ECOCLUB, Issue 94
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Rachel Dodds: Sustainability is first about reducing and reusing, and carbon offsetting is about offsetting whatever is left. At
the moment it is what consumers are offered as a mitigation strategy but I believe general education on how we, the tourist, can
reduce our overall footprint is important and will have a great benefit. Carbon offsetting can help by funnelling money to
renewable technologies and to mitigate our effects on the climate but it should not be a replacement or tick box to alleviate
guilt! It is not always clear where monies are going for project and I also have concerns about the nature of how offsetting
projects are set up – for example Tourism Concern highlighted how a community in Uganda was displaced to make way for a
reforestation project! I have just finished some research in this area and there is a lot of confusion in the marketplace and there is
a need for regulation – for example a flight to London, UK from Toronto has a multitude of different prices for offsetting
depending on which offset company you choose.
ECOCLUB.com: Have you found it more practical, as a sustainable tourism consultant, to work with communities,
or with small businesses? Are sustainable tourism consultants adequately remunerated, or are they frequently tricked by
aid agencies, governments and businesses?
Rachel Dodds: As a consultant I work with all types – small and big business and government and Ngo's - so regarding
practicality, I really think it depends on the project. For example, sometimes a large government or aid agency project can have
more influence if it is disseminated out to a lot of people as it may bring issues to the agenda in the right political and business
circles where decisions are being made. At the same time, working with communities and small business, it is easier to see
results and initiatives can be implemented much faster. In terms of remuneration, many small organizations cannot afford to pay
but often large organizations and aid agencies take forever to pay or don’t in some sad instances. For a long time, people have
not been willing to pay for expertise on sustainability issues as they didn’t see the negative effects or they were more focused on
the economic side of business. Sometimes, for me, it has been hard to make ends meet although I have always only focused on
projects I believed in – even if the big unsustainable ones were offering to pay more – it is all about personal ethics in that
regard. Recently, however, sustainability has become a sexy topic – perhaps due to the fact that tourism depends on the very
product it sells – the environment and the culture and people are starting to realize that this needs management for its protection
- hopefully remuneration will change to reflect this. If it comes true I will let you know!
ECOCLUB.com: If you were to choose one of your many projects as a best case, which one would it be and why?
Rachel Dodds: Fortunately, I cannot just choose one as there are a few good ones. I do profile a lot of good practices, and not
just my cases, on my website. Perhaps projects which have influenced the wider community are the best example – e.g. helping
a company audit their sustainability practices and then seeing this company start new labour, procurement and environmental
practices which have a direct positive benefit on others is rewarding.
ECOCLUB.com: In what way is sustainable tourism significantly different than green tourism, ecological tourism or
responsible tourism? Do labels really matter?
Rachel Dodds: We all need to move the industry toward more sustainable tourism if it will survive – new labels will always be
developed to describe tourism which is confusing and sometimes inhibiting for groups to work together as they can be
egotistical and proprietary about their labels. Sustaining a tourism venture is about being responsible so I believe they are
similar labels while sometimes ecological or green tourism omits the social aspects which can be dangerous. In my view, as
long as we are all moving towards sustainability – call it whatever you like. For example, I am working on a project about
climate change and tourism – it is essentially dealing with sustainable tourism issues – climate being one of them, but if
government wishes to call it this because it is sexier that is fine with me.
ECOCLUB.com: How satisfied are you with the content, level and quality of tourism education, in English-speaking
countries where you have first-hand experience? Some businesses complain that tourism graduates lack even a basic
grasp of how the tourism sector really works. Are there any grains of truth in this argument? Is there a practical/
theoretical tourism education divide?
Rachel Dodds: Personally I still think there is a gap between industry and academia. I would love to see more industry at
academic conferences/workshops and vice versa but perhaps theory and practicality are not always matched. At Ryerson, we are
currently in the process of revamping the tourism course to be more inclusive and practically focused about issues and concepts.
Tourism is diverse and fragmented but also the world’s largest industry so it is difficult to teach it all. I believe that hospitality
and food service courses often take priority as a subject matter even though the wider understanding of tourism as an entity is
needed. At the same time, the operational and managerial side of the industry needs to be included in addition to concepts of
sustainability and development so that students can enter the workforce with realistic and hands-on skills.
ECOCLUB.com: Your work takes you to tourism academic conferences around the world. What is your general
evaluation: Is it a case, for most participants, of parallel monologues, and "going through the moves to get the grants",
or do these conferences really advance tourism thought at an academic level, in a way that other offline and online
forums can not?
