The dynamics of tourism and people's expectations The attraction of living in a centre of tourism Strong and sustained growth in tourism generally leads to agglomeration effects. Centres emerge in which economic and social life is determined to a large extent by tourism. The varying interests of different cultures come into conflict. Visitors who in most cases themselves come from agglomerations, the service providers and their employees in the resorts, and the local population which comes into contact with tourism only indirectly, together create an exceptional situation, one found only in tourism and which has a major impact on economic success and on cultural identity. New professional skills : training young managers who can bring new life to destinations through innovation and management skills It is the individual, whether as tourist or as host, who is the key to sustainable development in tourism. As the tourist he is the one whose lifestyle and expectations to a great extent determine the future of this industry. But unless the host or supplier of tourism services takes a personal interest in his job and has the necessary training to do it well, our tourist king will look in vain for services of a high quality and attractive local environments. Tourism products and services need to be constantly upgraded and renewed, which means new ideas and ever greater creative abilities as well as modern methods of management. Whereas the hotel and catering sector has long been known for its training schemes for all levels from the apprentice to the specialist and manager, in destination management the tendency has been to rely on an intake of people from other sectors, a practice which has not always produced the desired results. The question that we need to ask ourselves in this age of increasing specialisation is, what sort of training and employment do we need to offer the most suitable candidates for the management of tourism locations. And what new types of profession are needed to ensure the development and marketing of new products, and for the all-important task of ensuring that visitors are received and cared for in a professional way. Professionalisation must be encouraged at the local tourism level. Tourism must be able to offer interesting career paths to the local resident population, enabling them to take charge of their own future, ensuring that local interests are duly safeguarded throughout the development process, and successfully managing the destination through permanent innovation that constantly upgrades local products and services. Questions How do the local people in tourism centres feel about the career opportunities open to them ? Are there specific tourism-related qualifications for which specialised training is necessary ? In which areas is there scope for creating new disciplines and career paths ? How can seasonal and part-time workers be better integrated in efforts to improve the services provided to tourists ? What contribution is made by those who enter tourism from other sectors ? Diversification of the economic structure of tourism locations : prolonging the life cycle of existing products and services and diversifying their structure The growth of tourism in the industrialised world produced a number of powerful tourism systems which because of their many years of experience and their high degree of specialisation, their competitiveness, the attention they paid to their clientele, and the excellence of their supply systems were until now difficult if not impossible to imitate, and in any case only at great cost. This situation has been changing however, and not just due to global competition. As the general development level rises tourism finds itself increasingly in competition with other sectors of the economy. It is not particularly well equipped for this contest due to the low productivity of its core sectors, which tend to be service-oriented and labour intensive. Moreover the young people in most tourism centres, who have been able to take advantage of the new prosperity to improve their education, often join the outward migration, leaving their places to far less qualified workers. This new situation is forcing most players in these tourism centres, in both the private and public sectors, to put their heads together to think up new economic development strategies. Their main concerns are to position themselves clearly against the many new competitors, to build on their existing strengths as tourism locations and to eliminate any weaknesses. This means upgrading the local infrastructure, increasing the level of comfort and quality and eliminating environmental eyesores and hazards. Above all thought must be given to ways in which existing tourism centres can develop interesting new products and services in collaboration with other economic sectors and activities such as sports, culture, agriculture, and the energy and education sectors. An effort must also be made to encourage new service companies and greater co-operation with new urban agglomerations. Only tourism locations with a diversified economic structure will remain attractive to their local populations. Questions What can be done to give new life to tourism products and services, prolonging their life cycles ? What other activities and economic sectors can serve for the diversification of tourism products and services ? What measures can be taken to reduce dependence on volatile tourism demand and to attract new service sectors ? Creating interesting new jobs : eliminating structural weaknesses from the tourism labour market Diversifying the economic structures of a tourism centre increases its attractiveness as a place to work, and makes the local labour market more competitive. This is one way to stop or at least slow down migration to the agglomerations. And diversification forces the main branches of tourism to improve wages and working conditions. This is the only way to ensure the loyalty of managers and specialised staff. Higher wages and better working conditions almost inevitably go hand in hand with higher productivity. Due to the small size of the typical tourism business and the labour-intensive services involved productivity in this industry tends to be lower than in the economy as a whole. It is also influenced by a number of exogenous factors such as the seasonal nature of demand, which has an impact on the utilisation of capacity and on earning power. The reliance on seasonal workers and part-time labour is almost inevitable to cope with season-related ups and down in demand and to keep staff costs under control. This "buffer stock" approach to labour affects wage levels by segmenting the local tourism labour market into locals and foreigners, with the latter being employed in the more seasonal jobs. If productivity is to be improved efforts must be made to overcome the structural risks of the tourism labour market in the context of the development process. Such a strategy requires efforts to rationalise and to improve co-operation. In most cases this means weaker businesses must go to the wall. The essential survival kit calls for strong commitment and training, and a willingness to co-operate. Only if the productivity of labour can be significantly increased will the traditional destinations be able to continue to compete on price while improving their attractiveness as places to work. Questions How can the disadvantages that go with the seasonal nature of tourism be overcome ? What can be done to streamline service-oriented businesses and branches ? How can problems be solved that are due to company size ? What should be done to improve the integration in the local labour market of non-local or foreign seasonal and part-time workers and to attract new workers from the agglomerations ? Improving the quality of life : protecting the environment and strengthening cultural identity People who visit tourism centres in areas of natural beauty expect a higher quality of life than can be found in most agglomerations. In fact however many tourism locations are themselves so highly urbanised that they have identical agglomeration costs, which are difficult to reduce because of the topography. Moreover in tourism centres as opposed to cities there are rarely any traffic-free areas, public transport if it exists at all is less efficient, and the urban landscape leaves much to be desired from an architectural point of view. In view of their proximity to mountains, the sea, lakes rivers or imposing natural monuments of one kind or another tourism centres are often more exposed to natural disasters such as avalanches, landslides and floods. These frighten tourists and potential tourists just as much as acts of terrorism, and the public image of locations that have been identified with such calamities is often tarnished for years to come. Ensuring the health and safety of local residents and tourists requires costly planning, preparation and infrastructure. In the past 20 years for example Switzerland alone has had to spend CHF 8,000 million on measures to protect against avalanches. Finally the fact that demand tends to be concentrated in a limited time and space often has a negative effect on the quality of life in tourism centres. And the development of infrastructure and superstructures to cope with peak period demand is costly, again negatively affecting all areas of life for local residents. Questions How can traffic problems be brought under control in tourism centres, while improving their urban landscapes ? What can be done to limit the potential dangers in tourism locations ? How can visitor management be improved in the high season and for major events ? A partnership between the public and private sectors to ensure success : involving the local population in the economic and political decision-making process Tourism-related businesses at the local level are to a great extent dependent on their location and on social and political institutions, even in countries with a market economy. As our discussions in Chamonix have made clear, even the American "consolidates" and "resorts", that are run like companies and quoted on the stock exchange ignore at their peril the interests of the local population and the political authorities. Only the support of all "stakeholders" in a tourism centre can guarantee its success. This means corporations must produce a convincing social balance sheet if they are to create the necessary good will. It is also a good idea to give the local population a say at critical moments throughout the tourism development process. Participatory rights are essential in tourism, if only because the public authorities function as a kind of tourism co-producer, making the basic infrastructure available, protecting the landscape and local cultural identity. It is for this reason that a partnership between the public and private sectors is essential. This raises a number of delicate questions with regard to co-operation between the market and local administrations in fringe areas. Local participation is also necessary to make full use of niche products that offer growth potential for tourism based on natural beauty spots as well as cultural tourism. Often indeed it is difficult to develop such products due to a lack of staff with the necessary local knowledge. This is why it is so difficult and at times even impossible to incorporate local cultural goods of acknowledged attractiveness in the tourism services offered, which would increase the authenticity and uniqueness of the products offered on the market. Questions What can be done to improve the participation of local populations in the political decision-making process ? How can tourism locations defend their interests at the regional and national levels ? Is economic success possible in the absence of a functioning partnership between the business and the community ? Should local political authorities participate in major tourism investment projects ? How can local cultural attractions and natural beauty spots be better integrated in tourism products and services ? What can be done to stimulate local people's interest in the tourism industry ? The integration of tourism development in economic development policy and regional planning : promoting new forms of partnership between town and country The globalisation process and the resulting increase in the general level of competition have given a new orientation to economic development and regional planning policy in a number of countries. Competition between economic places has increased. Individual centres attempt to increase the value of such immobile factors as the landscape and the indigenous workforce by attracting the more mobile production factors such as capital and specialised workers. Purely in terms of space, the planet is increasingly covered by a network of agglomerations, which dominate both economic and social life. The relationship between town and country is changing, again under the domination of the agglomerations. This new situation also has an influence on tourism development. Tourism regions increasingly tend to be the hinterlands of the agglomerations themselves. They have new tourism leisure time functions to fulfil. Visitors tend to be excursionists from the cities, who come to practice a sport or to engage in a leisure activity of some sort. The number of tourists who decide to buy a second home is increasing. Indeed the bigger tourism centres are becoming "second homes" to the big cities, This is the case for example for Ticino, a second home to the residents of Milan, or for Chamonix, which attracts the residents of Geneva. At the same time the cities are themselves increasingly seen as tourism destinations and as such are a new source of competition for the traditional tourism centres. These changes are in turn impacting on economic and regional policy. The policy of promoting poles of tourism growth is no longer relevant, in view of the ever smaller difference in income and living standards compared to the agglomerations. The new problem areas are the urban agglomerations, which attract considerable promotional funds. Also elevated to the rank of tourism attractions, and thus benefiting from promotional funds, are the classical industrial areas as well as rural and agricultural areas, which previously had little or no appeal for tourists. These developments are leading to the restructuring of the tourism centres and greater economic diversification. At the same time the international community is supporting the less developed countries in their efforts to develop tourism. Questions Are we going to see an exodus of tourism professionals, deserting the traditional tourism centres for the agglomerations or for faraway places overseas where there is strong growth in tourism ? What effect is the new "hinterland" function having on jobs and wages in the tourism centres ? What chance do former industrial and agricultural areas have of successfully converting to tourism ?