CESO’s Work in Sustainable Tourism: creating positive impact on the environment, while strengthening women’s economic empowerment Countries: Colombia, Peru, and the Philippines Program: Volunteer Cooperation Program 2015-2020 Date: July 24, 2020 Implementing partner organization: CESO Author and contact information: Anna Fabro ([email protected]) Key themes of the case study: Sustainable Tourism, Women’s Economic Empowerment Table of Contents Executive Summary ...................................................................................................................................... 1 1- Introduction ............................................................................................................................................... 2 2- CESO partners working in sustainable tourism ........................................................................................ 2 3- CESO’s strategy to support sustainable tourism ...................................................................................... 4 3.1 Developing or enhancing sustainable tourism plans .................................................................... 5 3.2 Enhancing sustainable water and waste management ................................................................ 5 3.3 Strengthening business development and organizational management practices ...................... 5 4- Results of CESO’s Capacity Development Initiatives .............................................................................. 6 4.1 Research methodology ................................................................................................................. 6 4.2 CESO contribution to support sustainable tourism initiatives ....................................................... 7 4.3 CESO contribution to development of good environmental and sustainable practices. .............. 9 4.4 CESO contribution to capacity enhancement in business development and organizational management ........................................................................................................................................... 10 4.5 CESO contribution to advance GE and WEE ............................................................................. 12 5- Lessons Learned and next steps ........................................................................................................... 16 6- Conclusion .............................................................................................................................................. 17 Bibliography ................................................................................................................................................ 18 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY As one of the largest economic sectors worldwide, the need for sustainability in tourism becomes more apparent. Through collaborative assignments with seven partner organizations across Colombia, Peru, and the Philippines, this case study presents CESO’s contributions to advancing sustainable practices and approaches in the tourism industry, while also promoting Gender Equality (GE) and Women’s Economic Empowerment (WEE). CESO’s strategic assistance is divided into three main areas: (1) development of sustainable tourism planning, (2) capacity development in water and waste management, and (3) enhancing capacity in business development, specifically marketing, finance, operations, and organizational management. Results of CESO’s assistance were assessed through questionnaires answered by partners and assignment beneficiaries. As well, evidence was gathered from assignment documentation provided by partners, CESO Advisors, and relevant CESO staff. A total of 18 individual responses were received. When asked to rate CESO’s overall contribution to sustainable tourism initiatives, 100% of participants indicated that CESO made a moderate to high impact with their partner organization. 78% of the respondents said that their own individual capacity for sustainable tourism was increased due to CESO assistance. Examples of CESO support is the creation of multi-year strategic development plans in collaboration with partners. Regarding environmental practices such as water and waste management, 94% of respondents indicated that CESO made moderate to high contributions to sustainability within the partner organizations. CESO support for environmental practices included teaching partners how to assess water quality and increasing awareness of the 3Rs process (ie. reduce, reuse, and recycle). Moreover, feedback about CESO’s impact on capacity enhancement in business development was strongly positive with most participants. 94%, 88%, and 83% of participants indicated moderate to high CESO contribution in the areas of marketing, finance, and management, respectively. Advancement of Gender Equality and Women’s Economic Empowerment within the sustainable tourism sector were additional objective from the CESO assignments. 82% of participants stated that CESO contributed to the economic empowerment of women within their partner organizations. Two-thirds of female respondents reported boosted personal confidence, and more than half of female respondents noted increased decision-making authority within the organization. Since 1967, CESO has partnered with thousands of organizations, both locally and internationally. Through this long-standing history, CESO has refined its partnership model. Client needs are aligned with the specific expertise of CESO advisors, a network of senior-level leaders with, on average, 25 years of experience in their industries and professions. CESO’s international work in economic development illustrates the lasting change that is possible through targeted support at the individual and business level. This report illuminates the need for strong partnerships—those that support sustainability, economically empower women, and advance gender equality. 1 1- INTRODUCTION In the last fifty years, tourism has become one of the largest economic sectors worldwide, accounting for over 200 million jobs and a financial impact that is forecasted to grow (UNWTO, 2013). In 2017, the industry brought in an estimated transaction worth of $1.34 billion USD globally, making tourism an important economic driver especially in developing countries (UNWTO, 2017). Among the sector’s characteristics are the 54% of women workers that make up the industry, the 14.7% pay gap between men and women, and women’s very active participation in community-based tourism, also broadly referred to as a form of sustainable tourism (UNWTO, 2019). The UNWTO (2019) refers to sustainable tourism as “tourism that 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”. The need to address tourism’s impact in a more holistic manner stems from its occasional negative impact on natural resources, infrastructure, mobility and congestion, as well as socio-cultural impact. As a result, a policy topic has emerged within governments to support organizations in ensuring a more sustainable development of the tourism sector (Guerreiro, 2019). As a sector that relies on female workers, sustainable tourism plays an important part in addressing Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), especially SDG5 (“achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls”) and SDG 8 (“promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, employment and decent work for all”) (UNWTO 2019). The Canadian government through its Feminist International Assistance Policy (FIAP) aims to address several of SDGs through collaboration with Volunteer Sending Organizations (VSO). As a VSO, Canadian Executive Service Organization (CESO) cooperates with the Canadian government to implement FIAP while addressing several SDGs. With over fifty years of expertise, CESO promotes Gender Equality (GE) and Women’s Economic Empowerment (WEE) through a variety of international development projects, and by working with change agents from within civic society, as well as public and private realms. Using a partner-driven approach to assess needs of partner organizations in developing countries, CESO aims to bridge partners’ knowledge and skills gaps by calling on the expertise of CESO Advisors. The collaborations between CESO Advisors and partners help beneficiaries improve their social and economic well-being. This case study aims to present CESO’s contribution towards reinforcing sustainable practices and approaches in the tourism industry, while advancing GE and WEE, through collaboration with seven partners in Latin America and Asia. This study first presents an overview of CESO’s implications in promoting GE and WEE within partner organizations. Next, a description of the strategy used by CESO and its partners to promote the sustainable tourism industry is provided. The case then focuses on results of the capacity development and enhancement initiatives within the partner organizations. Finally, the case study presents lessons learned from assistance provided and suggests next steps on how to improve future initiatives promoting GE and WEE. 2- CESO PARTNERS WORKING IN SUSTAINABLE TOURISM To demonstrate the impact of CESO’s contribution to the empowerment of women working in sustainable tourism, this case study focuses on seven organizations in Colombia, Peru, and the Philippines, which have received assistance from CESO in the area of sustainable tourism. These seven change agents were chosen