Tackling Economic Leakage & Sustainability Grandstanding in Tourism, with Ewan Cluckie, Tripseed
Description
"How do you know your tourism activity's overall impact is beneficial to a community if you aren't measuring it?" This week, Gary and Hannah discuss economic leakages and quantifying the impacts on local communities of tour operations with Ewan Cluckie, Founder of Thailand-based Tripseed. Socio-economic sustainability in tourism is an under-scrutinised topic, but Tripseed is confronting it head-on. The company recently published phase 1 of its deeply researched Economic Distribution Disclosure Initiative, a set of tools and metrics designed to "drive transparency and positive impact within the local economyā€¯. Ewan discusses why economic leakage is "particularly pronounced" in Thailand, and research related to other ASEAN countries. So, what are these leakages, how do you measure and compare them - and where does the money go? And, how can leakages be assessed for suppliers further along the chain, whose data might be tricky to obtain? Ewan also provides a heads-up about the areas that this innovative tourism impact project in South East Asia will address next - and the interest it has garnered from university research institutes and large private sector organisations.