Author(s)

N. Yusof, I. Said, Z. Osman & M. F. Che Daud

Abstract

The negative impact of tourism development to the environment has received considerable debate in the past. Many have agreed that the success of a tourism industry is dependent upon wise usage and management of the natural environment. There is a need to examine whether the value and practices of the main players, especially the resort operators, are not destructive to the environment. However, limited attention has been given to the ‘environmental sensitive cultures’ of the service provider. The present study tries to fill in the gap by providing an empirical support to investigate whether resort operators in an ecotourism area adopt a certain organisational culture that is harmonious to the environment. A questionnaire survey was administered to the six owners and fifty-one employees of all resort operators located at Lake Kenyir, Malaysia. The researchers theorized that organizational culture which leads to more environmental sensitive values and practices are more apparent amongst the resort organisations. This study found that most resort operators at Lake Kenyir implement an ecologically friendly approach in conducting business. Empirical findings indicate that the resort employees have environmentally sensitive values. The results gave rise to new policies to be introduced in an effort to enhance environmental protection. Magnitude limitations of this study prompt the possibility of conducting future researches to cover a broader spectrum, on a macro global scale. Keywords: sustainable culture, environmental practices, resort operators, ecotourism.

Keywords

sustainable culture, environmental practices, resort operators,ecotourism