Wednesday, 19 April 2017
Waikato to host NZ’s first UN tourism monitoring observatory
The University of Waikato’s Management School will host New Zealand’s first Tourism Monitoring Observatory, which
reports to the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO).
The newly established Waikato Tourism Monitoring Observatory officially joined the UNWTO’s International Network for
Sustainable Tourism (INSTO) on 11 April, following a one-year application process supported by former Prime Minister
John Key, as well as Minister of Tourism Paula Bennett.
Established in 2004, INSTO is a global network of centres that carry out research to support evidence-based management
of sustainable tourism at a local level, by monitoring the economic, environmental and social benefits and impacts of
tourism activities.
At present, there are 18 observatories operating in China, the United States, Mexico, Brazil, Jamaica, Greece, Croatia,
Morocco, Indonesia - and now New Zealand joins the list.
Waikato Management School’s tourism and hospitality research cluster was ranked 24th best in the world in the QS World
University Subject Rankings 20171, which are based on academic credentials, research citations and employer reputation.
“Tourism is a key growth industry for New Zealand, contributing an estimated $1.28 billion tourist spending in the
Waikato region alone each year,” says Professor Chris Ryan of Waikato Management School, who is leading the Waikato
observatory’s research programme.
“However, it’s important that we actively manage the pressures that increasing tourist numbers can put on our natural,
social and built environments. The Waikato observatory will play an important role in providing robust data for better
informed planning and decision-making around tourism in New Zealand.”
The observatory’s five-year research programme will initially focus on the two small towns of Raglan and Waitomo, which
attract nearly 400,000 visitors a year. Raglan is world-famous for its left-hand point surf break, while Waitomo is
internationally renowned for its spectacular limestone glowworm caves.
“We’ll start by investigating current perceptions by visitors and residents of tourism services in Raglan and Waitomo,”
says Professor Ryan. “Then we’ll start to look at how tourism is affecting the local environment through increased
demand for vital infrastructure such as roads, carparks, water supply and sewage management.”
Research results will be reported back at regular intervals to the UNWTO and other key stakeholders, including Waikato
District Council, Hamilton & Waikato Tourism, and the Raglan and Waitomo chambers of commerce. A series of public meetings will also be organised to
gather feedback from the local communities.
“It was the strong sense of community in Raglan that helped us to identify it as the perfect place where we could begin
to develop the research techniques necessary for carrying out such a project,” says Professor Ryan.
The United Nations has declared 2017 as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development. It aims to
promote government policies and business practices that support the UN’s sustainable development goals of reducing
poverty and social inequalities, and protecting local environment and cultural heritage.
“Tourism has an important role to play in seeking to achieve these sustainable development goals, as many people in New
Zealand and the Waikato region have jobs that depend on wealth created by the tourism sector,” says Professor Ryan.
Professor Ryan is director of the China-New Zealand Tourism Research Unit based at Waikato Management School, and editor
of the journals Tourism Management and Tourism Management Perspective.
The other members of the Waikato Tourism Monitoring Observatory are Associate Professor Asad Mohsin, chairperson of the
tourism and hospitality research cluster at Waikato Management School, doctoral student Mary Anne Tumanan, and masters
students Zhe Chen and Linrui Li.
For more details about the Waikato Tourism Monitoring Observatory, visit https://tinyurl.com/l3obuz4
Background notes:
1. Waikato’s tourism research cluster sits within the broader subject discipline of ‘Hospitality and Leisure
Management’ in the QS World University Subject Rankings. For details see www.topuniversities.com/university-rankings/university-subject-rankings/2017/hospitality-leisure-management