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DOI: https://doi.org/10.35692/07183992.14.1.11
EARLY ADOPTERS’ PHILOSOPHIES, PRACTICES AND
PERSPECTIVES ON ECO-TOURISM AND ECO-CERTIFICATION:
THE CASE OF ECOTOURISM IN JAMAICA
FILOSOFÍAS, PRÁCTICAS Y PERSPECTIVAS DE LOS PRIMEROS ADOPTADORES DEL
ECOTURISMO Y LA ECOCERTIFICACIÓN: EL CASO DEL ECOTURISMO EN JAMAICA
Natalya R. Browna • Anahit Armenakyanb • Linda A. Piperc
Classication: Empirical paper – research
Received: June 29, 2020 / Revised: October 6, 2020 / Accepted: January 15, 2021
Abstract
This paper examines business philosophies, sustainable practices, and attitudes towards eco-certication of pio-
neering tourism operators engaged in ecotourism in the mature ‘sun and beach’ destination of Jamaica. We conducted
a thematic analysis of the data collected from semi-structured interviews with managers and owners, and observations
from on-site visits with establishments identied as ecotourism operators in Jamaica. We identied ve distinct busi-
ness philosophies that guided our participants' operations: presenting Jamaica in a holistic way, preserving the natural
and cultural environment, community support, economic sustainability and incentivized preservation, and operational
independence. The tourism operations in our study primarily engage in sustainable practices as a means of attaining
operational independence. Meanwhile, participants held mixed attitudes towards eco-certication. There was signi-
cant overlap between our ndings and the existing conceptual UNWTO framework for ecotourism. We found strong
evidence for the role of education as the dening characteristic of ecotourism. Varying attitudes towards and awareness
of sustainability and conservation of the country’s cultural and natural assets limit the amount of community consulta-
tion in planning and development of these enterprises.
Keywords: Ecotourism, Jamaica, sustainable tourism, business philosophy, eco-certication.
Resumen
Este artículo analiza las losofías comerciales, las prácticas sustentables y las actitudes hacia la ecocerticación de
los operadores turísticos pioneros que participan en el ecoturismo en el destino maduro de “sol y playa” de Jamaica.
Realizamos un análisis temático sobre los datos recopilados de entrevistas semiestructuradas con gerentes y propie-
tarios, y observaciones de visitas en el sitio con establecimientos identicados como operaciones de ecoturismo en
Jamaica. Identicamos cinco losofías empresariales distintas que guiaron las operaciones de nuestros participantes:
presentar a Jamaica de manera holística, preservar el entorno natural y cultural, el apoyo de la comunidad, la soste-
nibilidad económica y la preservación incentivada, y la independencia operativa. Las operaciones turísticas en nues-
tro estudio se dedican principalmente a prácticas sustentables como un medio para lograr la independencia operativa.
Mientras tanto, los participantes tenían diversas actitudes hacia la ecocerticación. Hubo una superposición signica-
tiva entre nuestros hallazgos y el marco conceptual existente de la Organización Mundial del Turismo (OMT) para el
a Nipissing University, School of Business and the Department of Political Science, Philosophy and Economics, North Bay, ON, Canada.
E-mail: natalyab@nipissingu.ca
b Nipissing University, School of Business, North Bay, ON, Canada. E-mail: anahita@nipissingu.ca
b Nipissing University, School of Business, North Bay, ON, Canada. E-mail: lindapiper@gmail.com
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Introduction
Ecotourism, a form of nature-based and responsible
tourism, comprises a small but growing subsector of the
tourism industry, offering a different product and, per-
haps, attracting a different kind of visitor than other types
of tourism (Wall, 1997; World Tourism Organization
(UNWTO), 2012). Meanwhile, the academic literature on
ecotourism has grown at a signicant rate (10% to 30%
per year) in recent years (Shasha et al., 2020). Ecotour-
ism is closely associated with promoting environmental
stewardship (Hunt & Harbor, 2019). Value-driven entre-
preneurs play a critical role in creating the ecotourism
product, attracting and educating tourists, and promot-
ing community development and job-creation (Jones &
Spadafora, 2016). However, there is a gap in the literature
with respect to the role of entrepreneurs in shaping the
nature of ecotourism (Thompson et al., 2018). Academics,
institutions, and policymakers have primarily dened
what constitutes ecotourism; however, ecotourism activ-
ities adapt to local conditions (Gezon, 2014) and there
should be space to recognize and incorporate the inter-
pretations, capacities and motivations of entrepreneurs
(Thompson et al., 2018). Greater attention on the reali-
ties and lived experiences of small-business owners in
tourism could provide profound insights into their beliefs
and practices with respect to sustainability (Kornilaki
et al., 2019). Furthermore, Gezon (2014) argues the need
for location-specic environmental and socio-economic
sustainability objectives. Our exploratory qualitative
research adds much needed insight into the perspectives of
tourism operators engaged in ecotourism and contributes
to the literature on the emergence of ecotourism in a
mature tourist destination primarily known for ‘sun and
beach’ tourism. With the expansion of ecotourism oper-
ations globally, the need for quality control contributed
to the development of eco-certication programs (Honey
& Stewart, 2002). Eco-certication and eco-labels have
been used as both policy tools and marketing tools. We
explore the attitudes of tourism entrepreneurs towards
eco-certication and certifying bodies, as well.
Our research objective is to ll the existing gap in
the literature by examining the business philosophies,
sustainable practices, and attitudes towards eco-certication
of ecotourism operators in a mature ‘sun and beach’ destina-
tion, with the aim to answer three main research questions:
1. What are the business philosophies of these tour-
ism operators?
2. What sustainable technology, techniques and/or
practices are these operators employing?
3. What are operators’ attitudes towards and experi-
ences with certication and certication bodies?
We believe Jamaica provides an interesting context in
which to compare the academic ideals of ecotourism with
entrepreneurial perspectives and practices. In Jamaica,
tourism is a priority and trends towards mass tourism, with
a high concentration of tourism activities on the North-
ern coastal region of the Caribbean island. While tour-
ism contributes considerably to Jamaica’s gross domestic
product (GDP) (Statistical Institute of Jamaica, n.s.), the
environmental costs of the industry are signicant and
the distribution of benets from this growing sector has
been socially and spatially uneven (Dodman, 2009; Thom-
as-Hope & Jardine-Comrie, 2007). Jamaica’s main tour-
ism product is centred on ‘sun and beach,’ making it highly
sensitive to climate change and other environmental
challenges (Hyman, 2014). Those engaged in the burgeon-
ing ecotourism industry face challenges as they go against
the mainstream to offer unique experiences and diverse
presentations of Jamaica. While the ecotourism opera-
tions are steadily increasing on the island, research on the
ecotourism landscape as well as the implementation of
eco-certication standards in Jamaica is very limited.
We nd diversity in the application of ecotourism
ideals and some overlap between academic and entrepre-
neurial views of ecotourism. Specically, education, scale,
impact, shared benets, and ethics emerge as important
themes. The ecotourism industry in Jamaica appears to be
fragmented with high dependency on a small number of
individuals threatening its sustainability. Attitudes towards
sustainable tourism and varying levels of education are
among the barriers to community support and participation.
Entrepreneurs must work to improve local communities’
perceptions of the benets of their operations.
ecoturismo. Encontramos una fuerte evidencia del papel de la educación como la característica denitoria de la ope-
ración de ecoturismo. Las actitudes diversas y la conciencia de la sustentabilidad y la conservación de los bienes cul-
turales y naturales del país limitan la cantidad de consultas comunitarias en la planicación y el desarrollo de estas
empresas.
Palabras clave: ecoturismo, Jamaica, turismo sustentable, losofía de negocios, ecocerticación.
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In the next section, we provide a discussion of the rel-
evant literature on ecotourism, sustainable practices and
eco-certication. We then provide a brief overview of the
tourism industry in Jamaica and describe our research
methodology and data. Subsequently, we present our
results and analysis, followed by the discussion section.
We conclude with the implications and limitations of our
study, and suggestions for future research.
Related Literature
Ecotourism is a concept surrounded by much confu-
sion (Bjork, 2000; D’Ayala, 1995; Wilson et al., 2014).
According to Bjork (2000), the term ‘ecotourism’ has been
widely adopted and appropriated; Cosmescu & Cosmescu
(2007, p. 66) suggest that it emerged as a “reaction against
more traditional forms of mass tourism.” Ecotourism is
largely viewed as a way to prevent or reduce the most
destructive aspects of mass tourism or as the antithesis
of mass tourism. However, the boundaries between con-
ventional tourism and ecotourism are porous (Jones &
Spadafora, 2016). Figgis (2000, p. 24) expressed con-
cern that the idea of ecotourism could be distorted as “it
can cause protected areas to be regarded primarily as eco-
nomic resources.” The term is interchangeably used in
tourism research in relation to different types of tourism
such as nature-, adventure-, outdoor-, wildlife-, farm-,
and/or culture-tourism in terms of its attractions and
activities. At the same time, it is referred to in discussions
of alternative-, responsible-, sustainable-, and/or com-
munity-tourism in terms of its principles and practices
(Wilson et al., 2014). Gonzalez Fonseca (2012) refers
to it as an alternative tourism, which emphasizes small
numbers of tourists in authentic or cultural settings.
In early iterations, the idea of ecotourism involved
creating a balance between economic development
and environmental conservation (Grenier et al., 1993;
Shanklin, 1993). The idea expanded to include cultural
preservation in order to emphasize sustainability with
respect to both the environment and culture or heritage
(Ayala, 1996). Miller & Kaae (1993) view the wide vari-
ety of denitions attributed to ecotourism as a continuum
ranging from the view that all tourism is ecotourism to
the view that pure ecotourism is impossible to achieve.
Within the continuum of human responsibility, partici-
pants passively seek to minimize harm or take action to
protect resources. On the passive end, Muloin (1992),
Zell (1992), and Figgis (1993) require that participants
in ecotourism merely be sensitive to the environment or
avoid damage of the environment. On the active end
of the continuum, Ziffer (1989), Valentine (1993), and
Richardson (1993) state that participants are expected to
contribute to the protection and management of the natu-
ral environment.
Bjork (2000) synthesizes previous denitions of eco-
tourism and the relations between participants to generate
a comprehensive denition of ecotourism as an activity
where all stakeholders (i.e., authorities, industry players,
and tourists) cooperate in order to create genuine areas
for tourists to appreciate and admire, without exploita-
tion of the resources, while contributing to sustainability.
This denition contains both passive and active elements
and adds the requirement that the host community must
be involved in the development process, making ecotour-
ism a more demanding form of tourism than nature tour-
ism or adventure tourism. Newsome et al., (2002) expand
on this concept by adding the learning or educational ele-
ment of ecotourism that really distinguishes it from other
forms of nature-based tourism.
Although a generally accepted denition of ecotour-
ism does not exist, there is wide acceptance of certain
fundamentals that distinguish ecotourism from other
forms of tourism. Fennell (2015, p. 17) denes ecotour-
ism as “travel with a primary interest in the natural his-
tory of a destination... and a form of nature-based tourism
that places about nature rst-hand emphasis on learn-
ing, sustainability (conservation and local participations/
benets), and ethical planning, development and man-
agement.” The UNWTO (2002) denes the following
ve characteristics of ecotourism:
1. All nature-based forms of tourism where the main
motivation of the tourists is the observation and
appreciation of nature, as well as the traditional
cultures prevailing in natural areas.
2. It contains educational and interpretation features.
3. It is generally, but not exclusively, organised by
specialised tour operators for small groups. Ser-
vice provider partners at the destinations tend to be
small locally owned businesses.
4. It minimises negative impacts on the natural and
socio-cultural environment.
5. It supports the maintenance of natural areas that
are used as ecotourism attractions by generating
economic benets for host communities, organi-
sations, and authorities managing the natural areas
with conservation purposes; providing alternative
employment and income opportunities for local
communities, and increasing awareness towards
the conservation of natural and cultural assets, both
among locals and tourists.
Note that the main distinction between Fennell’s
(2015) and the UNWTO’s (2002) denitions is that the
latter adds the requirement that ecotourism be generally,
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but not exclusively, organized for small groups. In addi-
tion, Fennell (2015) argues that we should view ecotour-
ism in a site-specic manner; that is, location and context
matter. To guide our inquiry and inform our interview
questions in this study, which compares the academic
and institutional views of ecotourism with entrepreneur-
ial perspectives and practices, we used the denitions of
Fennell (2015) and the UNWTO (2002).
Jones & Spadafora (2016) detail how in the late 1970s
several tourism operators with strong environmental
principles and international connections spearheaded the
emergence of the commercial market for ecotourism in
Costa Rica and how the interests and attitudes of tourism
operators were shaped by the international counterculture
that emphasized authenticity and opposed materialism.
Thompson et al. (2018, p. 274), challenges the “dogmatic
nature of ecotourism” vaunted by scholars, institutions
and policymakers, arguing that there should be room to
recognize and incorporate the working experiences of
entrepreneurs “who implement the concept according to
their understanding, capacities, and motivations.” In their
study of Malaysian tourism operators, Thompson et al.
(2018) describe a situation in which entrepreneurs have
varying interpretations of ecotourism accompanied with
varying desires to full their interpretations, while envi-
ronmental sustainability comes second to the sustain-
ability of business operations. Thompson et al. (2018)
conclude that the relationship between ecotourism and
entrepreneurship is evolving, and while there may be
some consensus on the core principles of ecotourism in
academia, it is not the case for practitioners.
Ideally, ecotourism generates additional income for
local communities and contributes to the protection and
conservation of natural resources. In practice, environ-
mental sustainability does not necessarily lead to social
equity, as tensions exist between environmental sus-
tainability and social justice (Gezon, 2014). Ecotourism
development is more sustainable if the local community
is supportive and is actively involved in its design and
development (Vincent & Thompson, 2002). The removal
or reduction of the negative impact of tourism on the
environmental dimension does not guarantee community
support for ecotourism development. Successful devel-
opment requires that the perspectives of the local com-
munity are factored into the policy and planning process
(Nunkoo & Ramkissoon, 2009, 2011a). In addition to the
perceived benets from tourism, community satisfaction
is an important variable in understanding community sup-
port (Nunkoo & Ramkissoon, 2011b). Therefore, entre-
preneurs in ecotourism have additional obligations to
the community than those engaged in conventional
tourism.
Kornilaki et al. (2019) use self-efcacy to explain
gaps between the attitudes of tourism operators and their
behaviours with respect to sustainable practices, while
placing tourism operators into three categories – activ-
ists, eco-savers, and apathetic. Activists are proactively
involved in sustainability practices, sensitive to environ-
mental and sociocultural issues, and their behaviour is
driven by altruistic values and beliefs. Eco-savers imple-
ment sustainability practices on an ad hoc basis, are not
entirely altruistic, and are motivated by economic con-
cerns. Finally, the apathetic do not engage in sustain-
ability practices unless driven by economic reasons and
are generally unconcerned about the impact of their
business on the environment. Kornilaki et al. (2019) con-
clude that external factors, such as situational constraints,
socio-economic conditions, and institutional factors,
inuence self-efcacy, which in turn inuences the oper-
ators’ sustainability intentions and behaviours.
Previous research shows that entrepreneurs in the
tourism sector believe that environmentally sustain-
able practices can contribute to an enterprise’s image
and competitiveness (e.g., Fotiadis et al., 2013; Penny,
2007). Thus, tourism operators can acquire competi-
tive advantages through the development of new prod-
ucts and services, the optimization of production and
delivery, and marketing (Rangone, 1999). Gonzales
Fonseca (2012) argues that there is a mutually bene-
cial relationship when ecotourism projects integrate the
community. However, ecotourism operators face sig-
nicant challenges when implementing and maintaining
sustainable practices. Baddley & Font (2011) place the
challenges to implementing sustainable practices into
three categories – nancial, human, and what they refer
to as a ‘green gap.’ Financial challenges include real or
perceived nancial costs associated with the implemen-
tation and limited access to investment capital. Human
challenges include resistance to change, lack of qualied
staff, and the inability to plan. Finally, the ‘green gap’
reects the dissonance between what customers claim to
want and their actual purchasing behaviour. Other chal-
lenges identied in the literature include low external and
internal pressure, a low-risk business attitude, and lack of
awareness or knowledge (Cordiero & Vieira, 2012; Galia
& Legros, 2004; Hoevenagel et al., 2007; Mazur, 2012;
Pinget et al., 2015). External pressures to implement sus-
tainable practices stem primarily from the enterprises’
business environment and include suppliers, competitors,
and customers (Hoevenagel et al., 2007). Meanwhile,
the sources of internal pressures are owners, managers,
and employees (Hoevenagel et al., 2007). Baddley &
Font (2011, p. 213) found that tourism service provid-
ers prioritize competing concerns about health and safety
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and quality assurance, and that savings derived from
low-cost environmental investments were “more likely
to be ploughed into improvements in [health and safety]
than into expensive environmental measures.” As such,
we examine the sustainable technology, techniques and/
or practices employed by tourism operators engaged in
ecotourism in Jamaica.
Tourism operators use eco-certication to signal to
consumers the degree to which their enterprises are func-
tioning sustainably using it as a customer acquisition
tactic. Eco-certication involves an independent agency
(e.g., a governmental agency, a non-governmental orga-
nization, or an industry association), assessing or verify-
ing that certain specic sustainable practices are followed
in the production or provision of a given good or service.
Buckley (2012) posits that environmental certication
programs fall under the broader umbrella of voluntary
corporate social responsibility reporting and that to
some extent certication can substitute for sustainability
reporting. Buckley (2012, p. 89) nds that current eco-
certication approaches fail to deliver tangible improve-
ments in environmental outcomes and that “most private
tourism enterprises and industry associations want cheap
and easy eco-certication as a minor component in mar-
keting strategies.” Yeo & Piper (2011) argue that enter-
prises must weigh the uncertain benets of increased
revenue from potential consumers with preferences for
certied businesses against the certain costs associated
with acquiring and maintaining certication. Given the
proliferation of eco-certication programs, consumers
nd it difcult to determine the value of a given eco-
certication program (Yeo & Piper, 2011). Our nal
research question probes operators’ attitudes towards and
experiences with certication and certication bodies.
Eco-tourism in Jamaica
Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the travel and tour-
ism sector was one of the world’s largest, generating
over 10% of global GDP and supporting 1 in 10 jobs in
the world (World Travel and Tourism Council [WTTC],
2020). Within the travel and tourism sector, ecotour-
ism, broadly dened as nature-related tourism, is con-
sidered as one of the fastest growing segments (World
Tourism Organization, [UNWTO], 2012). In 2019, travel
and tourism contributed 13.9% of GDP in the Caribbean,
highlighting its relative importance in the region (WTTC,
2020). By focusing on ecotourism, countries such as
Costa Rica and Kenya have positioned themselves as
alternative destinations to those offering conventional
‘sun, sea, and sand’ tourism (Almeyda et al., 2010;
Gonzalez Fonseca, 2012). When it comes to islands, the
relationship between tourism and environmental sustain-
ability is additionally complex, as tourism can be conned
by island sustainability and vice versa (Kelman, 2019).
The island of Jamaica is a mature ‘sun and beach’ tour-
ist destination with the industry established there from
the late 19th century (McLeod et al., 2018). As Jamaica’s
largest industry, travel and tourism supported a third of
total employment and contributed 31.1% and 56.7%
of the total GDP and total exports, respectfully (WTTC,
2020). Visitors from the US and Canada account for 82%
of all arrivals to Jamaica, and international spending
accounts for 79% of spending in the island’s travel and
tourism sector (WTTC, 2020). All-inclusive resorts dom-
inate the Jamaican accommodation sector, accounting for
the majority of room capacity and experiencing signi-
cantly higher occupancy rates than alternative accommo-
dations (McLeod et al., 2018).
Ecotourism was explicitly identied as a priority sec-
tor by the CARIFORUM countries, a regional organiza-
tion of independent Caribbean countries of which Jamaica
is a member (Wilson et al., 2014). While Jamaica has
tried to recast itself as an ecotourism destination (Lopez
Torregrosa, 2016), progress in the area has been slow
(McLeod et al., 2018). Despite the drop in tourism move-
ments worldwide and the tightening of travel restrictions
due to the impact of COVID-19, we expect the tourism
sector worldwide and in Jamaica, specically, to rebound
eventually given that the island is already taking steps on
the path to post-COVID tourism (Montevago, 2020). The
slowdown presents an opportunity to implement changes
and to reshape the sector into one that is more inclusive,
sustainable, and responsible (UNWTO, 2020b).
Methodology
In order to answer our research questions, we conducted
14 semi-structured interviews with managers and owners
(45-65 minutes on average) as well as undertaking on-site
visits for direct observations with tourism operations in
Jamaica between April 2011 and February 2014. The list
of operations was identied via Google search and Tri-
pAdvisor using the following key phrases: “ecotourism
in Jamaica,” “nature tourism in Jamaica,” “sustainable
tourism in Jamaica,” “responsible tourism in Jamaica,”
and “eco-resorts in Jamaica.” Through this search pro-
cess, we compiled a list of 25 operations and contacted
the management of each operation via a recruitment
email, followed up with a phone call. Of the 25 opera-
tions, 14 agreed to participate in the study, with 18 man-
agers and owners agreeing to do face-to-face interviews.
We believe this number of interviews allowed us to
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achieve inductive and a priori thematic saturation (Saun-
ders et al., 2018).
The tourism operations varied in product offerings,
scale of operations, location, and the length of time they
had been in operation. Eight of the operations offered
activities such as different natural tours (e.g., hiking,
birdwatching, medical plants, etc.) or adventure tours
(e.g., tubing, or horseback riding), while six operations
offered accommodation along with specialized tours.
The smallest operation had 2-3 staff members and could
accommodate a maximum of 16 visitors per day. Mean-
while, the largest operation employed 130 staff members
and could accommodate 2,200 visitors/day. Five of the
operations were located in the North-eastern region of
Jamaica, three - off the central North coast of the island,
three - in the Western region, two - off the South coast,
and one - in the hilly interior of the island. The major-
ity of the businesses in our study had been in operation
for at least a decade, with four established prior to 1980.
Only two of the operations started within ve years of
data collection. The participants ranged in age from 30 to
65 years, and included 11 men and 7 women.
We asked the interview participants about the scale
and scope of their operations, their business philosophy,
sustainable techniques and practices, their relationship
with the local community, and the means through which
they promoted themselves and acquired customers. The
interviews were audio-recorded and then transcribed. In
addition, one member of the research team took obser-
vation notes while on location at each operation. We
conducted a thematic analysis of the interviews and
observation notes in order to identify, analyse, and report
reoccurring themes (Braun & Clarke, 2006; Vaismoradi
et al., 2016). Our research was inductive as our goal was
to identify relations and patterns in the data from which
theories could be developed (Hyde, 2000). We followed
a process of generating codes, reviewing and revising
codes, and then determining the reliability of the coders
and identing sub-themes and themes with any disagree-
ments in the interpretations being resolved via back-and-
forth discussions among researchers (Boyatzis, 1998).
Figure 1 details our ve-phase thematic analysis process
and the roles of each researcher.
Figure 1. Phases of Thematic Analysis
Researchers went through each step separately taking time to familiarize themselves
with each interview and taking time to step back between reading and re-reading.
Phase l-Initialization:
- Interview transcription
- Reading & re-reading
- Reflective notes
Each researcher organized and compared the codes based on similarities and
differences to generate potential themes in later stages.
Researchers captured words and/or phrases reflective of participants´ thoughts.
Given the specific cultural context, researchers compared their notes to reveal
and resolve any potential cultural interpretation issues.
Phase 2-Construction:
Classifying & Comp aring
- Labelling
- Translating
- Defíning
Researchers engaged in active revision of codes identified in earlier stages
to generate themes.
Researchers exchanged, compared, and discussed their respective analyses
to take on an "outsider" perspective and maintain a sense of self-criticism.
Researchers revised separately indentified themes to redraw, regroup,
re-cluster whenever needed to indentify distinctive sets of themes.
Phase 3-Searching
& Rectification:
- Clustering/Grouping
- Immersion & Distancing
- Revision
Researchers engaged in in-depth literature review.
Researchers described the themes.
Phase 4-StaMlizúig:
- Relating themes to
e stablished knowledge
- Stabilizing
Phase 5-Report:
Producing the report Researchers generated the final report linking themes
and developing the story line.
Researcher 1: Interviewer, observation note-taker, native Jamaican, transcriber
Researcher 2: Non-Jamaican - intentionally "distant" from data collection
Researcher 3: Interviewer, observation note-taker, non-Jamaican, transcriber
Source: Adapted from Braun and Clarke (2006) and Vaismoradi et al. (2016).
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Results and Analysis
Business Philosophies
During the interviews, we asked the managers and own-
ers of the tourism operations to describe their business
philosophies and how they relate to ecotourism. Five
main themes emerged as distinct business philosophies
for our study participants: presenting Jamaica in a holis-
tic way; preserving the natural and cultural environment;
community support; economic sustainability and incen-
tivized preservation; and operational independence.
“As is”: The rst theme that emerged was “present-
ing Jamaica in a holistic way.” Participants felt that
one of their main objectives was to present the natural
environment and cultural environment of Jamaica in an
authentic way. The manager of one operation described
their operation as “just being really natural, trying to
use what’s amazing about Jamaica, you know, like not
trying to make it a western place in Jamaica” (Participant
1). While very vocal about presenting Jamaica in a holis-
tic way, our interviewees placed emphasis on presenting
the cultural dimension relative to presenting Jamaica’s
natural environment, emphasizing the importance of
visitors’ interaction with local people in everyday
settings. Participants articulated the importance of edu-
cating both tourists and locals about Jamaica’s cultural
heritage. One manager described the experience of a
typical guest saying, “The whole week that they stay with
us they’re immersed in the culture, going on the different
tours and they’re given the history” (Participant 2). In
describing his philosophy another owner said,
“You have to go and dance, have a whole street dance,
and da whole vibes ... And tell you about the trees, and the
herbs, and the spices, and the ingredients used for cooking...
To have you learn about the country in a broader aspect…I
look at what I have to offer in terms of what tourism is. It’s
not so much the commercialized area no more, but rather
what is that Jamaica could offer to persons visiting...I want
you to walk through it as is, to say, this is Jamaica ... in its
most natural form. So ‘eco’ to me ...is to present my prod-
ucts as is, but nd a way to teach and inform about what is
it that this property or Jamaica, broader aspect, would have
to offer you. For you to go back and say you learned some-
thing about Jamaica, but you actually get to see nature in
its normal state...”(Participant 3)
Our participants did not want to present a sanitized
version of Jamaica; instead, they emphasized the island’s
uniqueness in a holistic way. In the words of one man-
ager, her operation’s mission was
“...to provide interesting, fullling, learning experi-
ence for the visitor without any negative, or minimizing
the negative impacts on the physical environment, and
taking the social environment into consideration as well,
and making sure that it was socially viable for them, which
is essential. ... which is very holistic.” (Participant 4)
“Back to Basics”: The second theme that emerged
was preservation of both the natural environment and the
cultural heritage of the communities in which our partici-
pants operated. When it came to discussing preservation,
the preservation of the natural environment dominated
the discussion. As the manager of a large property stated,
“There’s an aspect of this place that is untouchable and
that’s the way it should be” (Participant 1). Another man-
ager echoed, “It’s really just back to basics.... We just
want to keep it pure and keep it basic... back to nature”
(Participant 2). The manager of another operation
described their environmental preservation measures:
“[The company] has gone to great lengths to acquire
all the lands that are within that basin. So, and it’s like
a watershed area and of course it’s basically to be pre-
served. Nothing is to happen there. So, they’re making
sure that the integrity of that area remains... we denitely
go to great lengths to preserve the canopy up there, to
ensure that that is just not disturbed.” (Participant 6)
The importance of natural preservation led a number
of operators to engage in active protection and lobbying
activities. One owner of another large-scale operation
successfully blocked the development of a hydro plant
using the economic case for tourism saying “we wanted
to stop a hydro power plant being built there, so you
needed to do some sort of tourism.... Because, when they
did the study for hydro it came out more positive for tour-
ism than a hydro thing” (Participant 7). The same owner
stated, “The goal was to preserve the place ... it’s about
sustaining it. We were here so we want to hand it down
to the next generation.” Another operator also expressed
concern for future generations:
“But one of the main things too is that I would like to
see this area being properly protected. This is the largest
wetland in Jamaica. A large section of [the wetland] that
is known … But I would like to see this lower section pro-
tected and ... left as is. Because if not, in years to come,
I think the younger generation might say, you know, the
folks, they let this place go to ruin.” (Participant 8)
“Don’t just give a man a sh, teach him how to sh”:
The third theme that emerged was community support. It
was important to the tourism operators that they support
the local community in which they operate in a variety
of ways. All of our participants took steps to ensure local
sourcing for key inputs such as stafng, food, building
materials, and crafts. It was important to all of the
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participants that their employees come from the immedi-
ate local community. As one owner said, “I would say all
of my folks live within maybe six- or eight-mile radius of
here” (Participant 8); while another manager explained,
“we have a policy ... to employing people within
20 km of the hotel” (Participant 10). For one owner, it
was important that his enterprise provide consistent long-
term employment for his community. He said,
“...that also boils down to me wanting to keep every-
one working too, you know? Because a lot of these guys –
I mean they want to work here. Everyone who I got pretty
much was unemployed before. So, they all want to work...
You know, they’re not lazy, they are willing. So that’s what
we want to do is try to nd a consistency where everyone
can work at least ve or six days a week.” (Participant 11)
Another owner spoke of their desire to offer employ-
ment to members of the community with physical or
mental challenges, who would normally have difculty
nding employment,
“All our staff comes from the local community and
someone recently said to us jokingly that, but perhaps
with a pinch of the truth, we try to do a lot with what most
large institutions call rejects. So, we have quite a few
members of the staff who have some physical challenge
or in some case a little mental challenge as well. And
just work with them, give them the opportunity. So, we
have one guy who’s almost deaf, another one who stam-
mers, and a third one... we do try and focus on supporting
women.... I think our form of assisting is really fair trade,
and providing employment. ... And providing people with
a sustainable form of income generation ... And we try
and provide some steady employment for those who work
for us. So, what we have is we have a small core team,
and we do whatever we can to keep them and not have to
lay them off in hard times...” (Participant 4)
Two participants insisted on indigenous and sustain-
able crafts and souvenirs, that is, they would not purchase
souvenirs or allow the selling of crafts at their establish-
ments unless they were authentic and used sustainably
sourced materials. One said, “Whenever you see carv-
ings or art at all over the place, lots of it is authentic and
you say it’s nice to promote local and buy local Jamaica
things” (Participant 1), while the other emphasized that
the expectations from artisans to maintain sustainable
practices: “we have people who come in and... sell craft
items, they can’t sell certain things. Coral is banned,
some of the shell sh they cannot just go and get and
sell” (Participant 10).
Four participants had assisted in or carried out infra-
structure improvements (e.g., roads, parks) that would
benet the wider community; “we’ve made the road
better” (Participant 7). Another manager indicated,
“...there’s a little park you notice in the town, that’s
also part of the land. [Our owner] is planning on refur-
bishing the community centre which was damaged in the
hurricane some years ago. [The] bus stop on the highway
was really covered with bush. The government is actually
supposed to clean it, and they didn’t. So, we just adopted
it, and we started cleaning it out but we’re going to go
put in garbage bins there ... The roads ran, are being
xed, you’ll notice marl has been put on some of the …,
ll in the potholes.” (Participant 2)
Generally, food and other inputs were also sourced
from the local community; “we buy as much as possi-
ble from local suppliers, we support cottage industries”
(Participant 4). Some saw local food supply as a way to
control the quality of their own offerings,
“There’s one guy, who raises his own chickens, we do
that, and we purchase from him bananas, yams, a lot of
vegetables he grows, we get the eggs from him as well. So,
we try to partner with the local people and... we want to
be able to have the organic supplement.” (Participant 2)
All the participants in our study established mutually
benecial business partnerships and collaborations with
local businesses. Six operations provided access to their
property to local residents or businesses for free or for a
nominal fee. For example, one manager described their
lease agreements with local farmers saying,
“We’re in partnership with the local people, that we
have maybe leased them some of the land. Very little, some
for nothing, in exchange for just watching the borders
because you know, to keep squatters off. And they do farm-
ing there and we purchase from them.” (Participant 2)
The most important form of community support,
however, was through education: “Don’t just give a man
a sh, teach him how to sh” (Participant 4). All four-
teen operations had established educational founda-
tions or directly supported local schools or educational
programs. One of the participants emphasized the ‘big
brother’ approach for community involvement:
“So, we have a foundation set up that has money to
help support and educate local school children around the
area … We do have local school programs that we support,
and we had went out and we’d picked a school to, what
would you call it, a big brother, you know.” (Participant 9)
“Win-win all around”: The fourth theme that
emerged was economic sustainability and incentivized
preservation. While most participants believed in the
ethical arguments for ecotourism, the economic argu-
ment for conservation and preservation was a key factor
in their decision-making. One manager described his line
of thinking saying, “Is there a way to earn from nature
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in its pristine form, and what are the likely things you
would do and how would it benet and be a win-win all
around, both for conservation and protection” (Partici-
pant 12). There was a recognition that the success and
survival of their enterprises necessitated the preservation
of the natural and cultural environments. One participant
indicated that they had decided to forgo a revenue gener-
ating opportunity out of concern for the negative impact,
“We’ve been approached by several of the big enter-
tainers that want to put on a big show here, and we’ve
turned it down even though it’s big money, because the
impact on the environment would be... You’d make some
money but, you’ll be paying for it for a long time with all
the cigarette buts and bottle caps, and plastic cups, and,
so we’ve actually turned down a couple of big names...
I think we still made the right decision even though we
turned and walked away from it.” (Participant 13)
“To be completely independent”: The fth and nal
theme that emerged was operational independence. The
dominant topic in the interviews was resource indepen-
dence as participants expressed the desire to maintain
or gain independence from the local utility companies,
whether it be energy independence by harnessing solar or
wind energy or having their own independent source
of water. As one manager explained,
“Our long-term goal is to be completely indepen-
dent from local power sources. To generate either our
own hydro-electric, or our own solar, as well as wind …
Right now we’re pretty much 97% self-sufcient because
we generate our own power.” (Participant 9)
Another participant boasted, “We’re now powering,
right now with this kind of sunshine we are powering
almost everything right now” (Participant 4). In an effort
to reduce the electricity consumed from the local power
company, one participant explained, “We have upgraded
the water system to run mostly off of gravity... because
that alone saves pumping water all over the property”
(Participant 13). In fact, this desire to reduce dependence
on external sources led to a wide range of sustainable
practices, which we discuss in the next subsection.
The last theme --operational independence-- was the
most the complex of the business philosophies referred
to by our participants. Various practices were described
within the context of the specic nature of the opera-
tors with the use of similar terms and words. In order to
reveal the most frequently used ones, a word frequency
analysis was undertaken via a free online text analy-
ser tool. After some data cleaning (i.e., removal of arti-
cles, conjunctions, spelling corrections, etc.), 387 words
mentioned 716 times were visualized with online word-
cloud software (Figure 2). Water (21), solar (9), energy
(6), compost (5), and electricity (4) were the most fre-
quently used words, highlighting their importance for the
eco-operators. Taking the central position in the cloud,
these words were surrounded by other words such as gar-
dens (3), garbage (3), bins (3), sewage (3), napkins (3),
air (3) and practices such saves (4), separating (3), treat-
ment (3), and remove (2). The visualization allowed us to
notice that eco-operators really (7) want (7) to spend as
little (9) as possible and use (14) as well (8) as possible
the main practices that were deemed essential for the sus-
tainability and operational independence in order to work
(9) now (8) and though the years (6).
Figure 2. Word-cloud – Operational Independence
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Sustainable Practices
As stated previously, the participants in our study
engaged in many sustainable practices out of a desire for
operational independence. Whether it was to avoid the
high cost of the local utilities or the bureaucracy asso-
ciated with the regulatory bodies or to ensure a more
consistent supply of resources or services, several tour-
ism operations invested in renewable energy infrastruc-
ture (such as solar and wind energy), water catchment
and conservation equipment, and organized their own
waste management. Two operations used local designs
and architecture in order to simultaneously preserve cul-
tural heritage and reduce their energy consumption. As
one manager explained, by utilizing traditional Jamaican
architecture they cut back on electricity costs,
“… we cut back on our electricity by designing it so
that we would not have to put in air condition units. So,
we created it with open ventilation air… ensure that it is
preserved and it is integrated – because natural environ-
ment is very much important to us.” (Participant 5)
One manager explained, “In the bottom of our park,
down there, all of our restrooms are totally water absent”
(Participant 9), while another stated, “We use almost by
default, almost only our harvested rain water because we
get very little from the public system, so over the years,
after having recognized this issue, over the years we have
expanded our storage” (Participant 4). Composting was
another waste reduction practice, “... all those leaves,
I can shred it and turn it into manure” (Participant 14).
Another manager indicated,
“We compost of course, which really cuts down on
the amount of waste that we would have to get rid of.
So, we compost, we separate, we do a lot of re-use….
Gardens, no chemicals in the gardens and since you have
the compost of course that works very-very well, and in
the kitchen, again, we have you know, bins for separating
dog, hog, compost.” (Participant 4)
Other efforts to reduce waste included avoiding sin-
gle-use items. One owner explained how they address
the issue of guests asking for straws, “We don’t provide
straws, and most people tend to automatically ask for
straws, and when you sort of say well you drink from
a cup, and that’s what the purpose of a glass is, to drink
too” (Participant 4). Four tourism operations owned
extensive properties and land resting policies meant that
they only used a small portion of their property for com-
mercial purposes. For example, one manager stated, “We
encompass about a hundred acres of which we utilize
about 12%, the rest is set aside to never be disturbed”
(Participant 9).
Interestingly, despite strong community involvement,
with the exception of one participant with a specic man-
date, there was little to no community consultation for the
development and planning of the operations. Five partici-
pants felt that such consultation was either impractical or
unwarranted as attitudes and awareness in the local com-
munity towards issues of sustainability are still limited.
As one owner explained,
“Not in the planning of our operation. I know this
question keeps coming up and I don’t think it is realis-
tic. But ... it can’t be realistic, and I think rst of all you
have to raise their awareness levels before they could
even begin to participate in the decision making process
.” (Participant 4)
During our discussion of sustainable practices, the
participants indicated a few challenges and barriers to
their implementation. The most frequently mentioned
challenges related to the attitudes and level of educa-
tion of staff (particularly when it came to literacy), the
willingness of the local community to engage in the tour-
ism operations, high level of staff turnover, bureaucracy
at industry and governmental levels, lack of government
support, and high import duties the operations face when
trying to make capital investments in sustainable tech-
nology (particularly solar energy). When it came to the
willingness of the local community to engage with some
of the participants in our study, a member of our research
team observed that some operations had a “good rela-
tionship with the locals,” while others were “not very
self-aware of how they might be perceived by the local
community” (Researcher 1). For one participant in
particular, the researcher observed that the “local com-
munity does not seem very keen on the property. [They]
even seem resentful or angry.”
Eco-certication
When we asked participants about their attitudes towards
eco-certication, two of the fourteen operators indicated
that they are not aware of any eco-certication programs
and/or labels, while the rest indicated varying degrees
of awareness ranging from “heard about eco-certica-
tion” to “know a lot”. When prompted to share with us
any known eco-certication labels, six operators could
not recall any label, while one operator listed three. Six
operators were aware of Green Globe, while Blue Flag,
Free Forest Alliance, Earth Check, and Green Key were
each mentioned only once. Figure 3 presents the sum-
mary infographics on eco-certications labels.
At the time of our data collection, only one of the
tourism operations was eco-certied. For this oper-
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ation, the reasons for eco-certication were custom-
er-driven. As the manager explained, “I met a couple
about 2 weeks ago that said they were looking for green
hotels and they’re from Austria and so they group up on a
whole and look for hotels that are Earth Check certied”
(Participant 10). One researcher observed their “certi-
cation diploma on display near check-in” (Researcher 1).
For the remaining operations that were not eco-
certied, seven were not interested at all, while six were
interested or considering eco-certication. For those that
were not interested, the most cited reason for disinterest
was the high cost without a clear return on investment.
Participants were concerned about the cost of annual
audits and the limited marketing benets that came
with certication. Two participants indicated that they
were certied in the past, but let it lapse. One of the owners
explained, “It’s expensive … even with Green Globe 21,
at the time they were offering marketing opportunities,
but to be listed onto their website, they were charging
substantial fees.... Green Globe has no value... All it was
costing us money... But none of it really has market value
here” (Participant 4).
Several felt that their customers did not care about
eco-certication, pointing to the fact that none had ever
mentioned it. The two operations that let their certica-
tion lapse spoke of the cumbersome documentation and
reporting required for maintaining their certication.
One owner complained, “But I mean when they told me
I had to go measure my garbage and the trees or what-
ever has fallen … and the branches, I’m like ‘I can’t do
that’. You know, I said ‘Come on.’” (Participant 7). The
documentation and reporting requirements exert a heavy
burden on small-size owner operated businesses. As one
owner put it,
“The other challenge with certication is that most
of them rely, and I understand it if you’re sitting some-
where in an ofce, how are you going to verify that. You
rely heavy on documentation, and for a small business it
is just too burdensome.” (Participant 4)
Two participants admitted to a lack of awareness of
what eco-certication entails or of certifying organiza-
tions. One owner said, “Well I don’t even know where
to get it from. I have no idea” (Participant 1). Finally,
among those participants who expressed no interest in
being eco-certied, a few pointed to the fact that it was
not a requirement nor was it pushed by the Jamaica Tour-
ist Board. One owner explained that eco-certication
would represent another hurdle to overcome saying, “I’m
not eco certied. We have to be licensed with TPDCO,
which is Tourism Product Development of Jamaica”
(Participant 3).
For the operations that expressed an interest in gain-
ing eco-certication, all cited a lack of clarity of the pro-
cess, requirements, or the benets. For example, one
owner stated,
“Because I don’t think there is clarity. There’s so
many certication programs now all over the world, and
none of them is really … has a brand value or an accep-
tance with the public... None of these certication pro-
grams really market themselves, and that is the reason
why we stopped going for certication, because to us
certication was just the icing on the cake.... It’s very
loose. I think ... it’s one of the things for example that
organizations like TIES and so on should deal with is,
who gets that ecotourism label and who doesn’t. I think
that’s something or whether it’s UNESCO or whoever
deals with these things, that whole thing, there should be
Figure 3. Jamaican Ecotourism Operators’ Eco-Certication Awareness
Not aware at all (2) Cannot recall (6) Know about (6)
Eco-Certification Awareness
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some sort of criteria that you have to meet before you can
use the label.” (Participant 4)
Several of the participants stated that eco-certication
was not a priority and pointed to other organizational
goals that were more pressing. For example, one man-
ager said,
“We started looking at [Green Globe] certication
and that was earlier years. Mandate changed and nance
was a problem because you have to go through a whole
lot of things and I guess we’re not in big protability so
certainly the directors put a hold on it.” (Participant 5)
Discussion
There is signicant diversity in our sample of tourism
operations. Our sample includes operations offering
activities, accommodations, or a combination of both.
The operations varied in size and ownership. Nine of our
operations are small in terms of the number of the clients
they can serve at any given time, while the other ve are
able to serve a large number of tourists. All but two of
the tourism operations we studied are locally owned.
Of these locally owned operations, six are owned by
returning residents – Jamaicans who have resided over-
seas for some time. Five of these operations are located
close to Jamaica’s main tourism hubs, while nine are
located in less accessible locations. In her observation
notes, Researcher 1 used phrases such as “difcult to
nd,” “difcult road to area,” and “feels isolated from
everything else” to describe her trips to some of the oper-
ations. This diversity may account for the different levels
of application of ecotourism ideals that we have observed.
In addition, given the environmental and economic situ-
ation in Jamaica, these tourism operations have different
means and challenges to meet the standards and ideals
of ecotourism. External factors, similar to those stud-
ied by Kornilaki et al. (2019), such as socio-economic
conditions (e.g. education and literacy) and institutional
factors (e.g. industry regulations, customs duties, energy
policy), signicantly impact the behaviour of our partici-
pants with respect to sustainability practices.
Our qualitative analysis produced several themes
when it came to business philosophies, which were
contrasted against a conceptual framework for ecotour-
ism we derived from the literature, specically the de-
nitions of ecotourism provided by Fennell (2015) and the
UNWTO (2002) (Figure 4). In contrasting the conceptual
framework with our ndings, there appears to be signi-
cant congruity between the philosophies and practices of
our tourism operations (Table 1) and the six dimensions
in the framework.
Figure4. Conceptual Framework of Ecotourism adapted from the UNWTO (2002) and Fennell (2015)
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First, it is clear that our tourism operations are
engaged in nature-based tourism with the natural his-
tory of Jamaica as a primary focus. The philosophy of
our participants to present the culture and natural envi-
ronment of Jamaica in a holistic way and their efforts at
preservation of the natural environment are evidence of
this. In addition, closely tied to the presentation and pres-
ervation themes is the education dimension. All of our
operations purposefully educate and inform both tourists
and the local community about Jamaica’s natural and cul-
tural assets, in addition to promoting awareness of the
need for conservation. In regards to size dimension, not
all of the tour operations in our sample would qualify as
small-scale in terms of catering to small groups of trav-
ellers. However, even the large-scale operations exert
signicant effort to control the number of visitors and
take great pains to minimize the negative impact of large
groups. Speaking of impact, the philosophies of preser-
vation and operational independence, provide evidence
of efforts to minimize the negative impact on the natural
environment. The focus of Jamaican eco-tourism opera-
tors on preservation and operational independences res-
onates with concerns raised by Kelman (2019), namely,
a difcult balance between a successful sustainable
business while minimising the footprint through waste
management, alternative energy (solar and hydro), and
sustainable practices of recycling, composting, or mul-
tiple usage. At the same time, the commitment to hiring
within the immediate local community provides evi-
dence of efforts to minimize the negative impact on the
socio-economic environment. The commitment to hire
employees within the immediate local community con-
trasts with what occurs in Jamaica’s mass tourism sec-
tor, where workers often travel a great distance or have
to relocate from their home communities for employ-
ment due to the concentrated spatial distribution of the
all-inclusive resorts. This concentrated spatial distri-
bution of the all-inclusive resorts has led to inadequate
living conditions in areas on the outskirts of tourism hubs
and disruptions to community and family life across the
island (Dodman, 2009). The philosophy of community
support aligns with the benets dimension, as the tour-
ism operations benet their local communities beyond
providing alternative employment. The operations bring
visitors to the community creating positive spill-over.
They provide patronage for local schools and commu-
nity organizations and build or maintain key infrastruc-
ture. Local sourcing and partnerships create linkages for
other small enterprises in the community. Finally, when
considering the ethics dimension, the lack of consultation
of the local community in the planning and development
of their operations is concerning. However, our partici-
pants point to the varying attitudes towards sustainabil-
ity and the lack of awareness in their local communities.
It was quite clear that all our participants were driven
by concerns of mass-tourism impact on Jamaican natural
and cultural environments inuencing “their feelings of
need to take control of events in order to reduce negative
impacts” (Kornilaki et al., 2019, p.107). Our participants
often exhibited a high level of personal responsibility
that, ironically, also came across as a potential weak-
ness as strong individuals with passion single-handedly
led many of the operations with no clear successors on
the horizon, raising the question of the long-term sus-
tainability of these operations. We could not neatly place
the participants in our study into the categories proposed
by Kornilaki et al. (2019). With strong evidence of their
sensitivity to environmental and sociocultural issues and
altruistic beliefs, along with their primary motivation of
operational independence, our participants probably lie
somewhere in between activists and eco-savers.
Table 1. Summary Table of Main Themes of the Current Study
Business Philosophies Sustainable Practices Challenges and Barriers
1. “As is” presenting Jamaica in a holistic way
2. “Back to Basics” preserving the natural and cultural
environment
3. “Don’t just give a man a sh, teach him how to sh”
providing community support:
˗ local employment
˗ indigenous crafts/ souvenirs
˗ infrastructure improvements
˗ local food supply
˗ business partnerships and collaborations
˗ educational programs
4. “Win-win all around” via economic sustainability
and incentivized preservation
5. “To be completely independent” by operational
independence
1. Renewable energy infrastructure (such as solar
and wind energy)
2. Water catchment and conservation equipment
3. Waste management
4. Composting /Natural recycling
5. Plastic minimization/Multi-use items
6. Land resting
7. Energy saving
8. Local design and architecture
1. The attitudes and level of education of staff
(particularly when it came to literacy)
2. The willingness of the local community to
engage with the tourism operations
3. High level of staff turnover
4. Lack of government support
5. Bureaucracy at industry and governmental
levels
6. High import duties
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Our participants came across as innovative entre-
preneurs (i.e., early adopters) in their communities with
strong foreign personal and professional connections,
and with views informed by exposure to wider global
perspectives. While recognizing the importance of com-
munity engagement as a validation of their contribution,
the participants felt signicant work is needed to raise
the awareness in their communities before meaningful
consultation can take place. Meanwhile, arguably, eco-
certication could be seen as a form of external valida-
tion of the ethical actions of the operations of a business.
The impact of eco-certication on the ecotourism indus-
try is still under-investigated. According to Blackman et
al. (2014), the Blue Flag certication in Costa Rica spurs
new hotel investments in luxury hotels in economically
advantaged communities. However, our participant tour-
ism operations are mostly located in economically dis-
advantaged communities and have limited resources for
eco-certication investments. Moreover, the benets
of eco-certication were not obvious to our participants,
while the costs and amount of work required acted as
deterrents. Thus, most of our participants did not feel the
need for that type of external validation, at least not yet.
This nding echoes the results reported by Margaryan
& Stensland (2017) from their study of adoption of eco-
certication among the nature-based tourism companies
in Scandinavia.
Conclusion
The ecotourism industry in Jamaica is diverse in its
offerings and is characterized by operations with dis-
tinct business philosophies that emphasize preserva-
tion, independence, and ties to local communities. Our
study contributes to the understanding of the still largely
under-researched Jamaican tourism and eco-tourism spe-
cically (Shasha et al., 2020). It sheds light on the Jamai-
can ecotourism landscape and adds much needed insight
into the philosophies that guide tourism operators’ stra-
tegic decisions and approaches. All nine operations
that could be characterised as ‘small’ were developed
and managed by enthusiastic individuals with a strong
desire to give back to Jamaica as a country and to invest
in the community with the goal of natural and cultural
preservation, while reaching their entrepreneurial goals.
While such dynamic entrepreneurial spirit is critical for
the success of the tourism operation, it also places high
dependency on one or a few individuals which in turn
may threaten the long-term sustainability of the opera-
tion. Existing research suggests that community support
is essential for the success and longevity of ecotour-
ism undertakings, particularly in smaller communities
(Ashley & Roe, 1998; Brohman, 1996; Simmons, 1994).
At the same time, the degree of community participa-
tion in decision-making should be a subject of careful
consideration due to the fact that full and effective par-
ticipation of local communities while often sought for
is rarely achieved (Garrod, 2003). Our ndings indicate
that, within the Jamaican context, ecotourism operations
are largely seen and perceived as community sponsors
and leaders in terms of employment. Meanwhile the local
communities were not perceived by participants to be
ready to engage in effective and equitable involvement
in the decision-making due to low levels of awareness
and literacy in some of these communities. Varying atti-
tudes towards and awareness of sustainability and con-
servation of the country’s cultural and natural assets limit
the amount of community consultation in planning and
development of these enterprises. Education plays a key
role in explaining the level of community involvement,
and the education dimension overlaps with the commu-
nity support, preservation, and presentation philosophies
of the tourism operations in our study.
Our participants recognized the importance of edu-
cation in the success of their operations and communi-
ties and were therefore sponsoring local schools. While
critical and necessary, these efforts are not enough
for meaningful community involvement in decision-
making. Community talks, round-tables, or any other
activity that taps into local residents’ knowledge base of
the community’s history and nature or increases their per-
ception of contribution and participation could generate
strong support for an ecotourism operation and create a
sense of ownership among community members. How-
ever, such an undertaking would impose a heavy bur-
den for an already resource-deprived small operation.
The formation of an industry association able to spon-
sor a campaign to educate and to raise awareness of sus-
tainability issues so that local communities can take their
rightful place in the planning and development process
would be an appropriate approach. Moreover, our study
revealed the fragmented nature of the Jamaican ecotour-
ism industry, suggesting a need for a united approach to
face the uncertainty of tourism and the travel industry in
a post-pandemic world. An industry association uniting
existing ecotourism operators would allow for collabora-
tion among Jamaican ecotourism operations to improve
the quality and consistency of ecotourism offerings
on the island. Such a collective would also be able to
combine forces in advocating/lobbying and communi-
cating the importance of cultural and natural preserva-
tion in Jamaica. Furthermore, given Fennel’s (2015)
view that ecotourism is site specic, the industry associ-
ation could also develop its own quality control certica-
133
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.35692/07183992.14.1.11
tion program that is appropriate for the Jamaican context
and comes with tangible marketing opportunities. There
is also a need for succession planning, given the high
dependency of the industry on the passion and values of
a small number of key individuals, many of whom are in
their late 50s. There is an opportunity for these individu-
als to mentor and train the next generation of ecotourism
entrepreneurs.
Our research, however, is not without limitations. The
main one relates to the time of data collection. In this
paper, we examined and analysed information collected
from fourteen tourism operators between 2011 and 2014.
While information presented in this study is dated, espe-
cially in light of the worldwide pandemic that has greatly
impacted the tourism industry overall (UNWTO, n.s.), it
is still insightful as it shines light on the importance of
the philosophies adopted by the founders, owners, and
managers of tourism operations and their sustainabil-
ity practices during the emergence of ecotourism on the
island. Now that many countries, including Jamaica, are
taking measures to develop policies for tourism recovery
(e.g., wage subsidies to aid businesses in order to retain
jobs, designating travel and tourism as a special sector
for employment support, retraining and re-skilling tour-
ism workers, etc.) (UNWTO, 2020a), the time is right for
us to revisit our study participants to examine how they
have been doing since our initial data collection, in addi-
tion to investigating the impact of the global pandemic on
their operations.
One of the interesting observations that came out
of this study, although not discussed, is the importance of
the personalities of the tourism operations. Entrepre-
neurial studies have emphasized the importance of the
achievement motivations, levels of ownership and coop-
erative relationships (Carsrud et al., 1989; Mahto &
McDowell, 2018) and personality traits (Kerr et al.,
2018) as essential predictors of successful businesses,
especially in the tourism industry (Rodriguez-Sanchez et
al., 2019; Presenza et al., 2019). Examining the person-
ality characteristics of our participants presents another
avenue for future studies. Finally, our study was focused
on the Jamaican ecotourism operations. Future studies
could look at other countries and/or regions in order to
examine cross-cultural differences, if any, in developing
ecotourism operations.
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