Religion, Local Produce and Sustainability at Religious Sites in Hungary

International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage Volume 3 Issue 2 Selection of Papers from International Article 3 Conference 2015 (V1) 2015 Religion, Local Produce and Sustainability at Religious Sites in Hungary Alan Clarke Univeristy of Pannonia Veszprém, Hungary, [email protected] Ágnes Raffay University of Pannonia, Veszprém, Hungary, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://arrow.tudublin.ie/ijrtp Part of the Sociology Commons, Tourism and Travel Commons, and the Urban Studies and Planning Commons Recommended Citation Clarke, Alan and Raffay, Ágnes (2015) "Religion, Local Produce and Sustainability at Religious Sites in Hungary," International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage: Vol. 3: Iss. 2, Article 3. doi:https://doi.org/10.21427/D7MM81 Available at: https://arrow.tudublin.ie/ijrtp/vol3/iss2/3 Creative Commons License This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 4.0 License. © International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage ISSN : 2009-7379 Available at: http://arrow.dit.ie/ijrtp/ Volume 3(ii) 2015 Religion, Local Produce and Sustainability at Religious Sites in Hungary Alan Clarke & Ágnes Raffay University of Pannonia Veszprém, Hungary [email protected] There is a growing awareness of sustainable practices at religious tourism sites and we have observed this in Hungary, with the focus shifting from one aspect of sustainability to incorporating all three major aspects, the environmental, the economic and the socio- cultural (Rees and Wackernagel, 1996). Although the economic aspect used to be predominant (Shackley, 2001; Mangeloja, 2003) now we can find more examples of practices that aim to promote socio-cultural sustainability, while taking the natural environment also into account (Tanguay et al, 2010). Several religious tourism sites have started to offer local produce in their souvenir shops and to incorporate them into the services they provide, even turning them into part of the attraction. However, we cannot label this as a new phenomenon as centuries ago it was the practice of the monasteries to produce potentially everything they needed, and the names of some of the goods we consume today still refer to orders or monks (such as cheese, wine, beer, etc.) We can argue that the use of local produce is not merely a marketing tool or an additional source of income for the religious tourism sites but is also aimed to both satisfy the needs of the order the sites are run by and to preserve some of the lesser known traditions that were once part of the everyday life of the Church (Thurley and Wood, 2010; UNESCO, 2014). This article aims to explore the traditions of producing local goods at selected religious tourism sites and to assess their current practices. The assessment is based on site visits and interviews with the managers of the sites to explore the breadth of local produce in their offering of services and goods (primarily souvenirs), the origin of those (both in terms of tradition and manufacture) and how they contribute to sustainable development. The utilisation of local produce reinforces the links between the sites’ core religious values and those of the communities they operate within and are part of, thereby supporting not only religious values but also wider social cultures and heritages. Key Words: local produce; local craft traditions; sustainability; authenticity, religious heritage Sustainability ND). The three overlapping areas can be addressed separately, yet every aspect will affect the others in The sustainable management of tourism contributes in some way due to their integrated nature and therefore a terms of environmental, cultural heritage, social and holistic approach is necessary. economic aspects. In order to understand the sustainable management of tourism, we first need to The term ‘sustainability’ has become a central topic in explore both sustainability and the way it can work the tourism industry (Byrd and Cardenas, 2007), and it with tourism. is suggested that the concept has become the subject for a contemporary assessment of progress and In 1987, the World Commission on Environment and responsibility, freedom and culture (Bachmann, 2010). Development (WCED) defined sustainability as Liu has observed how: meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own Sustainability, sustainable tourism and needs. Although there are many definitions of sustainable development are all well- sustainability, they all require that we view the world established terms that have been used loosely as a system that is connected by space and time (IISD, and often interchangeably (2003: 461) . ~ 33 ~ Clarke and Raffay Religion, Local Produce and Sustainability at Religious Sites in Hungary Sustainable tourism represents a direct application of (2015) argues that sustainability, whilst desirable, may the sustainable development concept which became not be possible. All these, and other arguments, lead to popular in the 1980’s. The origins of this rooted from Collins's assertion that sustainable tourism might not environmentalism which grew in the 1970’s. The be as sustainable as is currently believed. Furthermore, UNWTO (2004) formal definition of sustainable Collins points out, the level of natural capital deemed tourism states that: adequate for sustainability by current generations may eventually prove insufficient in the future. While Sustainable tourism development guidelines sustainable tourism is questionable, it is apparent that and management practices are applicable to all the term and concept is here to stay and it now forms of tourism in all types of destinations, underpins notions we take to be central to the including mass tourism and the various niche development of religious heritage tourism. tourism segments. Sustainability principles refer to the environmental, economic and socio- Tourism attractions need to adapt to changes in cultural aspects of tourism development, and a management. They cannot afford to ignore the issue of suitable balance must be established between changes in the pattern of demand and the type of these three dimensions to guarantee its long- tourism they offer (Tourism Sustainability Group, term sustainability. 2007). The sustainable management of tourism is being consolidated at an international level. Indicator Sustainable tourism development requires the systems and criteria for the sustainable management of informed participation of all relevant tourism destinations demonstrate a precedent for the stakeholders, as well as strong political management of tourism destinations globally. This is leadership to ensure wide participation and evidenced in both the Global Sustainable Tourism consensus building. Achieving sustainable Criteria for Destinations (2012) and the European tourism is a continuous process and it requires Commission’s, European Tourism Indicator System constant monitoring of impacts, introducing the (2013) for sustainable management at destination level. necessary preventive and/or corrective These guides are generally prepared and tested on a measures whenever necessary. Sustainable number of different member states and can prove a tourism should also maintain a high level of very useful tool for tourism managers and planners tourist satisfaction and ensure a meaningful alike. experience to the tourists, raising their awareness about sustainability issues and In 2010, the European Commission proposed a new promoting sustainable tourism practices political framework for tourism in Europe. This amongst them (UNEP and UNWTO, 2005: 11-12 ). insisted that it is essential that all operators in the sector combine their efforts and work within a While the term is becoming increasingly popular, consolidated political framework that takes into Jenkins and Schroder (2013) indicate that doubts have account the new EU priorities which were set out in the been raised about whether the promised harmonisation 'Europe 2020' strategy: Europe must remain the world's of ecological or environmental, social and economic Figure 1: Sustainability goals associated with sustainability is actually achievable. There is also debate about the term sustainable tourism which is said to be patchy and disjointed, often flawed with false assumptions and arguments (Liu, 2003). A smiple representation of sustainability is the triple bottom line (see Figure 1), which is a common theme evident in many of the definitions as they seek to minimise ecological and socio cultural impacts while providing economic benefits. Farrell (1999) refers to it as the ‘sustainability trinity’ as it aims for the smooth and transparent integration of the three. Therefore, in the context of the sustainable management of tourism, it is necessary to incorporate all three elements. However, a question regularly asked is how sustainable is sustainable tourism? For example Collins (1999), asserts that if an explicit natural capital perspective is adopted, current sustainable tourism development Source: Author’s adaptation of UNWTO model cannot be considered as genuinely sustainable. Butler ~ 34 ~ International Journal of Religious Tourism and Pilgrimage Volume 3(ii) 2015 number one destination, able to capitalise on its management areas, there lies a challenge in moving the territorial wealth and diversity. The action framework sustainable management of tourism into practical seeks to: implementation (Miller and Twining-Ward, 2005;

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