Harmony of Sustainability and Productivity: Korean Templestay as Sustainable Tourism

Abstract

Achieving the three pillars of sustainable tourism development has long been debated in the literature. This study revealed that sustainability and productivity are not mutually exclusive, analyzing Templestay as part of Korea’s 1700-year-old cultural heritage. The study discussed the challenging case of fulfilling triple-bottom-line sustainable social, environmental, and economic requirements in tourism development. Templestay has enormous potential to be one of the competitive tourism products as a cultural resource, attracting visitors to local areas. The prosperity and potentiality of Templestay may offer insightful contexts to bridge the gap between a sustainable philosophy and destination productivity. The study suggests further research to investigate tourism’s ontological and epistemological nature in terms of sustainability and productivity.

1. Introduction

Sustainability and productivity do not have to be mutually exclusive. Tourism development is aware of the challenges associated with increasing productivity without harming sustainable principles. The sustainable principles largely influence opportunities for tourism development and its productivity to preserve attractive natural and cultural heritage. For sustainability, it is considered any tourism development that contributes to the protection and promotion of the environment, natural and cultural resources, cultural values, and integrity of the local community [1,2,3,4].

Although sustainable tourism is essential to fulfill a responsibility to future generations, few destinations or attractions have demonstrated both the philosophy of sustainability and desired productivity [5]. This study explores the harmony of sustainability and productivity, analyzing the case of Templestay, which tries to resolve the severe conflicts between conservation and development. Templestay is a unique cultural program that allows visitors to experience the life of Buddhist practitioners at traditional temples, that preserve the 1700-year-old history of Korean Buddhism [6,7].

Templestay, in particular, may have the potential to be a sustainable form of tourism, being environmentally sound, socio-culturally identifiable, and economically viable. The sustainability of Templestay is based on setting limits on the number of visitors, symbiosis with the environment and wildlife, and conservation of socio-cultural life and natural resources surrounding the host temples [8,9]. Furthermore, tourist satisfaction through Templestay programs leads to economic benefits [8]. Templestay offers a unique experience that may be a model to bridge the gap between sustainable philosophy and desired productivity. Most temples involved in the program are located in a National or Provincial Park, which conserves nature and adds to the contemplative nature of the experience. Tourists have noted that Templestay can provide physical rest and psychological calm. Therefore, tourists who are exhausted by their busy life, are paying attention to it as a new tourism product in line with recent well-being trends [8,9]. As a result, most participants find it a wonderfully enriching experience [7]. Templestay started with 2500 visitors in 2002, and the demand has increased annually; the latest data found that there were 294,796 participants in 2019 [10,11].

This study provides theoretical and practical insights to support harmonization of the ideal and the fundamental sustainability principles. Despite expanding the fashion of sustainable philosophy and increasing the volume of research, the development and application of sustainable tourism has had some limitations [12]. In theory, sustainability means balancing environmental principles, socio-cultural principles, and economic principles [4]. Therefore, ecological value is harmonized with monetary value. However, in practice, stressing cultural and ecological importance usually decreases economic value and vice versa. The topic of this paper, Templestay, provides a clue to solve the problem in practice. Furthermore, this paper is one of the first to introduce Templestay as a sustainable tourism domain. This paper suggests a conceptual framework engaging in the relationship between the three pillars of sustainability and Templestay’s tourist experiences. This study will contribute to future scholarly work of harmonizing sustainability and productivity through this framework.

2. Literature Review

2.1. What Is Templestay as an Academic Theme of Tourism?

Templestay is a unique cultural activity that experiences the life of Buddhist monks at traditional temples, which preserve the cultural heritage of Korean Buddhism [6,7,8,10]. Templestay has enormous potential to be one of the competitive tourism products as a cultural resource, attracting visitors to local areas in Korea [8,9,10,11].

The Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism created the program to meet the inflow of tourists for 2002 [10,11]. That year, as Korea co-hosted the FIFA World Cup, the Korean government provided foreign visitors with inexpensive accommodations through the cultural experience program and a chance to see the inside of Korea’s temples and learn about the life of a Buddhist monk or nun [11]. The Korean government has tried to support Templestay since 2002 and awarded grants to participating temples through the Ministry of Culture and Tourism [11]. Foreign and domestic tourists consider Templestay a unique experience, and as such, it is a new and promising tourism product [13,14,15,16]. Templestay began in 2002; 33 participating temples have swelled to 141 locations in 2021 [11]. The number of tourists has steadily increased, from 36,000 in 2004 to 247,783 in 2019. As of 2019, 47,058 foreign visitors have stayed at Templestay [11].

As Templestay’s popularity has grown among Korean and foreign tourists, Korean tourism researchers have become increasingly interested in studying Templestay in recent years [9]. Nevertheless, few studies have examined Templestay’s harmony of sustainability and productivity in the tourism field [13,14,15,16]. Kim and Yoon started to discuss Templestay’s potential as an alternative and competitive tourism product in tourism studies [10].

2.2. Key Values of Sustainable Tourism

Mass tourism was the logical outcome of the industrial revolution and social and economic influences in industrial societies. Poon argues that “old tourism was the characterized by mass, standardized and rigidly packaged holidays, hotels and tourists” (p. 91, [17]). Under the dominant social paradigm for seeking economic growth, mass tourism has increased rapidly across the globe. However, the environmental pollution and social problems from mass production and tourism are worsening in modern society; thus, some people and governments have recognized the adverse effects in the mid 20th century. Under the new environmental paradigm, the issue of sustainability has attracted public attention as an essential keyword. In particular, tourism researchers used sustainable tourism three decades ago [12,18,19]. Although sustainable tourism planted itself as a valuable topic academically and practically, it is not easy to operate sustainable tourism as future ideal tourism development because of its economically infeasible implementation gap [20].

Sharpley (2009) argues that “there is limited evidence of its implementation in practice” ([21], p. 537). Therefore, sustainable tourism development and management still have real challenges in achieving sustainability principles in the real tourism world.

The concept and philosophy of sustainable tourism seek to maximize the satisfaction of tourist experience and preserve the social and environmental value and the quality of life for the local community because its goal alleviates many of the problems associated with conventional tourism. As a result, sustainable tourism has been considered as a softer and more responsible form of tourism for a future generation, although sustainable tourism has some challenges. Researchers are continually attempting to identify, understand, and develop strategies for sustainable tourism development. The UNWTO presents the following definition of sustainable tourism [22]. Sustainable tourism is defined as a model of economic growth that is considered to preserve the quality of the environment, improve the quality of visitors’ experience, and increase the quality of life in the host community [22]. UNWTO offers three critical principles of sustainable tourism development (i.e., environmental, economic, and socio-cultural aspects). A sustainable focus must achieve a proper balance among these dimensions for guaranteeing long-term sustainability [22].

• First, sustainable tourism should make optimal use of environmental resources that constitute an essential part of tourism development, maintaining necessary ecological processes and helping to protect natural heritage and biodiversity.
• Second, it should help preserve the socio-cultural authenticity of host communities, conserve their built and living cultural heritage and traditional values, and contribute to inter-cultural understanding and tolerance.
• Third, this type of tourism should assure viable and long-term economic operations, providing socio-economic benefits to all fairly distributed stakeholders, including stable employment and economic opportunities and social services to host communities, and contributing to poverty alleviation.

In this context, this study would explain that Templestay is an excellent example of sustainable tourism achieving the three principles—environmental, socio-cultural, and economic sustainability (Figure 1).

3. Significance of Case Study for Investigating the Sustainability of Templestay

According to Sturman (1997), “[a] case study is a general term for the exploration of an individual, group or phenomenon” (p. 61) [23]. Mesec (1998) defined as “a case study is a description and analysis of an individual matter or case […] with the purpose to identify variables, structures, forms and orders of interaction between the participants in the situation (theoretical purpose), or, to assess the performance of work or progress in development (practical purpose)” (p. 383) [24]. Case studies have been generally utilized in the social sciences (e.g., education, social work, management, public administration, tourism) and have been found valuable in practical areas [23,24,25,26]. This study focuses on a unique phenomenon regarding Templestay, and a comprehensive description and its analysis as the intrinsic case study [25].

3.1. Environmental Sustainability of Templestay

During the 4th century C.E., Buddhism was officially introduced to Korea, and temples were constructed in the cities [7]. However, temples began to be built in the mountains during the 7th century C.E. The construction of temples in the mountains is closely related to the Korean tradition of mountain worship. The popularity of Seon Buddhism, which values the practice of asceticism, also helped promote the construction of temples in the mountains [7]. Temples have unique characteristics according to their locations. Some temples, such as Songgwangsa, are located in cozy settings surrounded by mountains. Others are located on mountain slopes with unobstructed scenery, such as Buseoksa (Figure 2). Some temples, such as Naksansa (Figure 3), are built where the mountains meet the ocean. These temple locations have something in common: they offer an experience in a high-quality natural environment. It is essential to Buddhist monks because the best place for pure, unhindered practice is beautiful nature, separate from the mundane world [6].

Many Korean temples are located on beautiful deep mountains, except for in Seoul. Visitors can enjoy attractive sights for all seasons and superb natural landscape and see various wild animals and plants well conserved [6]. Primarily, Templestay provides participants with a feeling of harmony with nature and introspection time through multiple programs. The eco-experience program consists of walking around the temple with monks, observing and feeling the spirit, self-examination, a Buddhist yoga program in the forest, a meditation experience program, etc. [6].

Templestay stresses the need for small-scale facilities with a modest infrastructure and service, which is fitted to sustainable tourism [6,10]. It also takes a limited number of tourists, based on the capacity of Templestay and the potential adverse environmental effect, which excessive participants could bring [10].

Participants eat traditional monastic meals that are nutritious, fresh, and good for the environment and visitors’ health [27]. Monks of the temples mainly gather wild greens and medicinal herbs from a mountain near the temple and cook a monastic meal from the food ingredients [6]. Some vegetables are also cultivated without spraying any agricultural pesticides or chemical fertilizers by the temple; monks within Korean temples cook simply, without many spices and chemical seasonings for their vegetarian food [6,27]. The traditional monastic meal is not harmful to the environment, from obtaining ingredients to eating meals. Korean temples use fermented foods in various ways [27]. Different nutritive elements produced from the fermentation process add savory flavor to the food and lower the level of cholesterol, have cancer-inhibiting qualities, and guard the human body against many age-related illnesses [6].

One of the Templestay programs, called ‘Barugongyang,’ is a formal monastic meal. All participants have to take a suitable amount of food in four wooden bowls and eat everything. Participants are not even allowed to leave the water. ‘Barugongyang’ is also a particular process of meditation. Participants have to express their gratitude for the efforts of countless people and the grace of the universe, which has provided food, eating silently. Therefore, consuming temple food is valuable in protecting the environment by decreasing food waste, which is considered a sustainable daily practice [6].

According to Korean temple life and discipline, visitors learn the value of the environment, society and community, and life on this planet. In summary, Templestay has a low impact on the environment and contributes to the maintenance of species and habitats directly and indirectly because Templestay programs and experiences follow the principle of environmental protection.

3.2. Socio-Cultural Sustainability

Templestay encompasses various socio-cultural authenticity of a host temple, not only the tangible cultural assets such as the historic ruins and relics, monuments, architecture, but also intangible cultural heritage values such as the Buddhist religion, tradition, language, music, dance, painting, cuisine, and festivals, and preserves their built living cultural heritage and traditional values [6]. In other words, Templestay is based on their historical, natural, and cultural resources; therefore, most visitors experience a feeling of novelty and authenticity through conserved native culture in a local temple. Furthermore, each temple has its traditional and peculiar programs; it attracts tourists who visit Templestay to enrich their cultural perspectives of the host community and its environment.

Socio-cultural sustainability refers to traditional local values, ways of life, and identity [28]. It implies respect for social identity, community culture, and its assets. Templestay programs support the cultural and social aspects of sustainability, promoting cultural understanding of Korean thought and traditional religion amongst visitors, providing an experience of a fading conventional lifestyle, and preserving Korean cultural properties and moral culture.

For instance, the temple Golgulsa is one of the places where visitors can experience the practice of Seonmudo, which is the oldest monastic martial arts in Korea [29] (see Figure 4). It incorporates yoga, meditation, and the Buddhist practices of self-awareness and introspection [6,29]. Seonmudo training helps participants straighten out our unbalanced bodies and minds, so that they can become mentally and physically healthier [29]. This Seonmudo has been inherited and developed for 2500 years [29]. Due to Templestay’s popularity, Koreans have noticed Seonmudo as a cultural heritage and tradition. However, it did not receive any attention before the Templestay was vitalized. As a result, some tourists only want to take Templestay to experience Seonmudo [29]. Thus, it shows that Templestay contributes to preserving traditional, cultural assets.

Since Korean temples are traditionally located far away from the cities, few residents near the destination can interact with tourists. However, local authorities try to make tourism products connect with local cultures and regional characteristics to contribute to the integrity of the local community [30]. Through the success of this program, local communities can receive economic benefits, and tourists have opportunities to see regional cultural styles, festivals, and well-known local products near Templestay places.

Thus, this program may enhance the Templestay experience and enlarge the attraction base. Opportunities include strawberry festivals, environmental-friendly ecology festivals, filial piety courtesy learning, visitations to medicinal herb villages, and so on. Therefore, the Templestay local tourism experience programs have successfully developed in many local provinces, and thus local authorities and communities plan to expand the program, particularly with the COVID-19 era [30]. The Korean government is also planning to foster the Templestay as a unique and healing tourism product in 2022 [31].

Templestay provides positive effects without any side effects for local communities’ culture or social customs [11]. In Jin’s study, Templestay was identified as eco-oriented tourism by Templestay’s ecological experiences and programs [13]. He also argues that Templestay can be linked with rural tourism and local development [13]. Tourists temporarily adopt the lifestyles or cultures of Templestay rather than impose new lifestyles on the area. Additionally, the interest and positive economic influence of Templestay has aided local areas in restoring cultural properties and assets while reviving cultural traditions, all of which contribute to Templestay having socio-cultural sustainability.

3.3. Economic Sustainability of Templestay

Economic sustainability leads to productivity, optimizing the economic benefits from tourism with full consideration of the local environment, society, and culture. Although many attempts have been made to achieve this goal, there are still many questions regarding gaining economic benefits while maintaining environmental and socio-cultural sustainability.

The interest in Templestay has grown steadily since its inception in 2003 with 33 temples, and there were 141 participating temples by 2020 [11]. Simultaneously, the number of participants increased from 36,000 in 2004 to 294,796 in 2019 (

Table 1. Templestay participants (Unit: Person, %).

Visitor	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020
Domestic	164,853	167,828	187,101	186,186	229,264	233,319	247,783	111,197
Foreign	21,743	25,560	32,337	36,536	47,221	53,291	47,058	4760
Total	186,596	193,388	219,438	222,722	276,485	286,610	294,796	115,957

Source: Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism (2021).

).

Templestay can have positive economic ripple effects and be a powerful resource for sustainable growth. According to the research on the economic and socio-cultural impacts of Templestay, the result found that Templestay participants spent an average of 99,921 won (USD 84.21) per person, and the final demand for Templestay nationwide was about KRW 19.3 billion (USD 16,266,330) in 2014 [32]. The research found that the economic ripple effect was calculated as a direct production inducement effect of KRW 29.578 billion (USD 24,928,782), an indirect impact of KRW 18.4 billion (USD 15,515,381), and a total result of KRW 47.987 billion (USD 40,444,164). The total employment induction effect was 444 people, and the value-added impact was a total of KRW 18.616 billion (USD 15,689,844) [32].

Specifically, Templestay, operated by a temple located in Jeolla Namdo province, gained popularity as a cultural product that can attract tourists to the local area. According to Jeolla Namdo, 25,000 tourists came to experience the Templestay located in Jeolla Namdo province in 2011, and it has increased by 10% from 2010. Jeolla Namdo reported that Templestay invigorates the local economy as a representative tourism product [33]. In addition, providing the program’s ripple effect, local authorities, including Chungcheong province, began to make local tourism products connected to Templestay. These local tourism products are related to local crops, regional customs, and intangible cultural resources. Local citizens participate in them directly, and can receive benefits and revenues from them. Therefore, it is a good structure for distributing the economic impact of Templestay to residents.

Other indexes show a positive evaluation from the international society. Templestay won the best prize from Internationale Tourismus Borse, which was participated in by 180 countries across the world, in 2008 and 2009 [11]. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) recognized that Templestay is one of the successful five tourism programs worldwide tourism resources based on Korean culture in 2009 [11]. The Korean Government also chose Templestay as one of the year’s ten best icons of Korea in 2010 [11]. According to the OECD (2009), Templestay made Korean tourism a positive image by introducing local tourism assets [6,11].

Mainly, it contains three principles of eco-friendly, social-cultural differentiating, and economic practicality. Therefore, Templestay shows potentials and possibilities as a competitive and sustainable tourism domain to achieve the harmony of sustainability and productivity.

4. Discussion

Sustainable development has been proposed as a model for structural transformation in the world, and thus the principles of ecology are essential to economic growth [34]. The balance policy of sustainability among economic, social, and ecological systems makes it especially pertinent to tourism, where a wealth of literature has emerged since the 1980s [34]. Although sustainable tourism is a commendable idea, it still disagrees with some challenges, for example, the blurred definition and operationalization in academia and the fulfillment of three aspects of sustainability in the tourism industry. It is challenging to fulfill triple-bottom-line sustainability’s environmental, socio-cultural, and economic requirements in tourism development.

However, sustainable tourism is no longer a mere concept or a philosophy of ideal thinking and has become a global reality in the tourism industry. This study explores how to achieve harmony between sustainability and productivity through the catalytic mechanism of tourist experiences in Korea’s case of the Templestay. This study also provides practical implications for future studies, examining the balance of sustainable tourism and competitiveness in terms of productivity in the tourism fields.

The COVID-19 pandemic may have been a tipping point to recognize new opportunities and accept paradigm shifts in tourism business models towards sustainability [35]. The trend report of ‘To recovery and beyond: the future of travel and tourism in the wake of COVID-19′ by the World Travel and Tourism Council (2020) suggests one of the significant four trends in travel and tourism trends—sustainability [36]. The research showed that 58% of respondents think more about sustainability and the environment than before the onset of COVID-19 [36].

For future generations, sustainable tourism development is much more critical than before; the case of Templestay would be an insightful message for tourism developers and practitioners. Templestay provides various sustainable programs and experiences to participants. These unique and attractive tourism experiences of Templestay reveal multiple benefits such as relaxation, well-being, self-reflexivity, authenticity, and tourists’ responsibility for the environment, culture, and local community [8,9,10,13,14,15,16]. Therefore, tourism values and benefits could enhance their tourism experience and responsible behaviors, thus leading to sustainability [4] for Templestay.

Although this study revealed the balance of sustainability and productivity, analyzing the Korean Templestay, there is still a gap in finding the harmony of sustainability and productivity in theory and practice. Further research is required to understand a better balance of sustainable tourism. Increased knowledge of quality tourism experience in sustainable tourism may help further research and tourism productivity toward sustainability.

A qualitative research approach may be influential in finding a more profound understanding of the tourism phenomenon regarding sustainability and productivity’s ontological and epistemological natures. In addition, the quantitative research could discover whether Templestay is operated in order to fit the three pillars of sustainability or not, and how visitors experience Templestay’s value. These findings will enable us to understand the new insightful domains of sustainable tourism to harmonize environmental, socio-cultural, and economic matters.