UNIT E CASE STUDIES

Bhutan & UK (LIC vs HIC) - Changes in leisure

Significance: rapid change in how people spend their leisure time and how much leisure time they have, due to social and technological advancements

BHUTAN

Lower-middle income country with USD $4,310 GNI per capita in 2025

Shift in traditional activities to digital and tourist experiences

Increase in substance abuse in youth as leisure

Digital vs traditional:

• Pre 1999: community festivals, religious activities, traditional sports such as archery

• Post 1999: watching TV, smartphone adaptation, social media, gaming & streaming

• 67.9% TV ownership in 2021

Because: Bhutan as rural for most of the 20th century; pre 1999 = leisure as a way to bond in communities and forge cultural identities

Bhutan life was dominated by agriculture/household labor - change as the convenience of watching a screen to relax instead of organising sports games

Last nation to introduce TV in 1999 = curiosity of the outside world

Tourist experiences

• 1999: 7,158 vs 2021: 149,141

Because: New aviation capacities due to the Drukair expansion + “Mindfulness City project” - clean-technology innovation hub creates more leisure/recreation opportunities for locals & tourists - more domestic leisure opportunities (events, cafés, wellness spaces)

Substance abuse

• 1999: 300 total registered drug cases vs 2015: 1750 cases

Because: high and rapid modernisation and the economy’s reliance on agriculture/foreign aid limits job opportunities and shortage of professional jobs. 70% of Bhutanese people live in rural areas and youth come to the city looking for jobs (but there aren’t that many jobs) = frustration leads to substance abuse

UNITED KINGDOM

High Income Country with USD $54,500 GNI per capita

Increase in physical fitness and casual leisure

Fitness

• Market value of the fitness industry market:

2006: £2 billion, 2026: £6.5 billion

• Leisure walking population:

2016: £18.3 million, 2026: £22.9 billion

64% adults in England meet 150+mins of moderate exercise per week.

Because: decline in British pub culture in Gen Z/Millennials = favour health and wellness over drinking. Fitness in gyms/studios replaces the pub as the scene to meet friends and socialise. Hydrox UK as an indoor fitness racing series (est 2021) is also a motivator to do indoor exercise.

Casual leisure

• Streaming service subscriptions (Netflix)

2006: 5.2 million, 2026: 18 million

• Gaming revenue

2016 (PC): £4.37 billion; 2026 (mobile to console): £8+ billion total transactions

• Monthly average of # of minutes spent on TikTok

2016: 10.8 hours; 2026: 50 hours

Because: UK broadcasters place blockbusters on streaming platforms. Rejection of TV schedules for the convenience of streaming = increased use of film/TV collection + familiar shows watched during the Covid pandemic.

Gaming market is also moving away from physical retail to digital downloads due to retailer closures. Mobile phones make causal gaming more accessible.

The use of the algorithm feels tailored to entertain the viewer, by catering to different interests. Microleisure due to flexitime + search for light relief during the 2020-21 Covid pandemic helped with boredom

Brazilian National Football League (Geography of one national sports league)

• National league of Série A, B, C and D

• ABC: 20 teams vs D at 96 teams

Serie A

• Pop size: 678 players

• Combined income: €1.37 billion

• Market value: €2.91m

• Infrastructure: Modernised for 2014 World Cup: Maracanã - 200,000 people (world class stadium)

• Media support: Globo Network (largest commercial TV network in Latin America), Amazon Prime Video, YouTube

• International/global relevance: Primary export of prime players such as Pelé, Neymar, broadcasts networks and media rights packages prositions the Brasilerião as a competitor

• Aggregate stadium attenders (support base): 8.1 million people

Serie B

• Pop size: 650 players

• Combined income: €49.1 million

• Market value: €356k

• Infrastructure: Range of World Cup and Tier-1 arenas, eg. Cuiabá, Arena Pantanal - 42,400 capacity, club owned grounds - Sport Racife, Ilhad do Retrio, 32,400 capacity, and small countryside encloves - Estádio Alfredo Jaconi, 19,900)

• Media support: Globo Network, Rele TV, Disney+, YouTube

• International/global relevance: “Talent factory” as scouting field for Brazilian players before rising to Serie A

• Historical: Football as a political tool for national integration - second division which gave clubs from smaller states a national platform

• Aggregate stadium attenders (support base): 889,788 people

Serie C

• Pop size: ~640 players

• Combined income: €20 million, including sponsorship, ticketing

• Market value: Between €50,000-€40,000 per player

• Infrastructure: Range from local grounds (Estádio Augusto Bauer value: 5000 capacity) to larger stadiums (José do Reso Maciel Stadium: 60,000)

• Media support: digital streaming regional broadcast networks - SportyNet, Conal do Bonjia

• International/global relevance: Foundational scouting ground for hidden talent/platform for seasonal players making career comebacks

• Historical: Launched in 1981 to keep smaller regional teams outside the premier ties which bloated teams. The lowest series until the formation of Serie D in 2009

• Aggregate stadium attenders (support base): 800,000 people

Serie D

• Pop size: ~3000 players

• Combined income: €11.09 million

• Market value: Between €10k-€350k per player

• Infrastructure: Range from regional stadiums (Arena da Amazônia, 46,000) to local football grounds

• Media support: Metropoles Esportes Youtube Channel

• International/global relevance: Training ground for managers and staff, grassroots club

• Historical: Founded in 2009 to combat lower division insolvency, financial inactivity and Serie C overcrowding

• Aggregate stadium attenders (support base): 1.1 million; people (due to large amount of teams) - 300 to 1,500 people per match.

PLACE

• North and Northwest: Fewer clubs - mainly Series C and D with limited access to communication due to the Amazon Rainforest

• Southwest: No football clubs due to limited communications

• North East: Large number of teams overall - Serie A restricted to Recife and Salvador as the first part of Brazil to be colonised (early established clubs)

• Southeast - Largest number of Series A and B - populous, big cities with good communication. Located in financial hubs, such as Rio

Dreambeach, Almeria, Spain - One festival in a rural location

Locational

• Better accessibility with closer links to the A-7 highway - Spain’s longest national highway, toll-free

• 5 mins away from Almería Airport

• 10 mins away from city center - better access to restaurants and shops for tourist spending

• Coastal area - idea of the festival to have an open-air beach setting (aesthetics)

Accommodation

• Availability of nearby hotels and vacation rentals due to the proximity of the city center

• Ex. 4 star hotel Barceló Cabe de Gata hotel: 200-300m away

SOCIAL IMPACTS

Positive

• Police stability at the event created a guarantee of safe transit - 50 alcohol and drug tests were carried out on drivers; 4 were arrested, seizing 70 doses of drugs - reduction of crime

• Boost in 70% of participants who were from outside the province, bringing tourism to the area

Negative

• Noise pollution over a 2km radius which disrupted residents, hotels and public services such as Toyo Hospital - disrupts patients

• All public services, including other tourist attractions of Retemor (eg. Torregarcia Beach, Plaza del Mor) will be affected by noise, affecting the tourist experience

• Traffic congestion caused by a large influx of visiting tourists/Spanish festival attenders

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS

Positive

• Transport - Shuttle buses organised which ran from Almeria city to transport hubs - 14,000 people which cut carbon emissions

• Cleanliness - A cleaning and washing operation was deployed every morning

Negative

• Dust - Levling of dry terrain generated dust clouds which spread across El Toyo and affected air quality

• Illegal clearing - 32.43-hectare plot of urbanised forest land was cleared without governmental permission

• Pollution - Influx of people will dump waste, causing environmental damage

ECONOMIC IMPACTS

Positive

• Job creation - 1400 jobs created for locals, as bartenders, cashiers ect

• Economic benefit of 13 million euros

• Increased wage flows for F&B due to more tourists coming in - direct transfer of wealth into Almerian economy

Negative

• Income loss in hotels - drop in 25-45% occupancy with €450,000 loss as high-spending tourists avoided the area to escape Dreambeach crowds

• Tourist spending - Fans and tourists spent more money due to expensive costs of food and water on-site

Rio de Janerio, Brazil - Summer Olympics 2016, costs and benefits of hosting an international event

• First South American Olympic host - bid of balanced budget at US$2.82 billion; 25% from gov and 75% from sponsors, tickets and other avenues

• Bid focusing on urban legacy sustainability with a heavy emphasis on improving infrastructure and transport improvements - improving Barra, the district where the Olympic Park and Village were to be built, Copacabana - famous beach, Maracana - densely populated central district rebuilt to house the main athletics stadium and Deodoro - poor district which could host new venues

BENEFITS

• Infastructure/Environmental - Expected to provide benefits to Rio through giving a chance to improve water pollution in waterways, bays and beachfront water from the 1950s (oil refineries)

• Half of the city’s waste from 9 million residents flows t the Guanabara Bay - Rio hoped to use the Olympics by treating 80% of the sewage flowing into the bay

• Built new transit lines like the Line 4 subway, Light Rail Vehicle (VLT), and rapid bus corridors (BRT), which doubled high-capacity travel options

• Environmental - 70% reuse of demolition material; eg Jacarepaguá old racecourse to build the Olympic Park

• LEED certification in new buildings in the Port region

• Infrastructural - Mountainous city which occupies a narrow strip of land along the coast - traffic congestion

• Olympics led to the development of the BRT, metro and Light Vehicle Rail systems - 125km of BRT-only roads, 440 new BRT buses and a 16km subway line

• Transport of subway - 1.1 million (2011) to 2.3 million (2016)

• Construction of new landmarks eg. Museum of Tomorrow - popular for visitors and locals

• Social - major infrastructure, social, and transport improvements to the lower-income Deodoro district; Radical Park, gained critical access to basic sanitation services, clean water networks, link to BRT corridors

• Economic - Creation of 465,000 jobs which drove 82% of the city’s economic growth

• Vocational training: 13,000 small and medium enterprises were trained = skills such as Eng conversation were taught to workers/taxi drivers

COSTS

• Social - instead of using the Olympics to better areas of need in Rio, the poor areas were blocked off (didn’t want int. visitors to see)

• 11 bus lines between the poor North Zone and the tourist-rich South Zone were cancelled, making it more difficult for North residents to go to the south

• Favela Vila Autódromo - Olympic Park was built in sight, community fought against the eviction of 600 families

• Economic - Rio is dependant on oil. Company Petrobas announced in 2009 it had discovered a substantial oil field off the Brazil coastline = heavier revenue stream

• The state increased its employee base by doubling the payroll and tool on heavy financial commitments connected with the Olympics, eg a $3 billion subway system = however extracting oil from deep-water ocean resevoirs required large investments in tech in 2014; oil prices decreased on an international scale

• Leading to the debt of Petrobas. Brazilian government had to temporarily support Rio by injecting $900 million dollars, which prevented mass chaos, eg. public employees going weeks without pay

• Environmental - 80% treatment goal was not met

• Aug 2016 - less than 45% of water was being cleaned

• Infastructure - many Olympic sites struggled to secure operational funding after the Games - Maracanã stadium was abandoned after a dispute of who owned US $1 million in unpaid bills

LEGACY: Urban renewal & public transit vs financial cost (exceeded initial budgets, costing over US$13 billion during a severe national economic recession - Petrobas), eviction of roughly 77,000 residents for road and venue construction, environmental failures

• Rio did not successfully capitalise on its image as a playground for tourists to enjoy themselves. The expected positive impact of promoting the city as a place for tourism and international business did not materialise.

Kenya - sustainable tourism in one low-income country - Ecotourism

• 2023, over 1.9 million international visitors arrived in Kenya

• Wide range of ecotourism activities, including cultural (indigenous peoples) and environmental (hiking and adventure tourism, and wildlife safaris).

  • About 7.5% of the country is designated for wildlife conservation

  • There are 23 National Parks and 28 National Reserves, plus six marine reserves

  • Wide range of wildlife including lions, elephants, zebras and over 1070 bird species

  • 536 kilometers of coastline, which is largely sandy beaches

  • Six World Heritage Sites

• Issues:

• climate change and environmental degradation: deforestation, water shortages, and wildlife habitat loss

• Five-star hotel consumes 170 to 440 liters of water daily.

• Each tourist in a top-tier hotel generates roughly one kilogram of solid waste per day.

• Poaching - wildlife protection remains an ongoing concern, particularly as tourism in protected areas grows

• 1,149 snares in August 2026

• Ecotourism Kenya = mission is to drive the growth of ecotourism in Kenya by promoting sustainable tourism practices

• This is achieved by working with various stakeholders, including government agencies, conservation groups, tourism operators, and local communities

What does EK do?

• Environmental Conservation: where they advocate for tourism that protects and enhances natural habitats.

• Community Development: By encouraging community- based tourism, they help empower local communities through job creation, capacity- building, and profit-sharing from tourism activities.

• Sustainable Business Practices through which EK promotes eco- friendly business practices among tourism operators by encouraging them to adhere to globally recognized sustainability standards.

• Eco-rating Certification Scheme, which was launched in 2002. This certification system recognizes hotels, lodges, and camps in Kenya that uphold high standards of environmental conservation, community development, and cultural preservation = Bronze, Silver or Gold ratings: annual awards given for the most sustainable practices.

• National parks and wildlife reserves: Maasai Mara, Amboseli National Park, and Tsavo National Park; popular ecotourism destinations are managed to support wildlife

• Collaborates closely with these parks and the local communities surrounding them to ensure that eco-friendly tourism practices are adopted, benefiting both conservation efforts and the livelihoods of local people.

• Key initiative: EK’s Community-based Tourism Enterprises (CBTEs), which encourage tourists to engage with local communities through homestays, cultural tours and the purchase of locally made crafts.

• This direct engagement provides income streams for rural areas and allows tourists to experience authentic Kenyan culture.

• Vision of the group: EK forges partnerships with regional and international organizations to promote ecotourism across East Africa. This has included working with the African Wildlife Foundation (AWF) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) to develop guidelines for sustainable tourism in sensitive ecosystems

• What change has this caused?

• Tourism operators across Kenya are becoming more aware of the economic advantages of embracing sustainability.

• 2026 - 20 active voluntourism projects in Kenya's Coastal region evaluated 1,004 respondents

• Eco-friendly lodges and camps are in high demand among travellers, particularly from Europe and North America.

• Voluntourism—where tourists contribute to conservation efforts—has gained popularity in Kenya, offering tourists the chance to give back while enjoying their travels.

Kenya cont: Examples

Cottars Safari Service

Cottars is one of the oldest tourism companies in Kenya, having been first registered in 1919. It is an award winning ecotourism company that makes efforts to be sustainable. It operates in the area around the Maasai Mara National Reserve.

• When visitors come to the area and use Cottars, they are expressly charged a lease fee for wildlife conservation. Some of this revenue is shared with local communities and also used to help develop the 6,000 acre Olderikesi Wildlife Conservancy on the edge of the Reserve as a way to expand the area under conservation.

• Cottars employs accredited guides to ensure they are in harmony with the environment and culture of the area; many of these guides are from the local area.

• Tourists are encouraged to bring a few items with them from their home country that can support local people, such as school supplies for the Olpalagilagi Primary School for a total of 200 students.

• Cottars takes tourists to visit the local Maasai villages which helps to provide a market for traditional products such as beads, which helps local people economically.

• Financial and legal support was provided to local communities to fight for land rights, resulting in the legal ownership of the Olderkesi Group Ranch in 2010.

• Combines with groups such as Bridging the Gap; a bridge was built across the Sand River, preventing an average of six deaths per year and allowing local people to access social amenities.

Olarro Lodge

Rural hotel about halfway between Nairobi and Lake Victoria, near the border with Tanzania. In January 2015, it won the coveted Gold Eco-rating Certification from Ecotourism Kenya. It is about 5 km from the Maasai Mara nature reserve, and is within the Olarro Conservancy. The conservancy is a 7,500 acre area which is owned by around 150 local Maasai landowners. To ensure the principles of ecotourism are successfully implemented, the Lodge has made several alterations to be more sustainable.

• Solar power is produced on-site with 150 solar panels

• Two wind turbines add to the electrical supply

• Water is heated with 17 solar water heaters, which can heat around 600 liters of water each

• Signage encourages visitors to save electricity

• Energy saving light bulbs are found throughout the hotel

• Water is sourced from a natural spring within the conservancy, and rainwater is harvested from rooftops of the buildings and stored in three 100,000 litre underground tanks

• Waste water is treated on-site and used to provide irrigation for the hotel’s lawns

• Guests are encouraged to behave more sustainably by being educated about these features on their arrival

Brazilian Flamengo Football Club

• Established in 1895 as a rowing club; first match in 1912

• Maracanã - national stadium of Brazil since its completion in 1950 (home matches are played here)

• Established as one of Brazil’s most successful sports clubs in the 20th century during the era of state leagues in Brazil when they captured several Campeonato Carioca titles prior to the establishment of the Brazilian national football campionship in 1971

• Won 7 Campeonato Brasileiro Série A, 3 Copa do Brasil and 36 Campeonato Carioca

• First club in Brazil to have a sponsor = partnership from oil company Petrobras - began in 1984.

• Biggest fan base as the popular Brazilian TV network Rede Globo frequently showed Flameno games as they were already the most popular team in Rio - increase in fans

• Most supported club with 46.9+ million fans - 20% adult football fans consider themselves supporters of Flamengo

The carrying capacity's relation to the unsustainable level of tourism in Venice, Italy (Just in case)

• Carrying capacity frequently breached.

• The living cost (property and items) is very expensive, 3x higher than on the mainland, 20km away.

• Depopulation, in the past 40 years, the population has decreased from 120000 to 60000.

• Overcrowding when up to 100000 tourists in a day visit an area. - Impaired transport.

• Motor-boat traffic pollution, oil spills in the canals. Some tourists also litter the water.

• Some locals are angered by tourists' inappropriate/revealing clothing -> cultural conflict.

• Large cruise ships add to the overcrowding but passengers spend little time there.

• The Carnival was once a charming neighbourhood event, now it is a commercial frenzy seen as a "cultural hijacking" by locals.

Measures to control the flooding of Venice by day trippers:

• denying access to the city by unauthorized tour coaches via the main coach terminal

• building gates around the city and charging visitors to enter

Local population has fallen from 120,000 in the 1960s to 55,000 in 2015.

Cruise liners: In 2015, more than 650 boats docked, bringing over 2.2 million passengers. Over the same period, the value of tourism in Venice declined by €300 million - cruise passengers don’t stay at hotels, don’t eat large meals, have their own tour guides