Pursuing: A Grounded Theory of Tourism Entrepreneurs' Understanding and Praxis of Sustainable Tourism

Abstract

Tourism entrepreneurs are recognized as instigators of much tourism development and consequently have a role to play in contributing to sustainable tourism. In particular, entrepreneurial engagement with sustainability has the potential to alleviate negative impacts of tourism on a micro-scale, particularly socio-cultural consequences, environmental degradation and economic inequalities. This study used a grounded theory approach to determine sustainable tourism meanings and practices undertaken by tourism entrepreneurs operating on the Gold Coast of Queensland, Australia. The study is significant as the grounded theory of pursuing, which emerged, highlights connectivity between the entrepreneurial self, the actions of entrepreneurs, their use of ethics and their praxes of sustainable tourism. The significance of this study is threefold. First, it contributes to the body of qualitatively informed holistically focused tourism studies. Second, it contributes to the literature related to entrepreneurs, sustainable tourism and ethics. Third, the study highlights the lived experiences of tourism entrepreneurs pursuing the provision of sustainable tourism enterprises. In particular, the tourism entrepreneurs identified the factors that served to circumvent their pursuit of sustainable tourism.