This study is the first to estimate the size of the informal tourism economy. Using a dynamic general equilibrium model, this paper first estimates the size of the informal tourism economy and then assesses its linkages to key labour market variables in Thailand. Empirical results indicate that: (a) the informal tourism economy grows faster than the formal tourism and aggregate economy; (b) both formal and informal tourism economies absorb the unemployed; (c) the relationship between formal and informal economies is negative in the aggregate but positive in the tourism sector.
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We facilitated a the LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® workshop for participants of the STEPup conference in Pattaya, Thailand.
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Despite continuous efforts in various economies, amongst others in South-East Asia, the full potential of social entrepreneurship (SE) is difficult to realize (STEPup project comparative study findings). Challenges that need to be addressed include the lack of skilled employees, business understanding among founders, access to funding and infrastructure and a lack of social impact measurement. Higher education institutions (HEI) are often challenged with limited engagement, also in terms of student support of early entrepreneurial activity. This disbalance has also been observed in Thailand and Myanmar, with the Erasmus+ funded project STEPup (2020-2023) seeing an opportunity to create and strengthen innovative social entrepreneurship practices for disruptive business settings in the two participating countries. Research based on the review of scientific articles, the conduct of focus groups (n= 42 from 38 different external stakeholder organizations) and numerous interviews and creative sessions with stakeholders of the social entrepreneurship domain also revealed the necessity to act in a self-organizing and organic SE support system. This paper aims to present recommendations and strategic guidelines to increase access and opportunity for existing social enterprises and social entrepreneurs who are planning to create and sustain an SE ecosystem through the framework, support, expertise and structure of existing higher education institutions. In addition, Higher Education Institutions in Myanmar and Thailand would serve as a good practice case on how to design and develop resource hubs for social enterprise practitioners and engage stakeholders from all sectors to tackle social issues and promote awareness of the social enterprise sector’s potential.
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Collaborative networks for sustainability are emerging rapidly to address urgent societal challenges. By bringing together organizations with different knowledge bases, resources and capabilities, collaborative networks enhance information exchange, knowledge sharing and learning opportunities to address these complex problems that cannot be solved by organizations individually. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the apparel sector, where examples of collaborative networks for sustainability are plenty, for example Sustainable Apparel Coalition, Zero Discharge Hazardous Chemicals, and the Fair Wear Foundation. Companies like C&A and H&M but also smaller players join these networks to take their social responsibility. Collaborative networks are unlike traditional forms of organizations; they are loosely structured collectives of different, often competing organizations, with dynamic membership and usually lack legal status. However, they do not emerge or organize on their own; they need network orchestrators who manage the network in terms of activities and participants. But network orchestrators face many challenges. They have to balance the interests of diverse companies and deal with tensions that often arise between them, like sharing their innovative knowledge. Orchestrators also have to “sell” the value of the network to potential new participants, who make decisions about which networks to join based on the benefits they expect to get from participating. Network orchestrators often do not know the best way to maintain engagement, commitment and enthusiasm or how to ensure knowledge and resource sharing, especially when competitors are involved. Furthermore, collaborative networks receive funding from grants or subsidies, creating financial uncertainty about its continuity. Raising financing from the private sector is difficult and network orchestrators compete more and more for resources. When networks dissolve or dysfunction (due to a lack of value creation and capture for participants, a lack of financing or a non-functioning business model), the collective value that has been created and accrued over time may be lost. This is problematic given that industrial transformations towards sustainability take many years and durable organizational forms are required to ensure ongoing support for this change. Network orchestration is a new profession. There are no guidelines, handbooks or good practices for how to perform this role, nor is there professional education or a professional association that represents network orchestrators. This is urgently needed as network orchestrators struggle with their role in governing networks so that they create and capture value for participants and ultimately ensure better network performance and survival. This project aims to foster the professionalization of the network orchestrator role by: (a) generating knowledge, developing and testing collaborative network governance models, facilitation tools and collaborative business modeling tools to enable network orchestrators to improve the performance of collaborative networks in terms of collective value creation (network level) and private value capture (network participant level) (b) organizing platform activities for network orchestrators to exchange ideas, best practices and learn from each other, thereby facilitating the formation of a professional identity, standards and community of network orchestrators.
It is no wonder that the Academy for Leisure & Events is a key partner within the STEPup project which involves studying, reframing and designing for social entrepreneurship, social innovation and business modelling.The project looks at social entrepreneurship (SE) as the process of applying innovative business models to address social problems (for people and communities) by achieving both profit and purpose. SE creates long-term value and generates sustainable impact for society and the connected ecosystem.The experts of BUas together with the project consortium will be involved in developing, delivering and evaluating training modules for social entrepreneurs, developing a Good Practice catalogue on successful social enterprises in Europe, creating and sustaining a collaborative network based on real-life cases together with academia, social enterprise industry and impact assessment stakeholders.Collaborating partners:FH Joanneum University of Applied Sciences (Austria), Cracow University of Economics (Poland), Payap University (Thailand), Burapha University (Thailand), Prince of Songkla University (Thailand), Mahasarakham University (Thailand), University of Mandalay (Myanmar), National Management Degree College (Myanmar), Chiang Mai Social Enterprise Company Ltd (Thailand), Agarwood Farmer Group (Thailand).
