2
A. Lubowiecki-Vikuk et al.
address, directly or indirectly, the important role of leisure and sport in social
progress. These activities contribute to empowering and promoting tolerance and
respect towards women and the elderly, and individuals and communities as a whole,
including people with disabilities (Pagan 2019; Ratten 2019). This is particularly
important now, as demographic trends clearly indicate that societies are aging, an
increasing number of people are living alone, and thus the family model is changing
(Dąbrowska et al. 2018; Foot 2004; Gardiner et al. 2018; Lubowiecki-Vikuk 2014).
Paving the way for greater integration of gender and sexual minorities and support
for them in sport (Krane 2019; Lubowiecki-Vikuk and Godlewski 2020) and tourism
(Lubowiecki-Vikuk 2016; Lubowiecki-Vikuk and Borzyszkowski 2016) is equally
important. Financially disadvantaged individuals (Giampiccoli et al. 2014; Puciato
et al. 2020) and consumers who differ in terms of religion, ethnicity and race still pose
a challenge for leisure sector service providers. According to numerous researchers
(e.g. Davidson and Stebbins 2011; Lee 2020), social changes in the world of leisure,
underlying situations, and the influence of individual and collective actions on social
changes are factors that shape serious leisure.
The debate on the fragmentation and diversification of leisure practices has implications for the sustainability of leisure. Ropke and Godskesen (2007, p. 158) defined
sustainable leisure on a fundamental level as:
• time consuming
• requiring low levels of resources
• close to home
• utilizing shared facilities
• focusing on one thing at a time.
Given the above, this chapter makes a contribution to the discussion on leisure
in the context of sustainable development. Thus, its purpose is to identify leading
trends in the leisure market, including sustainable development. It is important to
refer to the ongoing changes from the perspective of this issue’s key dimensions,
i.e. social, business and environmental responsibility. In order to achieve this goal,
we have conducted a literature review on leisure, including sport and tourism, in
connection with sustainable development. In doing so, we referred to its three pillars
(social, economic and environmental), which are reflected in the structure adopted
in this chapter.
2 Leisure from the Perspective of Social Responsibility
One of the pillars of the sustainability triad is ‘social sustainability’. It is difficult to
grasp, and thus to define, as it encompasses all the interconnected spheres of human
life (James et al. 2015). Traditionally, ‘social sustainability’ pertains to the current and
future generations in areas such as: community development and resilience, cultural
competence, (health) equity, human adaptation and rights, labor rights, livability,
placemaking, social capital, social equity, social justice, social support, and social
A. Lubowiecki-Vikuk et al.
address, directly or indirectly, the important role of leisure and sport in social
progress. These activities contribute to empowering and promoting tolerance and
respect towards women and the elderly, and individuals and communities as a whole,
including people with disabilities (Pagan 2019; Ratten 2019). This is particularly
important now, as demographic trends clearly indicate that societies are aging, an
increasing number of people are living alone, and thus the family model is changing
(Dąbrowska et al. 2018; Foot 2004; Gardiner et al. 2018; Lubowiecki-Vikuk 2014).
Paving the way for greater integration of gender and sexual minorities and support
for them in sport (Krane 2019; Lubowiecki-Vikuk and Godlewski 2020) and tourism
(Lubowiecki-Vikuk 2016; Lubowiecki-Vikuk and Borzyszkowski 2016) is equally
important. Financially disadvantaged individuals (Giampiccoli et al. 2014; Puciato
et al. 2020) and consumers who differ in terms of religion, ethnicity and race still pose
a challenge for leisure sector service providers. According to numerous researchers
(e.g. Davidson and Stebbins 2011; Lee 2020), social changes in the world of leisure,
underlying situations, and the influence of individual and collective actions on social
changes are factors that shape serious leisure.
The debate on the fragmentation and diversification of leisure practices has implications for the sustainability of leisure. Ropke and Godskesen (2007, p. 158) defined
sustainable leisure on a fundamental level as:
• time consuming
• requiring low levels of resources
• close to home
• utilizing shared facilities
• focusing on one thing at a time.
Given the above, this chapter makes a contribution to the discussion on leisure
in the context of sustainable development. Thus, its purpose is to identify leading
trends in the leisure market, including sustainable development. It is important to
refer to the ongoing changes from the perspective of this issue’s key dimensions,
i.e. social, business and environmental responsibility. In order to achieve this goal,
we have conducted a literature review on leisure, including sport and tourism, in
connection with sustainable development. In doing so, we referred to its three pillars
(social, economic and environmental), which are reflected in the structure adopted
in this chapter.
2 Leisure from the Perspective of Social Responsibility
One of the pillars of the sustainability triad is ‘social sustainability’. It is difficult to
grasp, and thus to define, as it encompasses all the interconnected spheres of human
life (James et al. 2015). Traditionally, ‘social sustainability’ pertains to the current and
future generations in areas such as: community development and resilience, cultural
competence, (health) equity, human adaptation and rights, labor rights, livability,
placemaking, social capital, social equity, social justice, social support, and social