The world, since the pandemic restricted mobility from the beginning of 2020, has led to the frequent exposure of the terms globalization and globalism, often misunderstood, but impacting all productive sectors of humanity.
Tourism was no exception, especially when it is limited to territories that, under the guise of autonomy, make decisions aimed at supporting local development.
When decades ago the development of some favorable tourist scenarios began under the auspices of globalization, it was both public institutions and the private sector, the driving force of the activity, that visualized them. At certain times, there was fear for the disappearance of small businesses in the subsectors, which, given their structure and capital, both investment and circulation, would compete with economically strong companies that easily penetrate emitter and receiver markets.
Globalization also needed a legal structure that would facilitate foreign capital investment with the necessary flexibilities to ensure success in the new territories where the offer of tourism products/services would expand.
The coronavirus Covid-19 has been a “global” event. The pandemic could have been one of the triggers for the realization of the fear of small businesses, which were forced to close their operations in many cases without experiencing the presence of large international companies. This would be one of the causes of instability and possible disappearance.
Globalization, under the vision of being a process, requires, regardless of the combination of some factors including capital with technology and communication, the presence of economic forces that exert control, which could be harnessed by territories, as long as they have a clear identity and find strengths in it. Therefore, dependence on foreign investment would be subject to internal organization with its offer always as long as it maintains high levels of quality, which implies knowledge and preparation of all local actors.
It is complex to assume that global problems must have global solutions. However, this has already been experienced with the pandemic. Circulation bans, virtual education, mass vaccination, capacity limitations, prohibition of face-to-face customer service in all service companies, dissemination of alarming figures in all media…
Globalism as an ideology pushes for solutions to be applied worldwide. It is not in vain that laws on gender ideology are discussed and even promulgated worldwide, which entails population control, climate change, and health. These decisions open the door to the establishment of a world government in which economic power manifests itself in technological control and the media, forming one of the powers that can change the mental structure of a society.
One of the biggest challenges and opportunities for the tourism sector currently lies in rural areas that are committed to their internal collective, so that in some way self-management in generating resources that complement tourism is so solid that there are no gaps through which global decisions can impact their own collective development decision.
As with any challenge, many variables intervene, but if the pandemic has left learning as a life lesson, solidarity in the management of tourism products and services can be evident.
