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1 – 10 of over 1000Robin Ryan, Jasmin Williams and Alison Simpson
The purpose is to review the formation, event management, performance development and consumption of South East Australia’s inaugural 2018 Giiyong Festival with emphasis on the…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose is to review the formation, event management, performance development and consumption of South East Australia’s inaugural 2018 Giiyong Festival with emphasis on the sociocultural imaginary and political positionings of its shared theatre of arts.
Design/methodology/approach
A trialogue between a musicologist, festival director and Indigenous stakeholder accrues qualitative ethnographic findings for discussion and analysis of the organic growth and productive functioning of the festival.
Findings
As an unprecedented moment of large-scale unity between First and non-First Nations Peoples in South East Australia, Giiyong Festival elevated the value of Indigenous business, culture and society in the regional marketplace. The performing arts, coupled with linguistic and visual idioms, worked to invigorate the Yuin cultural landscape.
Research limitations/implications
Additional research was curtailed as COVID-19 shutdowns forced the cancellation of Giiyong Festival (2020). Opportunities for regional Indigenous arts to subsist as a source for live cultural expression are scoped.
Practical implications
Music and dance are renewable cultural resources, and when performed live within festival contexts they work to sustain Indigenous identities. When aligned with Indigenous knowledge and languages, they impart central agency to First Nations Peoples in Australia.
Social implications
The marketing of First Nations arts contributes broadly to high political stakes surrounding the overdue Constitutional Recognition of Australia's Indigenous Peoples.
Originality/value
The inclusive voices of a festival director and Indigenous manager augment a scholarly study of SE Australia's first large Aboriginal cultural festival that supplements pre-existing findings on Northern Australian festivals.
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Chen Chen and Timothy Kellison
This paper aims to explore what environmental justice (EJ) can offer to sport management research and highlights the urgency for sport management scholars interested in…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to explore what environmental justice (EJ) can offer to sport management research and highlights the urgency for sport management scholars interested in environmental and ecological issues to engage with EJ as an important research agenda.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper is primarily a position and conceptual paper. Drawing from multidisciplinary literature (e.g. critical human geography, environmental sociology, Indigenous studies and postcolonial studies), it provides an overview of the major conceptualizations of EJ and discusses important premises for sport management researchers to engage with EJ topics.
Findings
EJ offers opportunities for sport management researchers to form stronger analyses on existing racial, socio-economic, and gender-related inequities manifest in the sport industry. The incorporation of EJ can strengthen the emerging sport ecology research in sport management and offer opportunities for sport management researchers to form stronger analyses on existing racial, class and gender-related inequities manifest in the sport industry.
Originality/value
It provides a critical and original intervention to the sport management literature. EJ's emphasis on power and its position at the convergence of social movements, public policy, and scholarship hold important potential for sport management researchers to advance scholarship with “actions,” addressing environmental harms and seeking practical solutions for enhancing communities' well-being.
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Hakamelamphylla Mawroh and Saurabh Kumar Dixit
The present study analyses Khasi Food as an ethnic food to be promoted as a tourism product encouraging tourists to visit Meghalaya, India. The food tourists are primarily…
Abstract
Purpose
The present study analyses Khasi Food as an ethnic food to be promoted as a tourism product encouraging tourists to visit Meghalaya, India. The food tourists are primarily motivated to eat Khasi Food to provide authentic ethnic food experiences. Therefore, the purpose of the paper is to explore the willingness of tourists to eat ethnic foods and the consequent ethnic Khasi Food Experience (KFE).
Design/methodology/approach
This paper adopts a convergent triangulation approach. Statistical data analysis and thematic analysis were incorporated, and the combined results were compared to see if they converged to achieve the same objective or purpose, which is willingness to eat ethnic foods that influences KFE in the study area (selected villages in East Khasi Hills District and West Jaiñtia Hills District).
Findings
The converged findings from statistical analysis and thematic analysis indicate that tourists who visited the study area were willing to eat ethnic foods, which is Khasi Food and their willingness to do so has a positive influence on KFE.
Originality/value
To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this paper is original and the first of its kind because this study has not been conducted yet in the state of Meghalaya, India. This paper has an authentic value of projecting Khasi Food globally as a cultural and ethnic tourism product giving meaningful experiences to tourists and locals alike.
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Michelle Catanzaro and Elissa James
This paper aims to explore how the entertainment economy excludes individuals and facilitates private investment, the problematic shift towards a “creative economy” and increased…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to explore how the entertainment economy excludes individuals and facilitates private investment, the problematic shift towards a “creative economy” and increased regulations within Sydney’s entertainment sector. It also examines how a grass-roots, rural festival can be regarded as an extension of the urban context. It discusses the alternative counterculture(s) that exist despite (or perhaps because of) increasing inaccessibility and regulation, using as a case study an activist collective created in this climate, the Marrickville Warehouse Alliance, focusing specifically on its Star Shitty River Retreat festival.
Design/methodology/approach
A phenomenological, mixed-method approach is used with a focus on qualitative in-depth interviews with festival organisers.
Findings
This paper demonstrates how politics, embedded within urban place, can be transported to a rural festival site. The phenomenological accounts recorded with the festival organisers, paired with key theories within the literature, demonstrate how organising committees can shape the understanding of place and politics in grass-roots festival environments.
Social implications
By leaving “no trace” on the site and engaging with and contributing to the indigenous community, the Star Shitty River Retreat festival can be categorised as a type of “creative enhancement”, in which a shared environment of political and communal understanding creates a unique, yet temporary, sense of place within a rural setting.
Originality/value
There is limited literature on the Australian festival context. The finding that rural festival sites can be regarded as an extension of the urban context lends itself to the concept of de-territorialisation or blurring of city boundaries, reinforcing how a festival’s geographical location is of little significance when supported by “portable communities”.
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Purpose – The chapter reports on a national indigenous games research project and follows the socio-political construction of indigenous games as a sporting code and the…
Abstract
Purpose – The chapter reports on a national indigenous games research project and follows the socio-political construction of indigenous games as a sporting code and the post-colonial identity dynamics within South Africa.
Design/methodology/approach – Researchers from 11 tertiary institutions in South Africa collaborated to capture 536 ‘indigenous’ game and sporting activities from 170 communities. An inductive research approach informed an emic typology, with further analysis of the 20 most popular indigenous games (and their variations). This analysis demonstrated hegemonic gender and ethnic layering within the context of participation, as well as in the broader South African society. The institutionalisation of selected indigenous games by Sport and Recreation South Africa and the implementation thereof in the Siyadlala programme (community-based mass participation programme), afforded widespread participation to meet a human rights framework.
Findings – In accordance to the strategic outcomes of the national department, this initiative provided access to sport and recreation, especially for the previously ‘disadvantaged’ communities who experienced high levels of exclusion during the Apartheid years (1948–1994). This politically informed intervention followed a political agenda of national identity association in celebrating the African heritage and ‘unity through diversity’. Standardisation of rules and the re-invention of some games for local, national and international festivals along the line of competitive sport offered contradicting messages and practices.
Originality/value – The underlying discourses of post-colonial resistance, national identity formation and socio-political agendas are interrogated.
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Cemil Gündüz, Mojtaba Rezaei, Roberto Quaglia and Marco Pironti
The primary objective of this research is to draw a comparative analysis between Turkey and Italy in terms of how festival events function as catalysts for the endorsement of…
Abstract
Purpose
The primary objective of this research is to draw a comparative analysis between Turkey and Italy in terms of how festival events function as catalysts for the endorsement of regional culinary delicacies. The study endeavours to elucidate the role of these festivals in fortifying the regional gastronomic landscape of both nations.
Design/methodology/approach
Adopting a comprehensive comparative methodology, this study meticulously scrutinises the gastronomy festivals spanning diverse geographical locales in both Turkey and Italy. Consideration is given to the standout food and beverage items spotlighted at these events and the venues where they are hosted. The research design takes into account the extensive cultural and geographical spectrum that characterises Turkey and Italy. The primary research method comprises web content analysis techniques. This method involves analysing textual data from online sources pertaining to gastronomy festival events in both countries. Web content analysis is instrumental in evaluating how such festivals are deployed in promoting indigenous gastronomic products and exploring the intricate dynamics between brand identity and brand image.
Findings
The research outcomes underscore the pivotal role that festival events play in elevating regional gastronomic products' profile in Turkey and Italy. It highlights the top 10 festivals and the most popular local culinary items on digital platforms. Additionally, the study offers a side-by-side comparison of the most celebrated gastronomic products in Turkey versus those that receive prominence in Italy.
Originality/value
This study enriches academic understanding by dissecting the nuances of how festivals contribute to the promotion of local gastronomic treasures. By juxtaposing Turkey and Italy, this research provides valuable insights into the influence of festivals on regional culinary promotion across diverse cultural milieus. This study makes substantial contributions to the fields of gastronomy, tourism, and brand promotion.
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Lisa Ruhanen and Michelle Whitford
Tourism and events have been identified as providing opportunities to revitalize regional and remote economies. In Australia such areas have limited economic opportunities and are…
Abstract
Tourism and events have been identified as providing opportunities to revitalize regional and remote economies. In Australia such areas have limited economic opportunities and are constrained by a range of development barriers, including access to markets and human capital. Importantly, tourism in particular is seen as an economic activity that provides scope for Indigenous communities and individuals in regional and remote parts of the country to leverage development opportunities. A number of the island communities of the Torres Strait, the most northern region in Australia, are exploring the potential of tourism and events as an economic development strategy, yet the region is severely constrained by a number of development barriers.
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Judith Mair and Michelle Whitford
The purpose of this paper is to identify and examine emerging trends in event and festival research and also in the themes and topics being studied in this area.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to identify and examine emerging trends in event and festival research and also in the themes and topics being studied in this area.
Design/methodology/approach
Taking an innovative approach, this paper used an abridged version of Q methodology to seek the opinions of events experts on the topics and themes that will underpin the future development of an events and festivals research agenda.
Findings
The results of this research revealed that events experts feel that there are several areas that have been comprehensively researched and where further research is unlikely to provide any new information. These include definitions and types of events, and events logistics and staging. Directions for future events and festivals research include the need for studies on the socio‐cultural and environmental impacts of events along with a better understanding of the relationship between events and public policy agendas. This research has also highlighted a lack of research in the area of Indigenous events.
Research limitations/implications
The identification of these gaps in our current knowledge provide opportunity for further development of a research agenda for events and festivals, which will have substantial implications both for academia and for the events and festivals industry. Limitations include a relatively small sample size, and the resulting abridgement of the full Q methodology.
Originality/value
This paper represents a comprehensive overview of existing studies, providing vital information for events researchers in all areas of the field. Further, the research highlights research gaps that would benefit from future study, and also identifies those areas where further study is unlikely to provide new knowledge.
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Trudie Walters, Raphaela Stadler and Allan Stewart Jepson
The importance of events for marginalised groups has largely been overlooked within tourism, hospitality and event studies. The purpose of this study is to address this gap…
Abstract
Purpose
The importance of events for marginalised groups has largely been overlooked within tourism, hospitality and event studies. The purpose of this study is to address this gap, emphasising the positive outcomes of power relationships rather than the negative, which have traditionally been the focus in event studies.
Design/methodology/approach
The study investigated eight events for indigenous and ethnic minority groups, rural women, disabled people and seniors in Australia and New Zealand. Qualitative data was collected via participant observation, reflexive ethnography, semi-structured interviews and in-the-moment conversations. An inductive thematic approach was taken to data analysis.
Findings
Eight themes around notions of power and empowerment were identified during the analysis: providing a platform, giving/taking ownership, gaining confidence, empowering with/through knowledge, respect, pride and affirmation, freedom to “be” and resistance. These were then viewed through the lenses of social-structural and psychological empowerment, enabling a deeper understanding of power at/through events.
Research limitations/implications
The paper presents a framework for empowerment that enables event organisers to both understand and deliberately plan for the productive use of power, which can reaffirm important event aims, objectives and values. It can also be used by researchers as a framework through which to identify and assess the contributing elements of empowerment at events and by local government to guide policymaking around events.
Originality/value
This study is the first to highlight best practices for the positive use of power at events that “empowers” marginalised groups. Grounded in empowerment theory, the study offers a new lens to reframe notions of power and provides a theoretical framework that will be of value for both critical event studies researchers, event organisers and policymakers alike.
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Frederick Doe, Alexander Preko, Hellen Akroful and Effie Kwaaba Okai-Anderson
The place of festivals in national economic development has received increased attention from researchers globally. However, there appears to be a relatively small and disparate…
Abstract
Purpose
The place of festivals in national economic development has received increased attention from researchers globally. However, there appears to be a relatively small and disparate literature on the subject especially within the Ghanaian context. The study seeks to contribute to the global recognition of festivals as developmental tools and thus presents the effects of festival tourism on socio-economic capital of the people of Kwahu traditional area (Ghana) and how festival tourism in the region engenders economic benefits to businesses and the community.
Design/methodology/approach
This study is guided by the social development theory. A quantitative cross-sectional survey utilizing convenience technique was used to gather data from a sample of 398 residents of the selected towns and the regression model was used to analyse the data.
Findings
The findings revealed festival tourism to have a positive effect on community cohesiveness but not statistically significant. Further, the festival brought economic gains but had negative social effects on development of the selected towns.
Research limitations/implications
This research is destination-specific. The application of the findings to other festivals would demand a bigger sample size for generalisation to be made.
Practical implications
The findings suggest that for growth of festival tourism in Ghana to be actualised, the Ghana Tourism Authority needs to ensure festivals do not erode entrenched traditional values and negate efforts at developing social structures and systems by putting measures to reduce the negative effect of commoditisation of festivals on the communities' cultural authenticity. Law enforcement agents should also be massively beefed up to curtail crime and social vices.
Originality/value
The study's findings extend earlier studies to extend the scope in festival tourism literature. This study found that festival tourism has effect on both community cohesion and economic development of the people of Kwahu traditional area.
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