Unravelling social sustainability in the sharing accommodation : the case of Petra

Abstract EN

The advent of the peer-to-peer online marketplace has re-shaped the tourism and hospitality industry.

Specifically, the sharing accommodation platforms such as Airbnb have enabled individuals to invest on their idle spaces to ensure supplementary incomes.

Drawing on a single case study approach and rhetoric observations, this conceptual paper highlights the role of Airbnb micro-entrepreneurship in achieving social sustainability in Petra, Jordan.

We argue that Airbnb houses should be viewed as micro enterprises with distinct features that can help achieve the core goals of social sustainability.

In the case of Petra, Airbnb can potentially contribute to active involvement of poor local people in the tourism industry.

The partnerships between Airbnb hosts and the other service providers within the supply-chain can also expand the benefits of tourism in a way that engage more the poor and marginalized people.

The study offers several recommendations and direction for further empirical research.