Recognition schemes in tourism—from ‘eco’ to ‘sustainability’?

Proliferation of voluntary instruments such as eco-labelling schemes and codes of conduct for tourism has been characterized by a strong environmental focus. This paper discusses the feasibility of creating recognition schemes that could address not only the ecological implications, but also the social and economic impacts of tourism activities. The analysis was performed by using a case study of the ‘Certification for Sustainable Tourism’ (CST), a labelling programme developed in Costa Rica, which was found to address not only environmental performance, but also cultural, economic and social impacts of tourism activities.