To What Extent Can a Balance Between Sustainability and Economic Growth Be Achieved in the Tourism Industry?

This paper examines the complex relationship between sustainability and economic growth within the global tourism industry. It highlights the persistent gap between the rhetoric of sustainable tourism and the realities of its implementation, showing how political, economic, and behavioural forces impede meaningful progress. The author identifies four key structural barriers—overtourism, policy inertia, fragmented governance, and technological optimism—that collectively constrain tourism’s ability to evolve into a more sustainable system. By drawing on case studies from the Philippines, Vietnam, and Tanna Island (Vanuatu), the paper situates its analysis within diverse Asia–Pacific contexts, where tourism serves as both an economic lifeline and a source of environmental strain.

The research adopts a critical review and case-comparative approach, combining secondary data and conceptual analysis to assess how sociopolitical frameworks and cultural behaviours shape the industry’s sustainability outcomes. It explores how overtourism erodes ecological and social systems through unchecked growth, while weak governance and policy fragmentation perpetuate short-term economic thinking. Consumer behaviour, shaped by cultural norms and convenience, emerges as another major barrier—awareness of sustainability issues rarely translates into behavioural change. The study also critiques the economic dependency on tourism, arguing that growth-centric models and reliance on technological optimism delay genuine reform, particularly regarding aviation-related emissions.

The findings underscore that achieving a balance between economic growth and sustainability requires a paradigm shift. Rather than treating sustainability as an operational add-on, the author positions it as a political and ethical framework demanding systemic change in how tourism is governed, valued, and measured. The paper concludes that only through participatory planning, inclusive governance, and redefined success metrics—focused on environmental integrity and social well-being—can tourism transition from extractive growth toward equitable and resilient development.