ECO Tourism On Gold Coast Sample Assignment

Introduction

The following project focuses on a proposal that reflects the business problem associated with eco-tourism in the gold coast. The Gold coast is an attractive tourist destination in Australia and the government needs to focus on eco-tourism. Eco-tourism is associated with the tourism business that is focused towards the natural environment and its conservation (Beaumont, 2011). This current research study discusses the problem that is associated with the Eco-tourism in Gold coast. The previous research problem that existed and a decision was taken already is also discussed. A questionnaire is prepared based on which the current problem in the proposal is discussed. The proposal also discusses that why ecotourism is important and to what extent the promotion of ecotourism is essential to boost the tourism industry of Australia. The methodology, as well as the research design, is discussed. As a research sample, a survey is conducted regarding the importance of ecotourism from the locals in Gold Coast. The main objectives were to see how ecotourism has contributed in conserving a place and how the locals can be involved in the process of conservation.

Business problem

The concept of ecotourism is a new direction in the tourism sector. The research questions that highlights the problems in ecotourism are not many people know what the term ecotourism actually states. The region promoted for the ecotourism are often fragile which indicates that if more tourist visits the place the ecosystems would be more vulnerable to damage. Ecotourism may promote unknown local tourists destination which might lead to inflation in the local area (Bentley et al. 2010). The endangered flora and fauna of the gold coast may be preserved with the help of ecotourism. Promotion of ecotourism by the Australian government would also raise more awareness and responsibility related to the natural endangered species of the gold coast. However as Gold Coasts are a beautiful place and a splendid tourist destination, much promotion of the place would increase the number of tourists visiting the place. The increase in the number of tourists may encourage the locals to earn more money through tourism which would lead to depletion of the natural resources and pollution. The guides need to be trained and have ethics that need not focus on created good facilities to the visitors as that would increase the depletion of resources. Unlicensed or irresponsible guides may have less concern about the wildlife’s and may cause more risk to the society there.  Sometimes the locals also face the threats cause due to a large number of tourists as to provide availabilities to the tourists the habitat or the species may be destroyed (Bryman & Bell, 2015).

As per the responses obtained from the respondents the researcher could come to the conclusion that the level of understanding regarding ecotourism is moderate. Ecotourism is a concept that does not only include visiting a place but the concept of holidaying with causing the lowest possible pollution in the economy (Buckley et al. 2012). Hence people need to prohibit the idea of having a lavish holiday by using private cars or jets or staying in eco-hotels and having lavish meals. All these ideas affect the environment of the ecosystem and cause pollution. The tourist needs to avail the public transports and food to promote ecotourism. Raising awareness might attract the funds from the people who are interested in volunteering or raising the funds needed for the conservation of the ecosystem. Also as per the respondents, 80% of the people do not prefer going for an eco-tourist holiday. They prefer spending the holiday in a silent less crowded place however they prefer holidaying with all facilities available from the tourist’s spots. Also, the respondent's responses reflect that many people go holidaying through travel agents. Travel and tourist agencies or organisations aim at making profits through the travel programmes and hence that might affect the natural habitat of the destinations. People visiting by arranging independently might avail to the local transports (Fennell, 2014). From the survey, it was also seen that many people like greener environment but the daily lifestyle they spent are not always greener. Several facilities increase the pollution of the environment. Hence the profit motives and optimising cost with holidaying is an issue among the people.

Literature Review

Ecotourism is not always properly promoted by the government of Australia. The Gold coast and the opportunities available are mentioned however the awareness related to ecotourism is not much spread. The organisations and tourist agencies focus on expanding the business by attracting tourist however that are usually influenced by a profit motive. Ecotourism is an important tool that can influence preserving the endangered plants and species. Often eco-tourism, however, has negative impacts on the local economies (Higgins, 2011). The organisations that promote tourists and services might offer better job opportunities than the traditional jobs existing in the community and the local towns or villages might get attracted to the better job opportunities. Hence the constant change in the availability of money and resources may affect the people in the ecotourism locality. The attraction of tourist might deplete the resources. Australia has a large number of natural resources, however, do not appear as the leader in ecotourism. The message regarding ecotourism is not consistent (Buultjens et al. 2010). The ecotourism concepts shall not contrast with the objectives of conservation and experience of high quality. The price ranges provided by the eco-tourists lodges are also usually high which makes it a domain in which the rich are attracted. Huge investments are not required however prohibition of luxury lodges and more investments in medium shelter facilities needs to be focused. This would attract many customers with below average as well as average incomes and would also lead to less depletion of the natural resources. Due to the availability of larger eco-tourist lodge the expenses related to the co-tourism is large whereas people with low income would prefer the destination that requires average expenses.

The ecotourism concept plays an important role regarding the transformation of the economy and the society. Tourism helps in bringing the cultural as well as social development in the economy. The problem associated with the ecotourism is that any times a large number of expenses is involved (Fitzpatrick et al. 2011). However, in the recent days, many food and lodging facilities have been promoted in the Gold Coast area. The media slowly is helping in pushing the concept of ecotourism. The ecotourism is not only promoted through TV but also through tourism websites and the audio mediums in the form of advertisements. Also before working people did not get time tom pack bags and go for a holiday. However recently due to the influence of many organised groups, people prefer to spend some time in some area with is silent and less crowded. The majority of respondents responded that they would choose an Ecotourism spot due to the remote places with no crowds and also cause them could see the endangered species more closely. The literature available on ecotourism is extensive. People need to have more awareness related to the environment and also have a responsible behaviour towards the environment. The perceptions of ethics influence the environment responsible behaviour to a vast scale. The tourism offers needs to be ecologically sustainable. The involvement of the different group styles also matter. People that are below forty years sometimes prefer nightlife or a market area compared to the people who are above forty who prefer silent locations. Along with the conservation of waters, parks, birds or animals, a sense of having a pollution free life is also essential (Haaland & Aas, 2010).

The concept of ecotourism is new and the ecological environment is subject to constant change with the seasons. To attract tourists sometimes activities such as trekking or snowboarding etc., are encouraged. These activities may sometimes affect the environment in the mountains areas. As visitors of a particular location increases the locals tend to earn profits through selling products made from the endangered species. The Large production of such products may affect the ecological environment. The knowledge regarding the preservation of the environment needs to be spread among the local people. Constant learning and knowledge regarding the preservation of the environment need to be focused. Hence the use of bio-degradable products needs to be promoted. Waste minimisation by using biodegradable cups or plates is essential. Re-use and recycle of products is important. The use of low-flow toilets is important which has dual flash systems. Use of air-conditioned rooms need to be minimised and during the summers people shall enjoy the breeze of nature. Small rooms and small bathrooms add benefits by saving space and water. The government has recently given an importance on the use of eco-friendly features such as solar powers, low showers and collecting the water from rains. Using composting systems for toilets as well as using green roofs is also important. Tourists thus need to reduce baths as well as reduce the use of ACs. Travelling through local transports also reduces costs and enables a motive for eco travel. Eco-tourism also requires some amount of financial help from the government. Development of the amenities and providing facilities to make the remote areas accessible to the tourists is also important. The impacts of ecotourism vary depending on the social and environmental aspects. The main motive behind ecotourism is to protect, maintain and respects the value related to the environment and people of that area. The local guides focus more on soft tourism which reflects the experience of an individual rather than mass tourism. To reduce the risk of the species especially the gorillas however some sets of rules are introduced by the government. Enforcement of strict rules help to prevent the endangered animals and birds in the Gold Coast. The cost and travel expenses have also been reduced by the government.

Research Design

In the following proposal, the impacts of ecotourism and how that affects the motives of the tourists well as the locals is discussed. A survey was conducted online targeting a small number of people. An online questionnaire was provided and the responses from the respondents were captured. The questions were targeted towards the tourists and people who are interested in visiting places during holidays. The research design of the product is quantitative. The research design here helps to obtain the information regarding what extent the behaviour of the tourists affects the strategy of eco-tourism of the Gold Coast. The research related to quantitative research is descriptive in nature. The descriptive methods can either be concrete or discrete. The descriptive analysis might consist of both primary as well as secondary data. The overall research design reflects the overall strategies that help to understand the different components related to the study.  The main purpose of the research design helps to understand the main research problems logically through the evidence obtained. The data collected here were quantitative which involved the use of data from the surveys and used to analyse the problem associated with the research question. Qualitative data were also collected to explain the background of the problem or the literature review related to the ecotourism in Gold Coast.

The research here that is explanatory focuses on the questions such as ‘what’ are the problems associated with the concept of eco-tourism in gold coast. The questionnaire consists of questions that reflect the interests of the tourists and the intentions regarding holidaying. The different pointers help to understand the behaviours of the people and the factor related to the expenses. The advantage of a quantitative research is that a large number of people may be targeted and taken as a sample. The respondents help to understand the answers to the research questions. The research trend, as well as the statistical performance, is obtained through the research questions that also helps to understand the casual equations. Both national, as well as international tourists, were targeted to obtain the responses and the motives of the tourists. The questionnaire targeted a sample and the data obtained were analysed. The frequency of the outputs is explained theoretically and conclusions were provided. The data sources for the primary data was the sample targeted while for the secondary data were journals and books.

Main variables in the Research Project

The core content related to the questionnaire was the interest regarding eco-tourist spots. The concepts of eco-tourism or mass tourism often contradict and affect the tourism activities. Enhancing awareness among the public along with a sense of environment protection is important for the economy. Ecotourism focuses on reducing the impacts on the environment that are negative and encouraging the local people of that community. The key variables in this research study are checking the relation between the resource available, an interest in the community and promotion regarding sustainable development (Sukserm et al. 2012). The key factors of this topic are also to see to what extent the concept of ecotourism affects the Gold Coast as a destination for tourists. Constructing a structure comprising the economic benefits so that the local people are benefitted culturally is important. Adoption of ecotourism derives a sense of environmental ethics that would motivate the conservation of the areas addressed as to promote development sustainably. The experience of any tourist is sustainable if it is planned and optimising. Through ecotourism sustainable development is achieved. The travel to the Gold Coast needs to be done in a responsible manner that would not hamper the well-being of the local people. Several countries all over the world including Australia focuses on Ecotourism as that helps the country gain foreign currency through tourism. The main idea of ecotourism shall be to promote tourism of place by conservation. The expenses associated with the tourism of a place needs to be less, however, the profit motives of the government and the locals makes the concept of eco-tourism expensive by investing on a large scale. The study also indicates the intentions of the people holidaying. Very fewer people are interested in improvement of the natives and volunteering while maximum people is interested in experiencing extinct wildlife and enjoying the scenic beauty of the area.

Sample Requirements

The economic benefits associated with tourism shall be built in a process that is appropriate culturally and the benefits are accessible to the population targeted. The research proposal also discusses the contributions of ecotourism in the Gold Coast. There are several qualitative as well as quantitative assumptions in sampling (Taylor et al. 2015). The main sampling mistake that needs to be avoided is that questionnaire needs to be directed towards all. The population targeted shall be generalised like the researcher assumed people from several age groups will responses to the questions provided. While from the responses it was seen that most respondents belonged to the age group around 40 to 60. The research also predicted that most people would prefer eco-tourist spots for holidaying while people preferred relaxing while holidaying. The random results were compared and probability sampling is used. Random sampling helps in taking random information and then inferences are drawn from the observations. Sampling minimises time and cost. The sampling population targeted were 200 in this research study. The simple random sampling method is chosen where each respondent has equal probabilities.  Quantitative sampling is used to obtain the behaviours of the population targeted.

Ethical issues

There exists certain ethics related to the research study. The current proposal is made on the quantitative technique and there exist certain ethical issues. Considering the ethics in any business is very crucial as ethics helps to understand the difference between the right or the wrong. The ethical principles are influenced by the integrity and the validity of the responses gathered. While conducting the survey with a questionnaire the rights and the ways need to be appropriate by following the ethical guidelines. Professional who conducts research under any associating are often directed to follow certain rules and policies while conducting the research with a behaviour influence by ethics. Few codes related to the ethics include the behaviour of social responsibility, the data need to be confidential while the respondents shall not be discriminated. The objectives of the research need to respect the intellectual property rights (Kozumi & Kobayashi, 2011). However, all the issues are not always properly addressed. The types of the research need to be specific and the research shall take into consideration the research principles.

The questionnaire is made available online to record the responses however there is no authenticated information. The responses might not be honest in giving their responses which might affect the research. The age of the respondents is also not clear and many respondents online might fake age. The sample size targeted is also large hence the responses from the international tourists might vary company to the national tourists. Hence the motives of the tourists and the problems behind the ecotourism are not always clearly reflected. The participation of the respondents needs to be voluntary. The participants in the research process need to be anonymous and the people need to have a sense of confidentiality. Hence ethical behaviours reflect a sense of honesty to fulfil; the research objectives.

Conclusion

The Gold Coast of Australia is very rich in the scenic beauty consisting of golden beaches and green rainforests along with national parks. The mountains, as well as the oceans, need to be conserved. The destinations attract tourists from all over the world among whom a sense of sustainability of the environment is increasing. The natural areas are promoted more through ecotourism and the resources are properly utilised along with a sense of conservation. Ecotourism has led to the success of tourism in the Gold Coast. However, the locals need to keep a constant check on the depletion of the natural resources. The tourist's activities appear to be more attractive to attract the tourists and through eco-tourism awareness, people have become more aware of the environmental issues

Reference List

Beaumont, N. (2011). The third criterion of ecotourism: are ecotourists more concerned about sustainability than other tourists?. Journal of Ecotourism, 10(2), 135-148.

Bentley, T. A., Cater, C., & Page, S. J. (2010). Adventure and ecotourism safety in Queensland: Operator experiences and practice. Tourism Management, 31(5), 563-571.

Bryman, A., & Bell, E. (2015). Business research methods. Oxford University Press, USA.

Buckley, R. C., Castley, J. G., de Vasconcellos Pegas, F., Mossaz, A. C., & Steven, R. (2012). A population accounting approach to assess tourism contributions to conservation of IUCN-Redlisted mammal species. PLoS One, 7(9), e44134. Available on: http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0044134 [Assessed on 12 Apr 2017]

Buultjens, J., Gale, D., & White, N. E. (2010). Synergies between Australian indigenous tourism and ecotourism: possibilities and problems for future development. Journal of Sustainable Tourism, 18(4), 497-513.

Fennell, D. A. (2014). Ecotourism. Routledge.

Fitzpatrick, R., Abrantes, K. G., Seymour, J., & Barnett, A. (2011). Variation in depth of whitetip reef sharks: does provisioning ecotourism change their behaviour?. Coral Reefs, 30(3), 569-577.

Haaland, H., & Aas, Ø. (2010). Ecotourism Certification–Does it Make a Difference? A Comparison of Systems from Australia, Costa Rica and Sweden. Scandinavian Journal of Hospitality and Tourism, 10(3), 375-385.

Higgins-Desbiolles, F. (2011). Death by a thousand cuts: Governance and environmental trade-offs in ecotourism development at Kangaroo Island, South Australia. Journal of Sustainable Tourism, 19(4-5), 553-570.

Kozumi, H., & Kobayashi, G. (2011). Gibbs sampling methods for Bayesian quantile regression. Journal of statistical computation and simulation, 81(11), 1565-1578.

Sukserm, T., Thiengkamol, N., & Thiengkamol, T. (2012). Development of the ecotourism management model for forest park. Journal of the Social Sciences, 7(1), 95-99.

Taylor, S. J., Bogdan, R., & DeVault, M. (2015). Introduction to qualitative research methods: A guidebook and resource. John Wiley & Sons.

Appendix:  Questionnaire

Tick the suitable answer

1. Range of age

• 18-25
• 26-36
• 37- 47
• 48-58
• 59-69
• 70+

2. Gender

• Male
• Female

3. Income per annum

• Less than average
• Average
• Higher than average
• Rich

4. What you prefer while booking a holiday?

• Mountains
• Beach
• Quite location
• A nightlife
• A city life
• Others

Business problems

5. The level of understanding on ecotourism.

• None
• Moderate
• Good
• High level

6. Do you prefer going to an eco-tourist holiday?

• Yes
• No
• May be

7. How your eco-tourism tours are organised?

• Individually and independently
• Independently with family
• Through organised groups or friends
• Through tour operator/ travel agent
• Through non-profits groups who organises tour

8. Do you like a greener lifestyle?

• Yes
• No

Literature Review

9. Expenses you want to pay on an eco-tourism holiday?

• $80-500
• $500-1000
• $1000-1400
• $1500-1900
• $2000+

10. Has media contributed to pushing eco-tourism?

• Yes
• No
• May be

11. Rank the reason you prefer in an eco-tourist destination.

• Destinations with no crowds
• Remote place with unspoilt nature
• Experiencing wildlife
• Interaction with native locals
• View unusual flora and fauna
• In support to provide economic benefits to locals
• Volunteering
• Others