Entrepreneurship and Empowerment: Considering the barriers - a case study from Indonesia

In our understanding of tourism as a tool for development, small-scale enterprises are considered critical. From either the “trickle down” or “bottom up” perspective, small-scale entrepreneurs are considered central to the multiplier effect and economic development of communities in less economically developed countries. Whilst the potential exists for empowerment through entrepreneurship to be felt at an individual or community level, in many cases tourism does not lead to burgeoning entrepreneurial opportunities and the associated empowerment. This paper, based on long-term ethnographic research in Eastern Indonesia, examines the barriers to entrepreneurial development. It assesses why, in some communities, tourism offers the hopes and dreams of development and the initial steps towards empowerment, but why the dreams rarely become realities. Using Hofstede’s cultural dimensions as a starting point this paper identifies both cultural values and other factors that constrain, and support, entrepreneurship in tourism

For the worry of water: Water, women and tourism in Labuan Bajo. Initial policy paper

Tourism has added to a water crisis in the rapidly growing gateway town to Komodo National Park: Labuan Bajo. Residents are suffering from the scarcity and cost of water for basic human needs. Based on ethnographic research, over 100 people were consulted on the problems and potential solutions. Women are bearing the brunt of the burdens as they are responsible for the provision and management of water for domestic purposes. The present system is priced unfairly, is illegal, and unsustainable. Water supply is a significant factor in Labuan Bajo’s inability to attract the type of tourists it deserves and needs. The immediate needs are for regulation of the quality and price of the tanker water that supplies many people in the town. Longer term needs, but require starting as soon as possible, are for water catchment protection and water conservation education. Essential to the success of water management in Labuan Bajo is the total overhaul of the state run water supply company, PDAM, and women need to be trained for leadership and monitoring to ensure solutions are enacted and women’s voice on the provision and supply of water is heard

Cultural tourism development in Ngada, Flores, Indonesia

This thesis is an action ethnography of tourism development in two villages in Ngada, Flores. It examines the inter-relationship between culture and tourism. The thesis explores the villagers' attitudes, experiences values and priorities in tourism, and contrasts these with those of the tourists and mediators in tourism: guides and government, to reveal the 'conflicts of tourism'. The thesis compares two neighbouring villages and explores the micro level detail required to understand tourism development. Research for this thesis has been carried out over more than ten tears. Early research (1989-1994) was carried out as a tour operator. Numerous short visits and two periods of field research, one of eight months (1998-1999), followed. Credibility as a successful tour operator and long established relations meant a strong bond of trust existed when the researcher carried out fieldwork. Participant observation was used to derive a deep understanding of tourism in the villages. Focus groups were carried out with different sections of the population and local guides. Interviews were carried out with personnel from government departments. Tourists were observed and interviewed. The thesis contributes to knowledge by providing a detailed ethnography of emergent tourism development. The comparison of two villages reveals just how important local cultural details are in our understanding of cultural processes in tourism. While cultural tourism is developed to bring economic benefits, authenticity is associated with poverty and based on markers relating to the past. Tourism is working to fossilise the villages. However the villagers are not passive and the commodification process can also be regarded as a step on the ladder to empowerment. As an action ethnography, the explicit intention of the study was to aid the villagers. The focus groups started the process of knowledge sharing, and recommendations have been made on how to further the development of cultural tourism in the villages

Tourism and islandscapes: Cultural realignment, social-ecological resilience and change

If, as according to Robin (2015: online), "islands are idealised ecological worlds, the Edens of a fallen planet'", the rationale underpinning tourism expansion should acknowledge MacLeod's (2013) notion of "cultural realignment" that calls for optimal and resilient encounters. This introductory article to the subsequent theme section of the journal on sustainable tourism acts as a bridge toward the development of emergent themes that describe how island peoples adapt and respond in localised cultural islandscapes as a consequence of tourism expansion. The links between cultural alignment and social-ecological resilience are clear and the principal and overarching question posed in this introductory article is: To what extent are islandscapes resilient to rapidly changing utilities, significances and ways of life wrought by tourism expansion? The vulnerabilityresilience duality remains firmly entrenched in the discourse on islands where tourism has become prominent, and although tourism provides some resiliency, overall, islandscapes remain subject to externally driven fast and slow change that exercises an overwhelming influence. Islander agency will likely remain subject to the fluctuations in the demands of the tourism supply chain. Therefore, tourism as a standalone focus of islands is a high-risk proposition, especially in contexts where externally driven change is likely to intensify

Water insecurity and gender‐based violence: A global review of the evidence

We reviewed the existing literature documenting the association between water insecurity and gender-based violence to (1) describe the characteristics and contexts of available studies, and (2) identify and classify documented gender-based violence across domains of water insecurity (access, affordability, adequacy, reliability, and safety). 18 peer-reviewed articles mentioned associations between water insecurity and gender-based violence. All studies were conducted in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia and were published in English. The most common manifestation of the relationship between water insecurity and gender-based violence was an increased risk of sexual and physical violence for women who walked long distances to access water. This was followed by intimate partner violence sparked by the inability to meet domestic obligations due to household water inadequacy. Despite these trends, the domains of water insecurity, and the types of violence experienced by women, were often intertwined. We conclude that there is a dearth of information assessing gender-based violence and water insecurity, especially in Latin America, North America, and Southeast Asia, and involving locally-based scholars. We suggest that the spectrum of what is considered “violence” in relation to water insecurity be expanded and that scholars and practitioners adopt the term “gender-based water violence” to describe water-related stressors that are so extreme as to threaten human health and well-being, particularly that of women and girls. Finally, we encourage the development of cross-culturally validated measures of gender-based violence, which can be deployed in conjunction with standardized measures of water insecurity, to evaluate interventions that target these linked threats to global health

Water Insecurity and Gender-based Violence: A Global Review of the Evidence

We reviewed the existing literature documenting the association between water insecurity and gender-based violence to (1) describe the characteristics and contexts of available studies, and (2) identify and classify documented gender-based violence across domains of water insecurity (access, affordability, adequacy, reliability, and safety). 18 peer-reviewed articles mentioned associations between water insecurity and gender-based violence. All studies were conducted in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia and were published in English. The most common manifestation of the relationship between water insecurity and gender-based violence was an increased risk of sexual and physical violence for women who walked long distances to access water. This was followed by intimate partner violence sparked by the inability to meet domestic obligations due to household water inadequacy. Despite these trends, the domains of water insecurity, and the types of violence experienced by women, were often intertwined. We conclude that there is a dearth of information assessing gender-based violence and water insecurity, especially in Latin America, North America, and Southeast Asia, and involving locally-based scholars. We suggest that the spectrum of what is considered “violence” in relation to water insecurity be expanded and that scholars and practitioners adopt the term “gender-based water violence” to describe water-related stressors that are so extreme as to threaten human health and well-being, particularly that of women and girls. Finally, we encourage the development of cross-culturally validated measures of gender-based violence, which can be deployed in conjunction with standardized measures of water insecurity, to evaluate interventions that target these linked threats to global health.This article is categorized under:Engineering Water \u3e Water, Health, and SanitationHuman Water \u3e Rights to Wate

Tourism and water inequity in Bali: A social-ecological systems analysis

This paper is a social-ecological systems (SES) analysis of tourism and water inequity in Bali. It uses Elinor Ostrom’s SES model to look at the particular niche of Bali’s tourism and water nexus. Re-analysis of previous qualitative research revealed that the vulnerability of the SES was due to numerous characteristics. In particular, user groups are highly diverse, transient and stratified, thereby inhibiting communication and knowledge sharing. This, in combination with weak governance systems and the economic power of the tourism industry, interact to affect declining water resources and the iniquitous impact of this. Whilst there are obvious indications that Bali’s water resources are over stretched, there is no feedback loop to the institutional structures that would help enable appropriate responses from the user groups or governance system

The Household Water Insecurity Experiences (HWISE) Scale: Comparison scores from 27 sites in 22 countries

Household survey data from 27 sites in 22 countries were collected in 2017–2018 in order to construct and validate a cross-cultural household-level water insecurity scale. The resultant Household Water Insecurity Experiences (HWISE) scale presents a useful tool for monitoring and evaluating water interventions as a complement to traditional metrics used by the development community. It can also help track progress toward achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 6 ‘clean water and sanitation for all’. We present HWISE scale scores from 27 sites as comparative data for future studies using the HWISE scale in low-and middle-income contexts. Site-level mean scores for HWISE-12 (scored 0–36) ranged from 1.64 (SD 4.22) in Pune, India, to 20.90 (7.50) in Cartagena, Colombia, while site-level mean scores for HWISE-4 (scored 0–12) ranged from 0.51 (1.50) in Pune, India, to 8.21 (2.55) in Punjab, Pakistan. Scores tended to be higher in the dry season as expected. Data from this first implementation of the HWISE scale demonstrate the diversity of water insecurity within and across communities and can help to situate findings from future applications of this tool

Using a human rights approach to improve hotels’ water use and sustainability

This article explores the intersect between the human right to water, the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, and the reality of hotels water use. Our qualitative study was based on semi-structured interviews, participant observation, and focus groups with hoteliers, government agencies and community stakeholders in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. It examines the challenges faced by hoteliers to respect the human right to water and why hotels do not voluntarily adopt the Guiding Principles. The impeding factors identified include a lack of awareness, a lack of substantive voluntary schemes, the water tariff, the absence of data management; return on investment, profit and public image prioritized over environmental considerations; and inadequate regulations and their enforcement. Our study also indicates the potential of combining a human right to water impact assessment within the existing EIA to reform hotels water management and improve their water stewardship. In doing so, hotel water management would move beyond the domain of the hotel to consider their impact on the local community. This, the first study to take a human rights-based approach to the study of hotel’s water use, also identifies the further research required on this topic: legal enforcement and community participation