Hong Kong-Case Study Cum Teachers Note 2014
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GTTP RESEARCH COMPETITION & AWARD 2014 TECHNOLOGY AND SUSTAINABILITY Students: GTTP Research Wong Chun, Jerry Wan Chun Tak, Sunny Competition & Teacher: Mrs. Jenny Lo Tourism & Hospitality Studies Award 2014 Cheung Chuk Shan College Technology and Sustainability Wong Chun, Jerry Wan Chun Tak, Sunny Cheung Chuk Shan College Acknowledgements Our heartfelt thanks to Dr. Nancy J. Needham & GTTP’s Global Partners We would like to express our sincere gratitude to GTTP and its global business partners. Our team would not have the precious opportunity to join the International Conference for Travel and Tourism teachers and students without their generous and unceasing support for this global programme. Our research project would not have succeeded without the valuable advice and inspiring insights provided by the following parties. Special thanks to: Ø Ms. Chammy Lau, the Director of GTTP Hong Kong Ø Mr. Hau Chi Keung, Director of the Risk & Environmental Management, Ocean Park Corporation Ø Ms. Phoenix Hau, Assistant Environmental Manager, Finance & Administration, Ocean Park Corporation Ø Ms. Holly Lai, Environmental Officer, Finance & Administration Division, Ocean Park Corporation Ø Mr. Terry Wong, Public Affairs Officer, Sales and Marketing Division, Ocean Park Corporation Ø Mr. Au Chun Keung, Principal, Cheung Chuk Shan College Ø Mr. Patrick Lui, Cheung Chuk Shan College Ø Ms. Kaitlin Elizabeth Trowbridge, Cheung Chuk Shan College Page 1 of 52 Technology and Sustainability- Ocean Park, Hong Kong By Jerry Wong & Sunny Wan Content Case Summary 3 Chapter One: Introduction 4 i. What is sustainability? 6 ii. Factors affecting the sustainability of a destination 7 iii. Technology in tourism industry 9 iv. How does technology influence sustainability? 10 Chapter Two: Case Selection- Ocean Park Hong Kong 11 i. Information collection - Web research 13 - Site visit 14 - Interview 21 ii. SWOT Analysis of Ocean Park Hong Kong - Strength 26 - Opportunities 28 - Weakness 30 - Threat 31 iii. Chapter Summary 32 Chapter Three: Situation in Hong Kong i. Benefits in promoting sustainability through technology in Hong Kong 33 ii. Difficulties in promoting sustainability through technology in Hong Kong 36 Chapter Four: Comparison with other theme park i. Yokohama Hakkeijimi Sea Paradise 38 ii. Ocean Park Hong Kong vs Yokohama Hakkeijimi Sea Paradise 41 Chapter Five: Suggestion and Conclusion i. Suggestions on how to promote sustainability through technology 43 ii. Role of technology in promoting sustainability in tourism industry 46 iii. How does the organization utilize technology to support sustainability? 47 iv. Importance of technology in promoting sustainability of tourism of a destination 48 Teachers’ Note 49 References 52 Page 2 of 52 Technology and Sustainability- Ocean Park, Hong Kong By Jerry Wong & Sunny Wan Case Summary World Tourism Organization defines sustainable tourism as taking full account of its current and future economic, social and environmental impacts, addressing the needs of visitors, the industry, the environment and host communities. International tourist arrivals worldwide are expected to increase by 3.3% a year from 2010 to 2030 to reach 1.8 billion by 2030, according to UNWTO’s long term forecast Tourism Towards 2030. With an ever-increasing number of tourist arrivals, technology plays a more and more important role in improving and achieving better sustainability in the tourism industry. As Hong Kong is the Asia’s World City with a total visitor arrival exceeding 54 million in 2013, the Hong Kong Government and community are the leading roles to strike a balance between economic growth and better social and environmental quality. At the end of 2013, the Hong Kong government completed the Assessment Report on Hong Kong’s Capacity to Receive Tourists. It suggested that the arrival of visitors would be over 70 million in 2017 and exceed 1 billion in 2023. Despite the fact that Hong Kong government has been utilizing more space to develop tourism facilities in the small and densely populated city, the challenge of overcrowding with a large number of visitor arrival continues to affect the local community, economy and environment. In order to solve the problem, better planning in development of destination is needed. Therefore, sustainable development plays a vital role in Hong Kong. In 2012, according to the Theme Index of the Global Attractions Attendance Report, Hong Kong Ocean Park ranked the fourth among 20 amusement/theme parks in Asia-Pacific region. It shows that Ocean Park has a good popularity not only in Hong Kong, but also in the world. As a local amusement park with 37 years of history, it has been adopting various sustainable practices in operation and infrastructure design with an incorporation of technology to provide better guest experience and be more eco-friendly. For example, it fully utilizes the fact that most visitors use smart phones and develops different tools such as mobile application and QR code display to disseminate updated information, educate visitors about environmental conservation and increase interaction with visitors. More detailed examples can be found in the report. Page 3 of 52 Technology and Sustainability- Ocean Park, Hong Kong By Jerry Wong & Sunny Wan Chapter One: Introduction A destination may be attractive due to its physical or human resources. Physical resources are based on features of natural environment of a place. Human resources can be divided into cultural attractions and man-made attractions. Tourists are attracted to visit the destination and with the large flow of tourist, the destination can earn revenue for further tourism improvement, enhancing the image of the destination. As the popularity of the destination has been growing, there will be more and more tourists coming in, it may reach or even exceed the carrying capacity of the destination. According to the World Tourism Organization, Tourism carrying capacity is defined as “the maximum number of people that may visit a tourist destination at the same time, without causing destruction of the physical, economic, socio-cultural environment and an unacceptable decrease in the quality of visitors’ satisfaction. Or in other words, Carrying capacity is the maximum number of people who can use a destination without unacceptable changes in the environment and enjoyment gain by the visitors. Huge amount of people may harm the environment, the nature of the place and the local residents, causing negative impacts to the destination in social, economic and environmental aspects. Page 4 of 52 Technology and Sustainability- Ocean Park, Hong Kong By Jerry Wong & Sunny Wan Talking about the number of visitors from around the world received by Hong Kong in 2013, the number exceeded 54million and had an increase of 11.7% over 2012. Mainland China continued to be the largest visitor source market with 40.7million arrivals accounting for 75.0% of Hong Kong total arrivals. At the end of 2013, the Hong Kong government completed the Assessment Report on Hong Kong’s Capacity to Receive Tourists. The assessment suggested that, the arrival of visitors would be over 70million in 2017. Despite the fact that Hong Kong government has been utilizing much space to develop tourism facilities in the small and densely populated Hong Kong, Hong Kong would still have a chance to get overcrowded. In order to ease the situation, better planning in development of destination is needed. Therefore, sustainable development should be adopted. Page 5 of 52 Technology and Sustainability- Ocean Park, Hong Kong By Jerry Wong & Sunny Wan What is sustainability? “Sustainable Tourism takes full account of its current and future economic, social and environmental impacts, addressing the needs of visitors, the industry, the environment and host communities.” - World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) In a more conceptual way, • Sustainable tourism development guidelines and management practices are applicable to all forms of tourism in all types of destinations, including mass tourism and the various niche tourism segments. • Sustainability principles refer to the environmental, economic and socio-cultural aspects of tourism development, and a suitable balance must be established between these three dimensions to guarantee its long-term sustainability. • Sustainable tourism development requires the informed participation of all relevant stakeholders, as well as strong political leadership to ensure wide participation and consensus building. Achieving sustainable tourism is a continuous process and it requires constant monitoring of impacts, introducing the necessary preventive and/or corrective measures whenever necessary. • Sustainable tourism should also maintain a high level of tourist satisfaction and ensure a meaningful experience to the tourists, raising their awareness about sustainability issues and promoting sustainable tourism practices amongst them. A sustainable tourism should: 1. Make optimal use of environmental resources that constitute a key element in tourism development, maintaining essential ecological processes and helping to conserve natural heritage and biodiversity. 2. Respect the socio-cultural authenticity of host communities, conserve their built and living cultural heritage and traditional values, and contribute to inter-cultural understanding and tolerance. 3. Ensure viable, long-term economic operations, providing socio-economic benefits to all stakeholders that are fairly distributed, including stable employment and income-earning