CTR Research Forum 2023November 17, 2023         ContentsPresentations by postgraduate students at Wakayama UniversityAbout the role of department stores in regional centers during thep.2Corona Crisis - Measures to revitalize department stores by using the Metaverse FURUI KanyaReduction and recycling practices of solid waste on beaches in Wakayama City:

p.3Drawing lessons for the Solomon IslandsKAFUKESE. Christina JoyStakeholder engagement in transport management for sustainable tourism in small

p.4island destinations: Case of Yoron Island, JapanIZIHAN, Maryam Sabrina BintiPresentations from CTR Joint Research Support ProgramExploring mechanisms for building sustainable destination management systems:

p.5From the perspective of inter-organizational collaborationKIM, Jaewook, YASHIMA YujiAn invitation to an "old and new trip" with a bird's-eye view drawn by Hatsusaburo

p.6YoshidaHIGASHI Etsuko, ISHIKAWA HajimeStudy of "Educational" tourism film for sustainable destination management

p. 7KIGAWA Tsuyoshi, KATO Kumi, KATSUKI Yoshiyuki, ENDO RiichiMORI Seigen, KOSHIBA Keiichi, SU, Che-JenTourists’ perceptions towards generative AI: The case of ChatGPT and tourism

p. 8ZAINAL ABIDIN, Husna, SANO KaedeSCARLES, Caroline, PEREIRA-DOEL, Pablo1About the role of department stores in regional centers during the Corona crisis- Measures to revitalize department stores by using the metaverse FURUI KanyaGraduate School of Tourism, Wakayama UniversityAbstractCurrently, the decline of domestic shopping streets is severe. In particular, the phenomenon ofeconomic and social impoverishment called "Shutter Street" has been confirmed in shoppingdistricts in central urban areas. In the past, shopping streets were the main places where peoplecould gather and enjoy themselves. However, in recent years, due to external and internal factorssurrounding the shopping district, there are places where the bustle of the past has declined.
Shopping streets are important not only from the economic aspect of the city, but also from thesocial aspect, and we believe that they will be needed in the future. We will focus our researchon how to maintain and develop shopping streets in the future. In addition, as a countermeasureagainst the coronavirus infection that occurred in December 2019, people refrained fromcoming to crowded places to prevent the 3 Cs, which caused a huge economic blow. Under suchcircumstances, the sales method using the Internet line has been evaluated to a certain extent inthe corona disaster because it is possible to purchase while avoiding the 3 Cs. In the future, itwill be necessary to create a system using the Internet (metaverse) in order to face such asituation. In this research, I would like to consider the use of Metaverse especially in departmentstores.
Keywords:Department store, Revitalize, Metaverse, Regional centers, Corona crisis2Reduction and recycling practices of solid waste on beaches in Wakayama City:Drawing lessons for the Solomon IslandsKAFUKESE, Christina JoyGraduate School of Tourism, Wakayama UniversityCenter for Tourism Research, Wakayama UniversityAbstractSolid waste management is a pressing global concern, particularly for small island nations facingunique challenges in environmental sustainability and public health. The research objectivesinclude investigating current initiatives, identifying challenges, understanding factorscontributing to success, examining rules and policies, and offering practical suggestions forimproving waste management in the Solomon Islands. This preliminary study, conducted onbeaches; Kada, Isonoura and Kataonami in September 2023, explores solid waste reduction andrecycling in Wakayama City. The study revealed some useful waste management practices, withstrengths and challenges that can be applied to the Solomon Islands. The three key findingswere; First, the provision of accessible separate recycling bins for both visitors and locals iscrucial to encourage proper waste disposal and recycling; Second, the use of educational signageserves as an effective tool in raising awareness and educating individuals about responsible wastemanagement, thereby reducing the overall volume of solid waste; Lastly, involving localcommunities in initiatives such as beach clean-up campaigns not only contributes to a cleanerenvironment but also fosters a sense of community collaboration in the ongoing effort tominimise solid waste on beaches. These findings highlight the need for a comprehensiveapproach that combines infrastructure, education, and community engagement to achievesustainable and effective beach waste management. The research emphasises the significance ofreducing and recycling solid waste on beaches. By analysing successful models like these threebeaches in Japan, this study contributes valuable insights for regions facing similar wastemanagement challenges like the Solomon Islands.
Keywords:Solid waste management (SWM), Reduce and recycle, Beaches, Japan, Solomon Islands3Stakeholder engagement in transport management for sustainable tourism in smallisland destinations: Case of Yoron Island, JapanIZIHAN, Maryam Sabrina BintiGraduate School of Tourism, Wakayama UniversityAbstractRecently, many regional areas and small islands in Japan have been facing depopulation due toits aging society and younger generations emigrating to big cities. This affects the transportsystem in the areas due to the lack of demand from the residents. The changes in the structureof the transport system affect not only the people in the communities but also tourism businessesand tourists visiting the areas. It changes both residents’ and tourists’ behavior for transport,resorting to personal and rental cars to get around the region. The lack of convenient and easilyaccessible public transport may also deter tourists from visiting. Thus, it is important to involvethese groups of people affected by the system, also known as stakeholders, in planning andmanaging the transport system. Involving stakeholders may also help promote sustainabletourism in destinations by experimenting with changes or improvements of current transport formore environmentally friendly alternatives that fit the demand.
This paper will specifically examine the importance of stakeholders’ involvement in transportmanagement in a small island destination located near Kagoshima Prefecture and Okinawa,Yoron Island. The residents and tourists in Yoron Island have been depending on the usage ofcars compared to public transport for years. However, there is still a lack of understanding ofhow important transport is to these stakeholders on the island and how it can improve their dailylives as residents and travel experience as tourists. To help understand this, an interview will beheld to understand the perspectives of the transport providers of private and public transport,residents, possibly affected tourism businesses, and tourists on the island.
Keywords:Sustainable tourism, Transportation, Stakeholder engagement, Small island destination

4Exploring mechanisms for building sustainable destination management systems:From the perspective of inter-organizational collaborationKIM, JaewookHiroshima UniversityCenter for Tourism Research, Wakayama UniversityYASHIMA YujiFaculty of Tourism & Center for Tourism Research, Wakayama UniversityAbstractStudies have examined the sustainability of tourism resources, including walking or trekkingtourism, such as Santiago in Spain, Long Trail in the U.S.A., and Olle in South Korea, as well asthe role of walking tourism in regional development. According to the United Nations WorldTourism Organization (UNWTO, 2019), walking tourism can be developed anywhere as asustainable form of tourism with relatively low investment, and if properly managed, can providesocial and economic benefits to local people and communities. In this study, we examined thechallenges faced by Kyushu Olle as a sustainable destination resource using data from aquestionnaire survey conducted at the Olle Festival. As a sister trail course of Jeju Olle (Korea),Kyushu Olle started in February 2012, and since the first course opened, 18 courses 1 have nowbeen operated and managed throughout Kyushu, Japan; however, it faces challenges with coursemanagement, sluggish growth in the number of visitors, and collaboration with localstakeholders, including residents. The results revealed that facilities, including toilets, coursepreparation, and festival management, require improvement.
Keywords:Kyushu Olle, Walking tourism, Tourist satisfaction, Sustainable tourism, Data analysis1Saga prefecture (3): Takeo course, Karatsu course, Ureshino course; Kumamoto(2): Amakusa Iwajima course, AmakusaMatsushima course; Oita(2): Okubungo course, Saiki Onyujima-island course; Fukuoka(6): Munakata Oshima course,Yame course, Kurume Korasan course, Miyama Mt. Kiyomizu course, Chikuho Kawara course, Fukuoka Shingu course;Nagasaki (3): Minami-Shimabara course, Shimabara course, Matsuura Fukushima course; Kagoshima (1): Izumi course;Miyazaki (1): Miyazaki Omarugawa course5An invitation to an "old and new trip" with a bird's-eye view drawnby Hatsusaburo YoshidaHIGASHI EtsukoFaculty of Tourism & Center for Tourism Research, Wakayama UniversityISHIKAWA HajimeInstitute of Japanese Cultural Resources KyotoCenter for Tourism Research, Wakayama UniversityAbstractHatsusaburo Yoshida's bird's-eye views became very popular during the tourism boom from theTaisho era (1912-1926) to the early Showa era (1926-1989). While traveling throughout Japan,Hatsusaburo visited Wakayama Prefecture and drew bird's-eye views of Wakaura, Shirahama,Koyasan, and Kumano.
Using Wakayama Prefecture as a model case, this study aims to re-create the Hatsusaburo-stylebird's eye view as a pamphlet for the Reiwa era, with the aim of serving as a means of invitingpeople to visit the region for sightseeing.
The pamphlet is expected to be used by mainly young people interested in Showa retro andseniors with memories of Showa-era townscapes as a travel tool to invite them to a trip leadingto slow tourism to rural areas.
The promotion of slow tourism in local cities is expected to increase the number of peopleinteracting with the local community and enhance the local identity, while taking theenvironment into consideration.
In addition, as a tool for tourism education, it could be used for fieldwork by university studentsto compare the past and present of tourist destination, to discover regional attractions, and tolearn more about environmental changes. It can also be used as a learning material forelementary, junior high, and high school students to study the region. At the CTR ResearchForum, a pamphlet in progress will be shown.
Keywords:Hatsusaburo Yoshida, A bird's-eye view, An old and new trip, Tourism education, Slowtourism

6Study of "Educational" tourism film for sustainable destination managementKIGAWA TsuyoshiFaculty of Tourism & Center for Tourism Research, Wakayama UniversityKATO KumiFaculty of Tourism & Center for Tourism Research, Wakayama UniversityKATSUKI YoshiyukiFaculty of Tourism & Center for Tourism Research, Wakayama UniversityENDO RiichiFaculty of Tourism & Center for Tourism Research, Wakayama UniversityMORI SeigenKiyomizu-deraCenter for Tourism Research, Wakayama UniversityKOSHIBA KeiichiG1 company Inc.
Center for Tourism Research, Wakayama UniversitySU, Che-JenDepartment of Restaurant, Hotel and Institutional Management, Fu Jen Catholic UniversityCenter for Tourism Research, Wakayama UniversityAbstractIn Japan, the term "education" generally refers to the act of teaching provided by educationalinstitutions. Furthermore, educational institutions are often thought of as places that train youngpeople to become employees of a company. However, in such a period of uncertainty, the era oflarge corporations is not forever, as many in Japan believe, and this is changing in Japan as well,as education is required to think about how people should live, not for the sake of the company.
In this perspective, tourism proposes an important education for human beings. In order to showthe purpose of tourism, the goal of a tourist destination, or to promote understanding amongthe people involved, tourism films show a significant role. In other words, the films can be animportant tool against education. Some regions fully understand the background of tourism anduse tourism films for “educational” purposes, while others are completely unaware of such“educational” purposes. In our presentation, we will read this situation and discuss about it.
Keywords:Education, Tourism Film, Sustainability7Tourists’ perceptions towards generative AI: The case of ChatGPT and tourismZAINAL ABIDIN, HusnaCenter for Tourism Research, Wakayama UniversitySANO KaedeFaculty of Tourism & Center for Tourism Research, Wakayama UniversitySCARLES, CarolineSchool of Hospitality and Tourism Management, University of SurreyCenter for Tourism Research, Wakayama UniversityPEREIRA-DOEL, PabloSchool of Hospitality and Tourism Management, University of SurreyCenter for Tourism Research, Wakayama UniversityAbstractThe tourism sector is identified as a key sector to revive Japan’s economic and socialdevelopment post-COVID-19. To accelerate tourism development in the country, Japan hasestablished the importance of digital transformation and enhancing external communications(JETRO, 2023). On a global scale, digital transformation, such as the use of more user-friendlyartificial intelligence (AI), has taken the tourism industry by storm. Despite this, little is knownabout the influence and impact of AI technologies on tourist decisions, as AI technologies haveoften been adopted from a destination management point of view. Current literature haspredominantly explored AI in tourism from a supply perspective, examining the perceptions oftourism businesses, travel agencies, and technology suppliers to adopt AI technology.
Furthermore, most research are conceptual and provides limited empirical data to support thestudies. Despite the fast development of AI technologies, far less is known about the perspectivesof AI, such as ChatGPT, in the tourism sphere. As previous studies have highlighted, moreresearch is needed to examine customer acceptance and perceptions of AI systems in travel andtourism. Therefore, this research will seek to fill this research gap by providing empiricalevidence and exploring tourists’ perceptions and experiences on the use of AI in tourist decisionmaking. Specifically, this research study used the generative AI system, ChatGPT to explorehow generative AI impacts tourists’ travel planning experiences. This research adopts a mixedmethod approach by using interviews and biometric research methods. As this is an ongoingresearch, only preliminary interview data will be discussed for this research presentation.
Keywords:Tourist decision-making, Generative AI, ChatGPT, Travel planning8