The regenerative power of video and film: The Fork-to-Farmer approach

Participatory video is a creative and effective strategy for generating data in social science research, and it can be a powerful tool to engage in democratic and empowering ways with traditionally underserved communities. The workshop will introduce and discuss the Fork-to-Farmer project, which used a unique combination of video production and social science research to engage with community partners to celebrate and further stimulate the symbiotic relationships between chefs and farmers in North Carolina. It will also include a thematic visual analysis of three videos produced across the last five years, to engage workshop participants in exploring the self-narratives farmers have injected into their films. We expect to make evident during the workshop that farmers’ narratives have evolved from playing tokenistic second fiddle to chefs in pre-pandemic farm-to-table systems to playing the role of lifelines and inspirational human beings to struggling chefs, restauranteurs, and communities

The START - Net work: ICT & Mobile Applications

The potential of ICT to enable micro-entrepreneurship in peripheral and resource-scarce countries has been well documented in contexts, such as agribusiness, fisheries and manufacturing. There has been, however, a paucity of research in ICT’s potential to support tourism micro-entrepreneurship. While tourism has often been proposed as a mechanism for sustainability in developing countries, most host communities remain relegated to the role of passive “tourees” who fail to benefit from the economic capital often dominated by Western economies. Guided by design science theory, this work was informed by fieldwork conducted in South Africa in January and February 2011 which aimed at designing and testing an information technology artifact. Using action design research principles, we included the perspectives of individuals from rural communities and with high-level stakeholders in tourism planning and telecommunications corporations. Early findings suggest that mobile telephones and applications play a significant role in SME and potential entrepreneurship development and sustainability. The findings, herein, also guided the development of an information technology artifact, START-Net, to support community-based tourism entrepreneurship in rural South Africa

Women’s human agency and self-determination in Guatemalan tourism development

Tourism is often identified as a strategy to ameliorate the wellbeing of poor communities and their most vulnerable members – women and their children. Women’s ability to get involved in and benefit from tourism is, however, conditioned by traditional gender roles and consequent education handicaps. Development programs often target women to mitigate these disparities. Thispaper examines whether an intervention by the Peace Corps resulted in improved human agency and self-determination among indigenous Q’eqchi’ women in Alta Verapaz, Guatemala. The paper reports the accomplishments and shortcomings of the intervention and elaborates on the practical and theoretical implications of the findings

Co-construction of knowledge through Participatory Action Research: People-First Tourism methodology and research tools

People-First Tourism (P1t) research examines the role of tourism microentrepreneurship on equity and sustainability among people with vulnerable livelihoods. Studying the subaltern carries inherent challenges, which can be best addressed through PAR methodologies. Accordingly, P1t research includes tourism microentrepreneurs as partners in the research process so that they participate in a process of conscientization that helps them identify forces undermining their livelihoods. Our involvement with participants develops gradually as we coach them and collect data. This process earn us entry to more in-depth insights and stronger-inference longitudinal findings. In addition, P1t is associated with a social venture that sells experiences provided by participating microentrepreneurs. Consequently, in addition to expected project impacts on policy, P1t is generating direct benefits to the participants’ livelihoods. In this presentation we will discuss the PAR methodology guiding P1t and will train session participants on how to use some of the P1t research tools

The Effect of Synergies Between the Informal and Formal Tourism Sectors on Farmers’ Tourism Microentrepreneurial Intentions

Leveraging the popularity of the foodie scene, signature farm tourism is emerging as one of the most promising niches for tourism microentrepreneurs. However, both psychological and structural constraints seem to be holding farmers back in their intention to start offering farm experiences or expanding their existing farm tourism portfolio. We argue that Permatourism-enabled bridging social capital affords farmers sources of entrepreneurial self-efficacy, which enhances entrepreneurial intention. To test our conceptual model, we surveyed 207 farmers in NC and used SEM to examine relationships between constructs. The analysis revealed an adequate model fit and strong significant relationships between bridging social capital and both dimensions of tourism microentrepreneurial self-efficacy. Internal self-efficacy was strongly and significantly associated with entrepreneurial intention, while external self-efficacy was non-significant. We provide meaning to these results through triangulation with qualitative data from five years of participatory action-research with farm tourism microentrepreneurs

Challenges Faced by Women Entrepreneurs Involved in Agritourism

Finding themselves in today’s rapidly changing economic landscape, farmers are compelled to seek supplementary income generating activities such as agritourism. Women have been identified as the primary driver of a variety of agritourism activities with significant contribution toward its development and maintenance. In spite of their contribution, women tend to earn less in agritourism compared to their male counterparts. However, no research thus far has looked at the specific challenges faced by women in agritourism. We conducted a study in North Carolina using qualitative techniques (i.e. focus group, nominal group technique, and in-depth interviews). Our results identify a number of new challenges; these are: lacking reliable staff, managing growth, lacking institutional support, ensuring farm perpetuation, being pluriactive, and constantly facing new challenges. We also found support for challenges existing in the literature, namely, lacking resources, lacking credibility as farmers and juggling traditional roles

Spatial Analysis of Poverty, Tourism, and Opportunity in North Carolina

This study collected online secondary data in terms of tourism economic impact, human development, natural amenities, and self-employment income at the county level in the State of North Carolina and used GIS to conduct a spatial analysis of the distribution of and the interaction between tourism, poverty, and micro-entrepreneurship. It is aimed at identifying the areas where tourism( can( be( utilized( to( cope( with( poverty( by( creating( employment( and( tax( revenues(and(where(tourism(micro8entrepreneurship(might(have(an(important(role(in(enabling( individuals( to( earn( their( way( to( equitable( and( sustainable( prosperity.( ( The results show variations across the counties and the four geographic regions in North Carolina. Tourism business startup factors, the ways to achieve success in business, and the potential of tourism micro-entrepreneurship as a strategy for enabling sustainable livelihoods at the state or national scale are also examined based on the findings

Toward the operationalization of Tourism e-Microentrepreneurial Self-Efficacy

With the emergence of websites like People-First Tourism, Airbnb and Vayable, there is a growing number of microentrepreneurs selling accommodation, transportation and experiences directly to prospective customers. These individuals are thought to be different from most entrepreneurs because they are known to be motivated by non-economic drivers such as freedom, passion, or lifestyle, rather than solely by a desire for rapid revenue growth. Accordingly, given that tourism microentrepreneurs have different goals as well as business models relative to typical entrepreneurs, we identified the need to adapt entrepreneurial self-efficacy measures to the specific context of tourism e-microentrepreneurship. Accordingly we developed the Tourism e-Microentrepreneurial Self-Efficacy (TeMSE) scale, a 13-item scale that provides insights into individuals’ beliefs in their ability to successfully perform the various microentrepreneurial roles and tasks in the tourism e-business sector

Poder, altruismo y turismo comunitario: Un estudio comparativo

Residents of San Juan La Laguna and San Pedro La Laguna, neighboring towns on the shores of Lake Atitlán, Guatemala, have followed very different trajectories of tourism development despite their close proximity. This study explores residents’ perceptions of the benefits and drawbacks of tourism development under two differing economic models and addresses weaknesses in current theoretical approaches. Findings from this ethnographic comparative case study indicate that prevailing theoretical constructs do not fully explain dynamics in non-western non- laissez faire capitalist contexts. Findings also suggest that strong community collaboration guided by governmental and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) can help to maintain tourism benefits locally, while at the same time preventing some of the costs of tourism development in destination communities.Los residentes de San Juan La Laguna y San Pedro La Laguna, dos pueblos vecinos en la cuenca del Lago de Atitlán (Guatemala), han seguido trayectorias de desarrollo turístico muy diferentes a pesar de su proximidad. En este estudio se explora las percepciones de los residentes de comunidades bajo diferentes modelos económicos y aborda las debilidades de los enfoques teóricos actuales. Se realiza un estudio comparativo de casos etnográfico, a fin de explorar las percepciones de las residentes respecto a las ventajas e inconvenientes derivadas del desarrollo turístico de sus pueblos. Los hallazgos indican que los prevaleciente constructos teóricos no explican plenamente esta dinámica en contextos no occidentales y que son no practican laissez faire capitalismo. Los resultados también sugieren que la fuerte colaboración comunitaria guiada por organizaciones gubernamentales y no gubernamentales puede ayudar a mantener los beneficios del turismo en las comunidades de destino, mientras que previene algunos de sus costo

Planejamento da logística de vagões utilizando o Supply Chain Management e Lean Manufacturing

Este trabalho tem por objetivo buscar uma proposta de solução para o problema de excesso de vagões nos pátios de manobras de uma empresa hipotética do ramo de logística aqui denominada SRM e também uma empresa hipotética do ramo de produto siderúrgico aqui denominada NSC. Na empresa abordada, SRM, identificou-se que os vagões estão chegando ao pátio de manobras de vários lugares em número maior que a necessidade da empresa NSC devido uma programação “superdimensionada”, tendendo a gerar estoque de vagões no pátio de manobras da empresa SRM. Esse número excessivo de vagões dificulta a logística interna e aumenta o tempo nas manobras impactando o atendimento dos clientes ocasionado pela falta de integração no planejamento de programação de vagões. Satisfazendo o binômio “limite máximo” e “lote mínimo” de pedido de vagões feito pelo cliente para carregamento de materiais acabados através da aplicação das teorias mencionadas acima, pode ser uma das soluções para desafogar os pátios de manobras saturados. Outra medida necessária é a integração de dados entre o cliente e o fornecedor através do gerenciamento do fluxo de informações. Destinando aos pátios a quantidade ideal ou mínima necessária de vagões em estoque, reduzir-se-á o tempo de realização de manobras e também o retrabalho. Garantindo assim a satisfação dos clientes. O trabalho tem como meta redução de 10% na quantidade de vagões nos pátios diminuindo a diferença entre o programado para carregar e o que realmente foi realizado, estipulado pela empresa NSC propondo uma solução para que o processo logístico de carregamento e descarregamento de vagões realize o ciclo de forma adequada, eficiente e dinâmica com o mínimo de estoque