- search and identify ways to encour- age sustainable development in the travel and tourism industry.

In the coming years we seek to con- solidate our position by:

expanding the level of information available to policy makers, travel and tourism companies, destina- tion managers and educational establishments regarding the potential of travel and tourism to bring about environmental im- provement; illustrating the wide range of prog- rammes which have been adopted by the industry to improve its own environmental performance, based on the evidence held in our data- bases; providing comprehensive informa- tion to help environmental mana- gers tackle the environmental issues associated with their activi- ties and helping companies to gain from the business benefits of good environmental practice; expanding our communication sys- tems and providing wider access to our databases; commencing with a wide range of programmes examining the im- plications of tourism in specific en- vironments and building up our case study evidence about specific issues;

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l improving our links with other groups active in this field.

Information base

The core of our programme in the first two years was the development of the database system designed to store in- formation collected mainly from the travel and tourism industry and its representative industry organizations and visited destinations. These data document:

l the strategies adopted by travel and tourism companies to manage their environmental performance. Ques- tionnaires are distributed to top international travel and tourism companies and information is pro- vided in confidence documenting the adoption of mission statements, key environmental issues concern- ing the company, budgetary provi- sion for carrying out environmental improvement, staff training and re- sponsibility for environmental tasks, establishment of targets for environmental improvement at corporate level, development of formal environmental management systems (impact assessment proce- dures, life-cycle analysis or green audits) and disclosure of informa- tion through annual environmental reports. Statistics compiled from this information are published in our Annual Reviews;

0 solutions to specific environmental issues adopted by travel and tour- ism companies or visited destina- tions. Information is held about a wide range of issues, such as impro- ving waste management proce- dures or managing visitor numbers in heavily utilized areas. The sys- tem is designed to facilitate inter- rogation by geographical area, type of company, environmental issue in question (eg water management, waste management), costs or sav- ings achieved (if any) and timescale for realization. This database cur- rently hosts more than 100 case studies, each including a textual summary providing detailed in- formation about the programme.

This information is currently being linked to a ‘dictionary’ of

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techniques and technologies avail- able to achieve environmental im- provements in specific target areas. This ‘dictionary’ includes steps which have no cost implications (such as implementing a ‘switch- off policy for all electrical equip- ment when not in use), low-cost technology options (such as install- ing low-energy light bulbs) and comprehensive environmental solutions to ensure maximum effi- ciency (such as the installation of building management systems); codes of practice and voluntary guidelines developed to direct the activities of visitors, destination managers, host communities, travel and tourism companies or industry in general. Our database currently holds information from more than 60 sets of guidelines which can be accessed according to the type of environment affected, the global area covered by the guidelines, the type of activity co- vered or the environmental issues addressed by the guidelines; other databases under develop- ment at the centre include a selected bibliography and informa- tion about the activities of other groups, such as the International Hotel Association and the Interna- tional Air Transport Association. This information is used to ensure our activities are not duplicated and to help industry to identify other potential sources of informa- tion in the field of tourism and the environment.

The databases illustrate the range of innovative solutions to environmental problems that have been adopted by the travel and tourism industry. The databases are not static: they require frequent update to reflect the rapidly changing environmental debate. Data collection is a continual process under- taken as a part of our rolling program- me; in the coming months we shall focus our efforts on smaller travel and tourism companies and also on collect- ing information from developing countries and Eastern Europe.

The information held in our data- bases helps us to identify areas for development as part of our core pro-

gramme looking at specific issues or environments. For 1994. these include:

support for a new global environ- mental management awareness in- itiative to be launched by WTTC in July 1994. The GREEN GLOBE, as it is called, encourages all travel and tourism companies, regardless of size, type or location world- wide, to build environmental good practice into their everyday man- agement processes. WTI’ERC will provide input to documentation, database management and on-line computer links; a research project looking at effec- tive visitor management in destina- tions around the world which pro- vided the theme for our newsletter in February 1994. Follow-up bulle- tins will be produced in the coming months with the aim of helping destination managers to balance the needs of visitors with those of the environment; two programmes studying different aspects of the transport sector. The first examines current practice in the rail sector. Toshiki Saito, a senior manager seconded from WlTC member East Japan Rail- way Company, is undertaking this programme which will provide information about the current in- itiatives of leading rail companies around the world. The second, funded by WTTC member company Boeing, concentrates on aviation and its inputs into the en- vironment. Peter Kriel has joined the W?TERC team to develop this research project, which will collect information from the aviation sec- tor in order to assess current per- formance and make recommenda- tions for improvements; the components of successful com- munication strategies for environ- mental issues will be examined by Franceska Van Dijk. Franceska will join us in May for five months to examine the strategies adopted by key companies to communicate environmental issues to employees and the public; other programmes under discus- sion will look at the development of tourism in coastal zones and polar regions.

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Future plans

In the near future, the centre plans to host a series of workshops and training programmes based on current prog- rammes. We also seek to develop/ expand on-line links to support man- agement decisions in the travel and tourism industry and beyond and to establish appropriate links with schools and colleges to facilitate the training of the managers of tomorow.

Members of the Board include: Dr Burhenne (Legal Adviser, IUCN - World

Conservation Union), Jorie Butler Kent (Vice Chairman - Friends of Conserva- tion), Christopher Rodrigues (Chief Ex- ecutive - Thomas Cook),-Elizabeth Dow- deswell (Executive Director - UNEP). Jonathan‘ Porritt (WTTC Environment Adviser), Pierre Jeanniot (Director Gener- al - IATA) and Enriquez Savignac (Secret- ary General - WTO).

Rebecca Hawkins WTTERC

Oxford Brookes University Gipsy Lane

Oxford OX3 OBP, UK

Financial food for thought

The Israel Ministry of Tourism organized the First International Confer- ence on Investments and Financing in the Tourism Industry (ZFTZ) in Jerusalem, 16-21 May 1993, together with the Israel Association of Graduates in the Social Sciences and Humanities. It was co-sponsored by AZEST, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, University of Haifa, the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) and others.

There were 170 participants from 34 countries. The Israel Minister of Tour- ism, Uzi Baram, explained the import- ance of tourism to Israel. ‘The goal for 1993 is 2 million visitors, as a laun- ching point for 1994. We hope that by then peace will be closer.’ Prof. Abra- ham Friedman (The Hebrew Universi- ty of Jerusalem) indicated the import- ance of human resources organization.

One of four keynote papers was delivered by Geoffrey Lipman (Direc- tor General, WTTC) who declared that: ‘Travel and tourism is the world’s largest industry, accounting for one in every 15 jobs and 13% of.consumer spending, and one of the fastest grow- ing industries. Global growth is fore- cast at 4% to 5% per annum up to 2005 and in Asia 7% to 10%. Travel and tourism must increasingly attract investment not only into profit- making facilities such as hotels and entertainment, but also into infras- tructure for which government sup- port is crucial - creating jobs and wealth, stimulating growth and re-

generating underdeveloped regions. Development banks and the private sector increasingly realize the profita- bility of investment in these fields.’ Prof. Jafar Jafari (University of Wis- consin - Stout; President, Intemation- al Academy for the Study of Tourism) spoke on ‘Anchoring Tourism Pro- jects on a Scientific Foundation: Pros- pects for Sustainable Tourism De- velopment’. Leonard J Lickorish (European Tourism Action Group ETAG and European Travel Commis- sion ETC) summarized the develop- ment of tourism in, to and from Europe and Prof. Robert Lanquar (Plan Bleu) the future of Mediterra- nean tourism and the need for intema- tional cooperation.

The main subject was ‘National and public investment and development policies’, with papers on China, Egypt, Ethiopia, Israel, Nigeria, Por- tugal, Russia and Turkey.

Regional development and projects were described in Brazil, Cyprus, Ghana, South Africa, Tanzania and at

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the Dead Sea and in the Negev (Israel).

Hallmark events (including Man- chester’s bid for the 1996 Olympics), developing shopping (eg in Eilat and Amsterdam) and other aspects of urban development were presented with examples (Jerusalem and Che- mainus, Canada). Problems and opportunities for rural tourism in France and in Israel (especially in Galilee) were discussed.

Financial aspects presented in- cluded financial and operational lever- age in the UK, offshore financial cen- tres and the financial practices of the Inter-American Development Bank in the tourism sectors of the Caribbean and Latin-American countries. The banker’s point of view (Israel Dis- count Bank) stressed that business plans must be market related and take into account management and market- ing quality, competition and ‘what-if scenarios.

Research included studies of Quebec financial institutions; tourism investments in Flanders; the impact of investment incentives on the potential investor and on employment; the effects of national and corporate cul- tures (eg at EuroDisney); the rela- tionship between security risk and tourism investment policies in Middle East destinations. Changes in the structure of the Israel hotel industry from 1981 to 1991 were analysed. An example of a data centre in Argentina gathering the experiences of other countries was presented, as were com- puterized management information systems in Israel - with analyses into seasonality, trend-cycles and the effects of unusual events. The import- ance of education for tourism was discussed, exemplified by Brazil and Poland.

Environmental control is now a priority for many countries, with pap- ers for Cameroon and Israel, but neg- lected by some, eg Sri Lanka. Tourism developers must invest in environmen- tal protection and monitoring today, or pay much more for clean-up and rehabilitation tomorrow.

Other subjects included com- munication to potential investors; hotel grading; investing in the Canada-Japan educational exchange

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