Operationalising sustainability in volunteer tourism by power-sharing with the receiving organisation

• Claudia Eckardt ^[3] ; Kimbu, Albert N. ^[1] ; Xavier Font ^[2]
  1. [1] University of Johannesburg

     University of Johannesburg

     City of Johannesburg, Sudáfrica

     
  2. [2] University of Surrey

     University of Surrey

     Guildford District, Reino Unido

     
  3. [3] Oman Tourism College, Muscat, Sultanate of Oman

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• Localización: Tourism recreation research, ISSN 0250-8281, Vol. 49, Nº. 2, 2024, págs. 259-269
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • The outcomes of volunteer tourism have rarely evaluated, and the sustainable practices, such as equality within this sector, are questionable. Extant research has indicated that miscommunication and poor volunteer placement management can lead to ineffectiveness and negative experiences for stakeholders such as host project staff and volunteers. Collaborative relations between the main stakeholders at a local level were evaluated and deconstructed to enable a better understanding of operational practices that influence sustainable outcomes forhost projects. This evaluative study examined the role of the receiving organisation at the host destination in achieving sustainable outcomes utilising a case study in South Africa. An evaluative framework integrating realistic evaluation, collaboration theory and supply chain analysis of feredin-depth insights into why the local contextual settings influence how collaborative relations among stakeholders can influence sustainable outcomes. The receiving organisation’s knowledge of the local socio-economic contextual settings of each host project is critical to the successful engagement between hosts and volunteers which leads to equality. The evaluative framework offers an understanding of how and why the local contextual settings and the prosocial approach by the local agent are essential in enabling sustainability performance in volunteer tourism.