Leonard A . Jackson

Environmental improvements in tourism do not determine who controls assets, influences decisions, retains income, or bears transition costs. This conceptual article examines how governance can connect green tourism transitions to Sustainable Development Goal 10 (SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities). An integrative literature review and abductive theory synthesis connect justice and sustainability, political economy and access, collective governance and capability conversion, and organizational accountability. Mechanism-oriented analysis identifies eight capture pathways and develops the Equitable Green Tourism Governance Framework (EGTG). The framework links destination institutions, community entrepreneurial ecosystems, and hospitality firms and boards through six functions: rights and recognition; representative voice and decision power; capabilities and finance; fair transactions and local value capture; accountability, assurance, and remedy; and reinvestment and adaptive learning. Twelve conditional propositions explain how these functions may convert formal commitments into realized benefits and identify constraints on their effectiveness. A governance gate, readiness-based implementation sequence, responsibility matrix, and SDG-aligned diagnostics translate the framework into testable practice. The contribution is a multilevel explanation of why environmental commitments require aligned authority, capabilities, transactions, and corrective mechanisms to support equitable outcomes. The proposed relationships and implementation instruments require context-sensitive empirical validation.

Coastal and island destinations increasingly rely on data-driven governance to manage seasonality, resource scarcity, overtourism, and climate risk. This article analyzes 30 official documents issued between 2017 and 2025 by nine Spanish and Portuguese Sustainable Tourism Observatories in the UN Tourism INSTO network. Rather than treating observatory language as verified policy implementation, the study uses computational content analysis to measure institutional discourse about monitoring and action. The Actionability Index (ActI), action-share, and log-ratio metrics are interpreted as exploratory, compositional text indicators, not direct evidence of governance effectiveness. Results show a negative document-level association between monitoring intensity and the ActI (r = −0.3951, p = 0.0307, alpha = 0.05), but denominator coupling and report-genre heterogeneity require a restrained interpretation: the pattern signals a monitoring-action imbalance that warrants follow-up validation rather than causal proof of a governance failure. Quartile-based profile labels are treated as sample-internal descriptors, with Barcelona interpreted as a boundary case whose action discourse is concentrated around tourism carrying capacity. A pre/post-2020 comparison is reported only as an unbalanced descriptive contrast. The contribution is a transparent, reproducible framework for auditing whether monitoring intelligence is connected to actionable discourse, together with explicit limits and validation priorities for future work.

Hospitality and tourism firms are central actors in sustainable tourism transitions because their operations are resource intensive and highly visible to consumers and local communities. This study examines whether board-level governance mechanisms—board independence, gender diversity, a sustainability committee, CEO duality, and board size—are associated with environmental performance, and whether environmental performance is related to firm value in global hospitality firms. Using a panel of 10 large publicly traded hospitality companies across North America, Europe, and Asia from 2013–2022 (100 firm-year observations) and fixed-effects estimation, we find positive associations between board independence, board gender diversity, and the presence of a sustainability committee and environmental performance, while CEO duality is negatively associated. Environmental performance is positively associated with firm value (Tobin’s Q) after controlling for profitability and firm size. Because the sample is intentionally bounded to large listed firms and the Refinitiv Environmental Pillar Score is disclosure based, the results should be interpreted as sector-specific associative evidence rather than as definitive causal estimates of operational environmental outcomes. To support longitudinal research on emerging practices in sustainable tourism, we also document a public-source protocol that enables researchers to extend the panel beyond 2022, broaden firm coverage, and incorporate direct environmental indicators over time. The findings highlight board sustainability governance as a potentially important private-sector practice for strengthening environmental citizenship in hospitality, while also clarifying the measurement and generalizability limits of the present design.

Introduction: Robotics and artificial intelligence (AI) are rapidly reshaping hospitality by automating frontline and back-of-house processes, augmenting service encounters, and expanding the analytical scope of revenue management. Yet, existing research remains fragmented: service-robot studies largely emphasize adoption and human–robot interaction, while revenue-management research prioritizes pricing and distribution, sustainability research focuses on environmental practices, and hotel real-estate scholarship foregrounds governance and asset value. Meanwhile, blockchain technologies—through distributed ledgers, smart contracts, digital identity, and tokenization—offer a complementary trust and value-transfer layer that can address coordination and verification problems across hotel ecosystems (e.g., data sharing, sustainability claims, and owner–operator contracting). Methods: Drawing on an integrative literature synthesis, this conceptual article develops an integrative framework linking AI–robotics and blockchain capabilities to three interdependent hotel decision domains: (1) revenue management (demand forecasting, dynamic/open pricing, channel and loyalty optimization), (2) sustainability and operations (resource optimization, waste circularity, predictive maintenance), and (3) real estate and hotel asset management (digital twins, CapEx planning, valuation and risk analytics, and tokenized financing). Results: A conceptual model is proposed in which AI–robotics and blockchain jointly build digital operational and market-intelligence capabilities that improve financial performance (RevPAR/GOPPAR and net operating income), sustainability performance (carbon and resource intensity), and long-term asset value. Ten propositions articulate mechanisms and boundary conditions related to governance, ethics, privacy, cybersecurity, organizational readiness, regulation, and market context. Discussion: The article concludes with implications for hotel managers, owners, investors, and researchers, and outlines a future research agenda for hospitality, tourism, service management, and real-estate scholars.

Community-based tourism (CBT) is widely promoted as a route to inclusive growth and conservation in emerging economies, yet outcomes vary because the communities’ ability to create, scale, and sustain CBT enterprises depends on the surrounding entrepreneurial ecosystem. Building on entrepreneurial ecosystem theory and grand challenges scholarship, this article reframes CBT as a place-based entrepreneurial ecosystem that mobilizes local and external actors, resources, and institutions to advance the United Nations 2030 Agenda. The purpose of the study is to develop and illustrate an SDG-oriented CBT entrepreneurial ecosystem framework and identify the ecosystem mechanisms and boundary conditions associated with SDG contributions. Using a qualitative multiple-case design and structured document analysis of 42 public artifacts (peer-reviewed studies, program evaluations, organizational reports, and organizational webpages), three initiatives were examined: Namibia’s communal conservancies, Chi Phat community-based ecotourism in Cambodia, and Bolivia’s Chalalán Ecolodge. Cross-case synthesis showed that progress on SDG 1 (No Poverty) and SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth)—with complementary contributions to SDGs 10, 11, 12, 15, 16, and 17—emerges when ecosystems combine: (i) enforceable community rights and benefit-sharing rules; (ii) bridging organizations that provide training, finance, market access, and quality assurance; (iii) accountable local governance for transparency and conflict resolution; and (iv) reinvestment mechanisms that fund conservation and community services. The analysis also identified boundary conditions (e.g., elite capture, value leakage, donor dependence, uneven tourism potential, and demand shocks) and specific policy levers (tenure security, adaptive concession policies, blended finance, and impact monitoring) to strengthen CBT ecosystems for SDG delivery.

Purpose: This article highlights how hotel asset management practices and governance structures can drive sustainable change and enhance asset value. The approach builds on prior research and industry evidence, translating key insights into actionable strategies for practitioners. Design/methodology/approach: This paper synthesizes insights from the author's prior studies on hotel asset management and corporate governance, along with recent industry reports, framed in an organizational change context. A conceptual framework illustrates how asset management decisions, change management processes, and sustainability outcomes interrelate. Findings: Effective hotel asset management can advance sustainability and financial performance. Hotels adopting proactive green initiatives often realize higher profit margins and greater market differentiation. Key components – investment planning, operations oversight and stakeholder alignment – serve as levers to implement initiatives that cut operating costs and extend asset life. Misaligned incentives in asset light ownership structures hinder progress, whereas aligned goals and strong leadership unlock improvements. Embedding sustainability into asset decisions through structured change processes improves environmental performance and financial results. Social implications: Embedding sustainability lowers energy, carbon, water and waste; strengthens community resilience; improves ESG transparency and compliance; supports fairer owner–operator relationships; elevates brand trust and boosts employee engagement and retention. Originality/value: This paper bridges academic research on hotel asset management and sustainability with industry practice, presenting an integrated perspective. It connects previously siloed analyses of environmental initiatives and financial performance by showing how sustainability can be systematically implemented through asset management. A framework and real-world example demonstrate that profitability and sustainability reinforce each other, especially under effective change management.

This study examines the intersection of renewable energy and tourism by exploring why domestic tourists visit wind farm sites for recreation. Traditionally seen as industrial facilities, wind farms are now recognized as dual-purpose attractions that promote environmental awareness and local economic growth. Using the Value–Belief–Norm (VBN) theory, Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB), and New Environmental Paradigm (NEP) as theoretical lenses, we investigate the psychological, social, and cultural factors influencing wind farm tourism. The key determinants of tourist behavior include attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioral control, personal norms, and environmental beliefs. Structural equation modeling (SEM) indicates that personal norms have the strongest direct impact on tourists’ intentions (underscoring the importance of internalized moral obligations in this context), with additional indirect effects through environmental citizenship factors. The findings highlight wind farms’ potential to foster sustainability, community engagement, and rural development. Managerial recommendations include providing visitor amenities, targeted marketing, and community involvement to enhance wind farms’ appeal as tourism destinations. This study contributes to tourism theory by expanding the definition of attractions to include renewable energy sites. Future research should examine the moderating role of past behavior and incorporate additional environmental citizenship variables to deepen insights into wind farm tourism.

The hospitality industry’s global reach and resource-intensive operations have placed it under growing scrutiny for environmental impact. This empirical study examines how corporate governance influences corporate environmental citizenship (CEC) among eight major hotel companies across North America, Europe, and Asia from 2020 to 2023. Drawing on agency, stakeholder, institutional, and legitimacy theories, the study hypothesizes that stronger governance—measured by board independence, separation of CEO and Chair roles (non-duality), and ownership concentration—positively relates to environmental performance. A panel dataset of 32 firm-year observations is analyzed using regression models. The results show that higher board independence and greater ownership concentration are associated with significantly improved CEC index scores, while CEO duality corresponds with weaker environmental performance. The findings represent one of the first cross-national empirical demonstrations of governance–CEC links in hospitality, offering theoretical insights and practical guidance. Overall, the evidence suggests that robust governance mechanisms can serve as catalysts for environmental stewardship in the hotel sector.

Community-based tourism (CBT) is an innovative and participatory approach that places local communities at the center of tourism development. This model aligns with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), particularly SDG 1 (No Poverty) and SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth). Through a synthesis of global case studies from regions such as Nepal, Kenya, Costa Rica, South Korea, and Zimbabwe, this paper examines the transformative potential of CBT in fostering inclusive economic growth, empowering marginalized communities, and promoting cultural and environmental sustainability. Content and comparative analyses reveal how CBT generates sustainable livelihoods, preserves cultural heritage, and addresses governance and dependency challenges. The study highlights interlinkages between SDGs 1 and 8 and provides actionable strategies for stakeholders, including policymakers, residents, tourists, and academics. Recommendations for addressing implementation barriers and future research directions underscore the need for innovative solutions, technological integration, and long-term community resilience planning. This paper affirms CBT’s role as a global model for sustainable tourism and equitable development.