Sustainable Operations and Destinations Case Study Analysis

This report analyzes the sustainable tourism practices in Uganda, examining key issues and challenges within the industry. It focuses on the principles of sustainable development, specifically precaution and transparency, in the context of corporate social responsibility (CSR). The report identifies key stakeholders, including the University of Manitoba and Intrepid Travel, and evaluates their contributions to reducing environmental impact and promoting CSR initiatives. It explores how intermediaries support the 4Ps (People, Planet, Profits, and Progress) of sustainable development. The report also provides recommendations for improving sustainable tourism in Uganda, such as formal planning, encouraging social enterprises, and promoting environmental education. The analysis considers the Ruhija Gorilla Friends group as a case study in social entrepreneurship, highlighting its impact on community development and the broader tourism landscape. The report concludes by emphasizing the importance of collaboration and open communication among stakeholders to ensure equitable and sustainable development.

Running head: SUSTAINABLE OPERATIONS AND DESTINATIONS 1
Sustainable Operations and Destinations
Name
Institution Affiliate

SUSTAINABLE OPERATIONS AND DESTINATIONS 2
Sustainable Operations and Destinations
Introduction
The tourism industry is considered as one of the main economic “backbone” of many
countries especially in most of the developing countries. This has not been the case in most of
the inbound countries like Uganda where most of the sectors are controlled by foreigners. The
main aim of sustainable development is to create better approaches for cultural diversity, social
equity, environmental protection, and developing an equitable economy approach (Cooper,
2012). The concept is mainly characterized by creating a balance of the available resources
between all the involved individuals. The Uganda tourism sustainability case study is one of the
significant projects that have successfully contributed to the community development and
industry growth.
Q1: discuss the key issues and challenges in managing the destination in terms of the
following two (2) principles of sustainable development4 - Precaution and Transparency -
in context to CSR business
Despite the emphasis on encouraging tourists and other involved shareholders to
participate in sustainable tourism activities, there are also various issues which tend to arise due
to a number of constraints. An example of these issues includes transparency, economic
challenges, cultural dynamics, and majorly some of the negatives effects of the project's
exposure to the outside (Honey, 2008). Through the case study analysis, one of the main
challenges the project implementation process faced was lack of corporation from the
community. The negative perception of the community was one of the greatest issues which
required to be overcome. This mainly reflected the lack of understanding of the people of how

SUSTAINABLE OPERATIONS AND DESTINATIONS 3
they could also exploit the available opportunities that were created by the project. Through the
civil education to the public, the people around the park have been able to exploit the economic
advantages by setting up small shop centers which have been able to create employment
opportunities and development of other communities.
Another challenging factor has been minimal exposure and challenges of accessing
resources for the development of the project. Through this, the University of Manitoba has been
a significant help in the attribute in finding of resources and advertising Bwindi National park.
Since 2008, after the opening of the new tented camps in the park, the number of tourists visiting
annually has continued to increase. Example, in 2008 the park reported a total 24 tourist visits,
the number increased in 2009 to 86, and in 2010 summed up to a total of 314 visits (Swarbrooke
& Page, 2012). With the increase of tourist visits, the Ruhija Gorilla Friends Group has also
continued to open up new larger projects in the area which have boosted other entrepreneurship
programs and initiatives. According to the program policies, 20% of the every annual is injected
back into the other initiatives and community development. The approach of resources injection
has been able to secure the development of community and most importantly sustainable
approaches towards planet sustainability (Campbell, 2014).

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Fig1: Mountain Gorilla (there ratio to humans is 1:1 million people) (Campbell, 2014).
According to Page (2014), the sustainability concept has been widely characterized as an
ecological balance and with the increase of product and/or services demand. Despite the many
competitive advantages of the speculated tourist areas such as Uganda, Kenya, and others, the
increase of tourist activities has also been characterized to regenerate other negatives impacts
such as environmental and cultural degradation. Example, Uganda is described to have one of the
most diversified cultural practices which also have a significant contribution to the tourism
industry of the country (Campbell, 2014). Regardless of rich cultural heritage, increase moral
degradation has been of major changing aspects which have led to the increasingly vital diseases
like HIV/AIDS which has been largely contributed by poverty. With the ability to educate the
community and their involvement in major projects, the cultural and environmental sustainability
can be very easily achieved by understanding important aspects that should be conserved and
protected at all cost (Sharpley, 2009). The approach of precaution sustainability will also help to
increase the biodiversity in the country and developing an economic value chain through the
increasing employment opportunities in the respective regions.
Q2: using some of the key concepts of sustainable development identify how an
intermediary can successfully support the 4Ps - People, the Planet, Profits and Progress
(4Ps)?
The suitability of suppliers to engage in a sustainable supply chain
The 4 P’s- the Planet
One of the key aspects of sustainable approaches in tourism development is through the
identification and engagement of supplier in the market segment (Choi & Turk, 2011). Through

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the case study, the community has been able to actively engage in the supply chain value through
an increase of farming activities and other economic initiatives such as small art centers. Also,
Manitoba and Makerere University have helped to identify ways of promoting the tourism
development and planning. One of the main features that have changed the course of the entire
tourism industry is the development of supporting infrastructure i.e. accommodation as one of
the main priorities.
Fig2: Ruhija Gorilla Friends Tented Camp (Campbell, 2014)
People
After a series of community meetings and strategizing on income approaches, Various
social enterprises such as the Ruhija Gorilla Friends group have continued to positively develop
a more sustainable environment which protects and serve the entire community at large
(Campbell, 2014). Some of the major projects that have been developed by the group in the
community include a water-harvesting system, product enhancement for bee-keepers, and bird
guide training for local youths. This has been one of the positive aspects that have encouraged
the increase of sustainable supply chain through the continuous engagement of the community in
all the major developments and planning (Legrand, Chen, & Sloan, 2013).

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The readiness of Intermediaries to Support Sustainable Initiatives
Progress and Profits
Sustainable developments have a significant dependence on intermediaries support which
plays a very vital role, especially in the international market structure. One of the main purposes
of the intermediaries has been the balance of the ecosystem, communities, and economy
contribution to the respective host countries. Example, Intrepid is one of the major traveling
groups in Uganda and has managed to successfully improve the tourism industry of the country.
Through Intrepid, business sectors, communities, and the entire tourism industry have been able
to merge thus to have continuous progress in profit generation to all sectors (Morrison, 2013).
The approach of corporate social responsibility is another important feature which has improved
the participation of travel brands in the planet through an emphasis on transparency and
accountability. This means that apart from the business gain side, the intermediaries must be able
to actively give back to the society and make sure that all the activities undertaken do not
interfere with the environment and heritage sustainability of the community (Font, Tapper,
Schwartz, & Kornilaki, 2008).
Recommendation
According to the case study, one of the main challenges that most of the travel
destinations face in the implementation of sustainable development is the lack of formal
planning. This means that despite the emphasis taken on the implementation of sustainable
development there is no means of enriching every person in the community and neighboring
regions. Example, the market areas should be operated under a “free” market policy where
everyone can be able to participate without any challenges (Harris, Williams, & Griffin, 2012).

SUSTAINABLE OPERATIONS AND DESTINATIONS 7
The government should also be able to encourage social enterprises which will be able to
enhance community participation and progressive development. On the same note, apart from the
profit injection for community development, the government should be able to offer the required
resources and support like protection from other profitable business sectors (Mowforth & Munt,
2015).
The third recommendation for the destination future prospects is environmental
education. Through the main approach of sustainability and development, all major stakeholders
(i.e. the government, community, and other business sectors) have an important role in the
outcome of positive development (Choi & Turk, 2011). Example, like most of the countries
today, land clearing and deforestation is one of the major challenges that continue to threaten the
tourism future of Uganda. With environmental education, the community members can learn on
various means of environmental protection and conservation approaches such as tree planting
and use elimination of the use of plastic bags. This should also be another important role of
businesses in the protection of the environment by the minimization of carbon gas emission.
Conclusion
In summary, in order to attain successful sustainable tourism development, there are
various challenges in the process that need to be overcome. One of the important aspects is the
emphasis on the need for collaboration in the market. Open communication lines between the
community members and other stakeholders involved must be emphasized thus to ensure equity
in development of the entire community (Font et al., 2008). With the implementation of
recommended strategies, I believe the sustainability of Uganda tourism will drastically improve
and also offer the gradual development of the entire community. Through the Ruhija approach of

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social entrepreneurship, additional products and services are one of the main economic features
that will also change the entire tourism industry perspective.

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References
Campbell, M. (2014). Uganda: sustainable Tourism. Retrieved from:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6HSIzOdca4w
Choi, H. C., & Turk, E. S. (2011). Sustainability indicators for managing community tourism.
In Quality-of-life community indicators for parks, recreation and tourism
management (pp. 115-140). Springer, Dordrecht.
Cooper, C. (2012). Essentials of tourism. Pearson Financial Times/Prentice Hall.
Font, X., Tapper, R., Schwartz, K., & Kornilaki, M. (2008). Sustainable supply chain
management in tourism. Business strategy and the environment, 17(4), 260-271.
Harris, R., Williams, P., & Griffin, T. (Eds.). (2012). Sustainable tourism. Routledge.
Honey, M. (2008). Ecotourism and sustainable development: Who owns paradise?. Island Press.
Legrand, W., Chen, J. S., & Sloan, P. (2013). Sustainability in the Hospitality Industry 2nd Ed:
Principles of Sustainable Operations. Routledge.
Morrison, A. M. (2013). Marketing and managing tourism destinations. Routledge.
Mowforth, M., & Munt, I. (2015). Tourism and sustainability: Development, globalization and
new tourism in the third world. Routledge.
Page, S. J. (2014). Tourism management. Routledge.
Sharpley, R. (2009). Tourism development and the environment: Beyond sustainability?.
Routledge.

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Swarbrooke, J., & Page, S. J. (2012). Development and management of visitor attractions.
Routledge.