My favorite DMO and destination with the best practice of sustainability
My favorite destination / destination management organization (DMO), and the one that I believe has an underrated practice of sustainability, is Cleveland, Ohio. Located on the southern shore of Lake Erie, Cleveland is home to the Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame, the Jack Cleveland Casino, as well as many museums, concert halls, and theaters. Sports fans can watch the Cleveland Cavaliers basketball team or the Cleveland Browns football team, while roller coaster enthusiasts can visit nearby Cedar Point Amusement Park. In addition to these man-made attractions, Cleveland’s location on the beautiful Cuyahoga River Valley makes it an ideal place to visit natural wonders as well, including the Cuyahoga Valley National Park, the Hinckley Reservation, and Euclid Beach park.
The best practice of sustainability
Cleveland’s current sustainable practices were born from mistakes of the past. As an industrial city, Cleveland typically viewed water pollution as a necessary part of doing business; particularly as it was this very industry which brought prosperity to the city (Rotman, n.d.). In fact, due to the amount of industrial waste, oil, and other contaminants that were dumped annually into the Cuyahoga River, the river caught fire numerous times, culminating in a final fire in 1969 (Rotman, n.d.). Although not the worst of the river fires, the 1969 fire was highly publicized. At the time of this final fire, deindustrialization was taking place, and was drastically changing the city’s focus, and naturally reducing the impact of pollution. “The ‘69 fire, then, was not really the terrifying climax of decades of pollution, but rather the last gasp of an industrial river whose role was beginning to change. Nevertheless, Cleveland became a symbol of environmental degradation” (Rotman, n.d., para. 4).
Cuyahoga River on Fire (Circa 1952)
Cleveland History – Cuyahoga River Fire
In those years since the river fires, the city of Cleveland has engaged in a number of partnerships to ensure the city, and specifically the river valley, remains sustainable. This effort is also ensuring that the city sheds its prior negative image. In the post-industrial age, Cleveland’s tourism reach is rapidly growing (Destination Cleveland, 2017), and partnering with industry, local government, and local resident stakeholders is the best way to ensure the mistakes of the past are not repeated.
“Even though it has been misunderstood, the 1969 Cuyahoga River fire did help bring about positive change. The river’s water quality improved during the following decades, and business investors capitalized on this by converting parts of the Flats’ abandoned industrial landscape into an entertainment district featuring restaurants, nightclubs, and music venues.” (Rotman, n.d., para. 5).
Cuyahoga River Named”River of the Year” 2019
Cuyahoga River named River of the Year
In an effort to improve Cleveland’s image as a sustainable “green” destination, the destination management organization (DMO) “Destination Cleveland” has partnered with the City of Cleveland, specifically the Office of Sustainability, and with Sustainable Cleveland, “a 10-year initiative that engages everyone to work together to design and develop a thriving and resilient Cleveland that leverages its wealth of assets to build economic, social and environmental well-being for all” (Sustainable Cleveland, 2019, para. 1). In addition, Destination Cleveland has partnered with local business partners to promote ride and bike sharing, and events such as the 50th anniversary of the Cuyahoga River fire (Cuyahoga50, 2019) and Blazing Paddles, a “standup paddleboard, canoe & kayak celebration held on the Cuyahoga River” (Events, 2019).
Why this is the best practice
Maintaining a sustainable destination is more than one organization can do alone. It takes the committed efforts of all stakeholders to make a difference. “In sustainable tourism development projects, there are inherently multiple goals in which an array of parties maintains interest. From tour operators to local governments and communities, these stakeholders all have expected outcomes for tourism development. In order to properly represent these interests and create mutually beneficial outcomes, public–private partnerships are essential to a great tourism strategy. The most important piece of this puzzle is maintaining strong relationships and a clear understanding of divergent yet symbiotic objectives” (Solimar International, 2018, para. 1).
Sustainable Cleveland 2019 – People
Put a different way, sustainability is only possible if all of the destination’s shareholders share a common vision of that destination as a green destination. Cleveland’s DMO understands this, and works closely with local stakeholders to ensure they are all on the same page. Promoting events that forward a green agenda, partnering with local developers to build up tourist resources in areas that were once too polluted to use (Rotman, n.d.), and working with local government, the Mayor’s office, and most importantly with local citizens to ensure sustainable efforts are communicated to tourists visiting the area (Office of Sustainability, 2019) has paid off. “People, not programs, are the answer to true and lasting climate action and sustainability in Cleveland” (Year of People, 2019, para. 2). The people have spoken, and “Destination Cleveland [has] reported that the number of Clevelanders who would recommend the city as a place to visit has more than doubled” (Climate Action, 2019).
Benefits and consequences for consumers
Consumers benefit from Cleveland’s green efforts when they visit a cleaner, less polluted environment. While including future visitors in the planning stages of sustainable management may be difficult, it is essential that the DMO be aware of those visitors when designing and marketing these green initiatives (Byrd, 2007). “Changes made in the community will influence the likelihood, either positively or negativity, of the future visitors visiting, the duration of their stay, and the activities that they may want to participate” (Byrd, 2007, p. 10). Current visitors are also impacted by sustainable practices. Those visitors may be positively impacted by positive improvements to the infrastructure, more knowledgeable local service providers, and better quality experiences. They may also be negatively impacted by overcrowding, the closing of local attractions or experiences, price increases, and more. Negative impacts may cause current visitors to experience dissatisfaction with the destination, and may reduce their willingness to spend and desire to return (Byrd, 2007).
One of the benefits to visitors to Cleveland is a greater variety of experiences. For example, cleanup of the Cuyahoga River has led to increased availability of kayaking experiences at a variety of skill levels. The Cuyahoga River will be designated as an official water trail in the near future, which will increase the availability of experiences (River Cruiser Kayaking, 2019). The availability of additional bicycle trails and bike-share and bike-rental services has also provided more experiences for cycle enthusiasts of all skill levels, as well as for those wanting a different way to explore the city (Gibbons, 2019).
Benefits and consequences for the destination, tourism industry and the local residents
Of course, the biggest benefactors of a cleaner and greener Cleveland are Clevelanders themselves. Increases in local tourism due to the city’s image improvement are also a great benefit to the destination itself. The more tourism the city attracts, the better the economic impact on the area. The effort to market Cleveland as a destination has paid off; “for every $1 Destination Cleveland spends marketing Cleveland to leisure and business travelers, we [the DMO] return $105 to the community” (What We Do, n.d.).
Once known as “the Mistake on the Lake” (Jacoby, 2010), Cleveland is now known as a “Green City on a Blue Lake” (GreenCityBlueLake, 2019). The local residents, and the destination at large, have greatly benefited from the city’s sustainability efforts, but not just due to the improved ecology in the area. The efforts in Cleveland have improved the destination in terms of all four pillars of sustainability; ecological, economic, sociocultural, and political (Ritchie & Crouch, 2011). Cleveland’s sustainability program has improved the economic sustainability of the city through increased tourism, improved housing affordability, and better wages (Building the Future, 2019). With the improved sustainable environment has come improved social sustainability as well. Clevelanders can now be proud of their city’s improvements!
The triple-bottom-line approach to tourism sustainability (Morrison, 2013, p. 183)
Other communities also have benefited from Cleveland’s efforts. In 2012, Cleveland joined the STAR network as a pilot city; helping test and evaluate the STAR community rating system (Cleveland, Ohio, 2019). In June, 2014, Cleveland received 3-star community certification. “A STAR Community Rating is based upon the total cumulative number of points achieved across the rating system” (Framework, 2019). By helping to develop the STAR rating system, and ultimately by achieving STAR certification themselves, Cleveland has promoted sustainable practices not only in their own community but in the whole of the United States.
STAR Certification Individual Report Areas
Cleveland, Ohio Star Scores
How can this best practice be encouraged for other DMOs?
Cleveland is a prime example of how to take a negative image and turn it around. Learning from Cleveland’s partnerships, and even expanding on them, can help other DMOS – particularly those in highly industrial areas – promote their own destinations as green destinations. The partnerships that Cleveland’s DMO has forged with area businesses and other stakeholders including the city government and residents have aided greatly in the promotion of sustainable practices for both tourism and the community at large. Other DMOs can learn from these partnerships, and thus be encouraged to forge their own. Without the buy-in from all of the destination’s stakeholders, as partners in sustainable practices, it is unlikely that the results in Cleveland would have been so successful (Solimar International, 2018).
In the case of sustainable tourism, partnerships are especially beneficial when maintaining Cleveland’s continual improvements in the areas of clean water, waste management, and clean energy (Sustainable Cleveland, 2019) and ensuring that increasing tourism is not negatively impacted by these changes (Byrd, 2007). “On many occasions organizations enter collaborative relationships in order to address a certain community issue or public concern” (Wang, 2011, p. 267). Cleveland’s model of maintaining sustainable practices through city governance partnered with industry partners, private residents, and public and private organizations is a model that has worked to turn the city around from one that is known for polluted waterways to one that is becoming known for how clean and inviting their waterways are; and other cities could learn from their example.
The organization that should be in charge of encouraging more sustainable practices by DMOs
The sustainability model employed by Cleveland, Ohio would appear to be the right approach. Driven by the city government, and specifically by Mayor Frank G. Jackson, sustainable practices are mandated by the city itself rather than left open for discussion (Building the Future, 2019). This mandate, in the form of a 10-year initiative called “Sustainable Cleveland” engages the city as a whole in designing and developing Cleveland as a green environment.
Sustainable Cleveland’s Mission and Vision
SustainableCleveland.org
This initiative is now supported city-wide; by the DMO, as well as other tourism stakeholders such as local businesses and residents. The city’s Office of Sustainability leads the effort, but the people of Cleveland have taken up the gauntlet. Launched in 2013, the city’s Climate Action Plan has made a notable difference to both the ecology and economy of the area (Climate Action Plan, 2019). “This plan is about much more than climate change. The actions in this plan are meant to strengthen the economy, clean the environment, and improve the health and wellness of Clevelanders. The work must be done in a way that ensures that those most in need enjoy the benefits of climate action” (Climate Action Plan, 2019).
If I were in charge of this organization, strategies, tactics and actions that I would use to encourage more sustainability
If I were in charge of the Office of Sustainability, I would partner with the city’s DMO, “Destination Cleveland” more closely to promote sustainable tourism in the area. Although the city has an excellent strategy for marketing the green initiative locally, they have not maximized their use of the city’s excellent DMO to ensure that the rest of the world knows about their efforts; and the benefits that consumers derive from visiting a green destination.
Currently, the DMO promotes individual events, such as the annual Blazing River paddleboard race or this year’s 50th anniversary commemoration of the Cuyahoga River fire (Event Calendar, 2019), but the Office of Sustainability does not have an ongoing “green” presence on the destination website. Promoting “green” tourism, in the same way the destination promotes LGBTQ travel for example (LGBTQ Travel, n.d.), would have lasting benefits for the destination. By having a separate page, with links to the Office of Sustainability, Sustainable Cleveland 2019, and the Cleveland Museum of Natural History’s Green City Blue Lake websites, and details of the Climate Action Plan and other citywide initiatives, the DMO can focus potential visitors’ attention on Cleveland as a green destination.
Adding a green rating system to local business establishments on the DMO partner list would also let tourists know which hotels and restaurants (and other tourism businesses) are keeping up their end of the green initiatives mandated by the Mayor’s office. By promoting those businesses that are going above-and-beyond in maintaining sustainable business practices to the DMO, and partnering with the DMO to promote those to the public, the Office of Sustainability can reward those businesses while offering an incentive to others who are not keeping up. The DMO should also have a charter to promote sustainable tourism; “This charter or code spells out the guiding principles for sustainability in tourism within the destination” (Morrison, 2013, p. 182). Without a tourism-specific code, those visiting the destination could undermine the efforts of those who live there permanently.
Certified Sustainable Businesses in Cleveland, Ohio
Sustainable Cleveland Dashboard
List of Certified Green Businesses in Cleveland
My role in supporting and improving sustainability of tourism destinations as a consumer and/or industry practitioner
As consumers, we all share a role in supporting the sustainability of tourism destinations like Cleveland. Although Cleveland enjoys a wide-ranging variety of tourism products, and thus manages to avoid concentrating visitation to one particular festival or event, there are ample opportunities for consumers to make a negative impact on the environment in this great city. By promoting the destination as a “green” destination, the DMO can encourage visitors to be “green” themselves. The DMO should also partner with their many industry partners to provide rewards for consumers who follow green practices, and to punish those who might seek to destroy the environment. Promoting Cleveland as a sustainable destination and ensuring consumers support that role is as simple as “providing the right incentives, the right penalties and, perhaps more than anything else, making it easy to be green” (Bain, 2013).
Here are some great links to research Cleveland, Ohio’s sustainability programs for yourself:
This is Cleveland – Cleveland’s DMO
Cuyahoga50 Anniversary Activities
Cleveland Office of Sustainability
References
Bain, K. (2013). Trashed: Music festivals are environmental disasters. LA Weekly. Retrieved from https://www.laweekly.com/music/trashed-music-festivals-are-environmental-disasters-2614424
Building the Future (2019). Sustainable Cleveland. Retrieved from https://www.sustainablecleveland.org/2019
Byrd, E.T. (2007),”Stakeholders in sustainable tourism development and their roles: applying stakeholder theory to sustainable tourism development”, Tourism Review, Vol. 62(2) pp. 6 – 13. Doi:10.1108/16605370780000309
Cleveland, Ohio (2019). Certified Star Communities. Retrieved from https://reporting.starcommunities.org/communities/1-cleveland-ohio
Climate Action Plan (2019). Office of Sustainability. Retrieved from http://www.city.cleveland.oh.us/CityofCleveland/Home/Government/CityAgencies/OfficeOfSustainability
Cuyahoga50 (2019). Cuyahoga50. Retrieved from https://www.cuyahoga50.org/
Destination Cleveland (2017). 2017 convention and leisure tourism metrics report [pdf]. Destination Cleveland. Retrieved from https://www.thisiscleveland.com/ThisIsCleveland/media/Documents/Tourism%20Metric%20Reports/2017-convention-leisure-tourism-metrics-report.pdf?quality=75&cache=1.0
Event Calendar (2019). This is Cleveland. Retrieved from https://www.thisiscleveland.com/things-to-do/event-calendar
Framework (2019). Certified Star Communities. Retrieved from http://www.starcommunities.org/about/framework/
Gibbons, L. (2019). Where to ride: Cleveland’s best bike trails. Fitt Cleveland. Retrieved from https://fitt.co/cleveland/articles/ride-best-bike-trails-cleveland
GreenCityBlueLake (2019). Cleveland Museum of Natural History. Retrieved from https://www.gcbl.org/
Jacoby, J. (2010). Fixing ‘the mistake on the lake’. Boston.com. Retrieved from http://archive.boston.com/bostonglobe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2010/03/17/fixing_the_mistake_on_the_lake/
LGBTQ Travel (n.d.). This is Cleveland. Retrieved from https://www.thisiscleveland.com/planning-tools/visitor-resources/lgbtq-travel
Morrison, A.M (2013). Marketing and Managing Tourism Destinations. Abingdon: Routledge. ISBN 978 0 415 67250 4.
Ritchie, J.R. & Crouch, G. (2011). A Model of Destination Competitiveness and Sustainability. In Wang, Y. & Pizam A. (Eds.) Destination Marketing and Management-Theories and Applications (326-339). CAB International.
River Cruiser Kayaking (2019). River Cruiser Kayaking [blog]. Retrieved from https://rivercruiserkayaking.com/
Rotman, M. (n.d.). “Cuyahoga River Fire,” Cleveland Historical. Retrieved from https://clevelandhistorical.org/items/show/63
Solimar (2018). Why Do We Need Public–Private Partnerships in Sustainable Tourism?. Solimar International. Retrieved from https://www.solimarinternational.com/why-do-we-need-public-private-partnerships-in-sustainable-tourism/
Sustainable Cleveland (2019). Sustainable Cleveland 2019. Retrieved from https://www.sustainablecleveland.org/sustainable_cleveland
Wang, Y. (2011). Collaborative destination marketing: Principles and applications. In Wang, Y. & Pizam A. (Eds.) Destination Marketing and Management-Theories and Applications (259-283). CAB International.
What we do (n.d.). Destination Cleveland. Retrieved from https://www.thisiscleveland.com/about-us
Year of People (2019). Sustainable Cleveland 2019. Retrieved from https://www.sustainablecleveland.org/people
Cleveland, Ohio: No Longer a "Mistake on the Lake" 