ABSTRACT
Neoliberal approaches to tourism have typically focused on economic growth, contributing to a “Tragedy of the Commons” in terms of degradation of shared resources. This has significant adverse effects on the social and environmental well-being of host communities. In a post-COVID-19 era, where the tourism industry has already suffered significant impacts, the adverse effects of neoliberal tourism will be compounded if there is no change to economic models of “growth”. In the age of climate change, we know that there are social and ecological limits to that growth, but responsible and sustainable tourism approaches do not go far enough to address the challenges highlighted by COVID-19 and future crises. What we need now is transformative change in a way that socialises tourism within social and ecological planetary boundaries. Buen Vivir can act as a guide for socialising tourism towards transformative change by reframing tourism objectives, with greater emphasis on the collective well-being of host communities and their natural environment. This would place the focus on the benefits to communities and their ecological and social limits rather than just on the desire of the traveller, seeking to address the growing inequalities on vulnerable host communities. Buen Vivir offers a guide to “reset tourism” in the post-COVID-19 era in the fight against the commodification of people, places and public commons for tourism development.
