Testing the stakeholders’ partnership in a tourism waste management network: an ERGM approach

Abstract

The exponential random graph model (ERGM) is an effective approach for testing the dynamic and local processes of a network. This paper explores the structure of stakeholders' partnerships in a tourism waste management network using high-order dependency ERGMs based on relational data obtained from a eld survey in Motuo County, China. The results reveal that (1) many edges have been formed in the observed network, which indicates the network is relatively tight; (2) the parameter of "Geometrically Weighted Edge Distribution" shows a high transitive effect of the network; (3) the structural effect is more signi cant than the attribute effect; and (4) the simulation model well ts the observed data, which re ects that the tourism waste network governance structure with close connection and collaborative division of labor has been formed in the case. These ndings indicate that different groups of stakeholders have been extensively involved in tourism waste management in Motuo County. The edgewise shared partners formed by stakeholders of different groups increase the information transmission e ciency of the network. The results have implications for tourism waste management, speci cally for promoting sustainability transitions via network governance.

Sustainable Waste Management for Clean and Safe Environments in the Recreation and Tourism Sector: A Case Study of Lithuania, Turkey and Morocco

“…We are proud to see the number of signatories steadily increasing since the launch of this initiative". The tourism sector and its various sub-sectors have engaged in sustainable development discourses and practices at the risk of greenwashing, especially in the face of waste management issues [56].…”