Biologically-Respectful Tourism - LinkBC

For such a small community, exceptionally high levels of generosity and volunteerism were observed and documented in volunteer
award celebration pamphlets as well as publications by Sunshine Coast Community Foundations. Some of the campaigns reached
out to provincial and national partners. It was not uncommon to see lists of 15 – 25 major donor groups listed in the LOPM, WPM
and education cluster campaigns stemming from community grants, provincial funding, and corporate environmental funds with
a large influx of money from off‐coast sources.
At least two fundraising galas were observed during the study. Both used the press to thank a list of more than 100 donors along
with totals raised at the events in the order of tens of thousands of dollars.
At least four of the projects were successful at securing $1,000,000 or more in capital through grants under Island Coastal Economic
Trust (ICET) or Community Adjustment Fund (CAF), as well as numerous smaller local grants. Some of the campaigns within these
three clusters were also able to use moneys received from bequests. One coast resident donated $100,000 to each of two coast
projects posthumously. While there was much success reported in funding, a number of campaigns reported declines in their
funding. While in the past government funding was common practice, such direct funding disappeared from several projects while
government support continued to come in the form of technical expertise and advice. Access to capable grant writers and access to
a network of donors are two effective means to generate funds.
Organizations with high membership would be at an advantage as would those with experienced grant writers. Such realities may
help explain the low membership pricing strategy commonly observed across most organizations with annual fees often in the range
of $30 for an individual or $35 for a family. One organization with minimal membership fees reported 700 members with 125 noted
to be ‘active.’ Without adequate fund‐raising or volunteer retention, often the project is compromised, the momentum is slowed
and in at least one case only continued after funding from out‐of‐pocket expenditures were infused into the project.
ENGAGING THE WIDER COMMUNITY IN THE PROCESS
While the question regarding community stakeholder involvement was never posed, the issue was raised by many as a factor of
their success. Stakeholder interests can easily pit community members against government or industry, and industry against
organizations. By not engaging the community organizations risk polarization, diminished effectiveness, and inability to have local
council adopt policies.
Some highly effective campaigns approached this optimal stakeholder engagement. For instance the Francis Point Provincial Park
and Ecological Reserve campaign (Bell & Adair, 2008, p. 1‐2) noted a high degree of public input, use of knowledgeable individuals,
consultation with local First Nations, and engaging government officials at all levels. Engaging the community was a critical success
factor in the Mt. Artaban Park creation by stimulating 91 industrial partners and individuals to make contributions exceeding the
amount needed for the survey and management plan. During the Save our Sunshine Coast campaign, there was “almost 100%
support from the communities”, the four governments, and the Sechelt Indian Band.
A few of the campaigns exhibited narrow or singular viewpoints as evidenced at community forums or in exchanges reported in
the press. While such observations are speculative, they do illustrate a publicly displayed level of divergence and resentment and
suggest a need for wiser means of reaching agreement or consensus (Newsome, Dowling & Moore, 2005, p. 123; Priem, 1990, p.
473; Senge, 1990, pp. 223‐231).
USING SCIENTIFIC ASSESSMENT & SURVEYS
As each of these projects centres on an ‘environmental’ theme, an assumption was made that the use of scientific studies would
be beneficial in order to substantiate claims, or ensure the project was using the right protection mechanism. Q. 9 asked the
respondents “how often did the organization use scientists or independent scientific studies to substantiate the campaign claims”?
FIGURE 6: USE OF SCIENTISTS OR INDEPENDENT SCIENTIFIC STUDIES TO SUBSTANTIATE CAMPAIGN CLAIMS
Answer Number of Responses Response Ratio
Very often 10 30.3%
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