Women, culture, and green transformation: A gendered participatory communication model for wellness tourism
Keywords:
Gendered communication, Participatory communication, Cultural sustainability, Wellness tourism, Green transformationAbstract
Wellness tourism is increasingly promoted as a pathway to green transformation, yet its development in culturally rich communities raises ethical concerns regarding sacred traditions, gendered power relations, and community participation. This study examines how gendered communication practices and cultural sacredness shape wellness tourism development in Madura, Indonesia. Using a mixed-methods approach, data were collected through surveys with 286 respondents, focus group discussions, and in-depth interviews in selected village clusters in Sumenep and Pamekasan. Quantitative data were analyzed descriptively, while qualitative data were examined thematically. The findings show that Madurese women play a central role in preserving indigenous wellness knowledge, including jamu, ritual healing, and family-based care, but remain marginal in formal tourism planning. Communities also negotiate boundaries between practices that can be adapted for tourism and those that must be protected due to their sacred value. Participation is further limited by centralized governance and the gap between global wellness tourism discourse and local cultural meanings. Based on these findings, this study proposes the Gendered-Cultural Participatory Communication Model (G-CPM), consisting of five components: sacred knowledge protection, gendered agency negotiation, community curation, local-language meaning-making, and sustainability framing. This model reframes green transformation as a communicative and ethical process, contributing to participatory communication, gender studies, and sustainable tourism scholarship.
References
Amandaria, R., Darma, R., Tamrin, S., Rahmadanih, R., & Untari, U. (2026). Gender dynamics in local organizations: enhancing community participation for sustainable rural development in Indonesia. Frontiers in Sociology, Volume 10-2025. https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/sociology/articles/10.3389/fsoc.2025.1673863
2. Arida, N. S., Nugroho, S., Rusadi, N. W. P., & ... (2025). Typology of wellness tourism based on traditional healing in Bali. Journal of Applied …. http://ojs2.pnb.ac.id/index.php/JASTH/article/view/2464
3. Bhuyan, K. N., Naik, R., & Khangarot, G. (2025). Wellness tourism: nurturing nature and achieving sustainable development goals (SDGs) while travelling. Environment, Development and Sustainability, 1–32.
4. Brennan, B. S., & Kessler, D. (2025). From Ritual to Renewal: Templestays as a Cross-Cultural Model of Sustainable Wellness Tourism in South Korea. In Sustainability (Vol. 17, Issue 14, p. 6483). https://doi.org/10.3390/su17146483
5. Butler, R., & Thompson-Carr, A. (2024). The Routledge handbook of tourism and indigenous peoples. Routledge London.
6. Chambers, S. (2017). Balancing epistemic quality and equal participation in a system approach to deliberative democracy. Social Epistemology, 31(3), 266–276.
7. Choe, J., O’Regan, M., & Giovine, M. A. Di. (2025). Wellness for Tourists? Well… Mess for Locals: Socio-Culturally Sustainable Development of Wellness Tourism in Bali. The Journal of Development …. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220388.2025.2577316
8. Dillette, A. K., Douglas, A. C., & ... (2021). Dimensions of holistic wellness as a result of international wellness tourism experiences. Current Issues in Tourism. https://doi.org/10.1080/13683500.2020.1746247
9. Dutta, U. (2025). Reimagining Development in the Global South: Exploring Cultural and Communicative Avenues at the Margins of South Asia. Journal of Poverty, 1–22.
10. Handayani, W. (2023). Gendered communication: Gender mainstreaming and gender differences in the age of gender equality. Informasi, 53(1), 161–174.
11. Järvelä, M. (2023). Dimensions of cultural sustainability—Local adaptation, adaptive capacity and social resilience. Frontiers in Political Science, 5, 1285602.
12. Jihana, T. (2025). Spiritual Tourism: Exploring Sacred Sites Worldwide. SIWAYANG Journal: Publikasi Ilmiah Bidang Pariwisata, Kebudayaan, Dan Antropologi, 4(1), 1–10.
13. Kurniawan, A., Nurmandi, A., Fridayani, H. D., & Tai, K.-T. (2024). Optimizing Local Assets in Wellness Tourism Development and Implications for Environmental Sustainability in Indonesia. E3S Web of Conferences, 594, 2001.
14. Lee, J. Y. (2023). The effect of narrative formation on design for participation: focusing on group chat conversation as participation and practice.
15. Liu, M., & Heinonen, T. (2025). Framing Situated Knowledge: A Knowledge Framework for Gender and Sustainability in the Global South. Gender and Sustainability in the Global South, 2(1), 13–34.
16. Lynch, K. (1999). Equality studies, the academy and the role of research in emancipatory social change. Economic and Social Review, 30, 41–70.
17. Marbun, S. (2025). The commodification of culture in global tourism: Balancing authenticity, sustainability, and ethical practices amidst disruption. Proceeding of International Seminar of Culture and Tourism AKBI, 1(1), 1–24.
18. Mardliyah, S., Widyaswari, M., Dewi, P. A. R., Nugroho, R., Firman, S., Mardiani, D. P., & Suji, S. (2025). Inclusive education practices in rural communities: A community-based empowerment model for gender equality. Edelweiss Applied Science and Technology, 9(2), 343–351.
19. Nurhaliza, W. O. S., Hidayanto, S., Ayuningtyas, Q., & Fauziah, C. R. (2023). Komunikasi partisipatif masyarakat bajo mola raya dalam pengembangan desa di kabupaten wakatobi. Jurnal Ilmu Komunikasi UHO: Jurnal Penelitian Kajian Ilmu Komunikasi Dan Informasi, 8(3), 571–586.
20. Rahmawati, F. N., & Suryandari, N. (2023a). Cultural Commodification Analysis Based on Local Wisdom in an Effort to Strengthen Madura’s Potential as a Wellness Tourism Destination. 4th Borobudur International …. https://www.atlantis-press.com/proceedings/bis-hss-22/125992777
21. Rahmawati, F. N., & Suryandari, N. (2023b). Wellness Tourism Development Strategy In Madura Based on Local Wisdom. Iccs, 81–86. https://proceeding.unram.ac.id/index.php/iccs/article/view/816
22. Rahmawati, F. N., Suryandari, N., & Windiani. (2024). Cultural Commodification Analysis Based on Local Wisdom in an Effort to Strengthen Madura’s Potential as a Wellness Tourism Destination (Vol. 1). Atlantis Press SARL. https://doi.org/10.2991/978-2-38476-118-0_53
23. Servaes, J. (2022). Communication for development and social change. In The Routledge handbook of nonprofit communication (pp. 23–31). Routledge.
24. Suryandari, N., Rahmawati, F. N., Dharma, F. A., Trunojoyo, U., Bangkalan, M., & Sidoarjo, U. M. (2024). Madura dan Potensi Wisata Rempah : Kajian Strategi Komunikasi Pemasaran Pariwisata. 7, 293–306.
25. Suryandari, N., Rahmawati, F. N., Quraisyin, D., Wijayani, Q. N., & Poernamasari, N. (2025). Intercultural communication and innovation in women’s empowerment within the Madurese gastronomy industry. BIS Humanities and Social Science, 2, V225017–V225017.
26. Suryandari, N., Rahmawati, F. N., Wijayani, Q. N., Poernamasari, N., Rakhmawati, Y., & Kurniasari, N. D. (2025). Empowerment Communication of Madurese Women through Community-Based Ecotourism. Jurnal Pemberdayaan Masyarakat, 4(1), 280–289.
27. Suryantari, Y., Lanisy, N. A., & Ngarbingan, H. K. (2025). Wellness Tourism as a Pathway to Sustainable Tourism: Opportunities and Challenges in Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara. Kontigensi: Jurnal Ilmiah Manajemen, 13(1), 241–248.
28. Theerathitichaipa, K., Seefong, M., Prasomsab, P., Wisutwattanasak, P., Banyong, C., Ratanavaraha, V., Jansirisuk, N., Ariyarit, A., & Kasemsri, R. (2025). Exploring Determinants of Wellness Tourism and Behavioral Intentions: An SEM-Based Study of Holistic Health. In Sustainability (Vol. 17, Issue 17, p. 7824). https://doi.org/10.3390/su17177824
29. ul Abidin, Z. (2024). Gendered Communication Styles: A Cross-Cultural Analysis of Language and Power. Journal of Gender, Power, and Social Transformation, 1(2), 12–18.
30. Wiguna, I. G. B. A., & Triana, D. S. (2025). BALINESE LOCAL WISDOM IN WELLNESS TOURISM: A STUDY OF TRADITIONAL HEALING PRACTICES IN UBUD. SIBATIK JOURNAL: Jurnal Ilmiah Bidang Sosial, Ekonomi, Budaya, Teknologi, Dan Pendidikan, 5(1), 99–108.
31. Yüksel, A. (2025). The modes of being, operating, making, knowing, living and acting in tourism research: A critical examination. In Tourism and Hospitality for Humanity (pp. 117–156). Edward Elgar Publishing.
32. Yulianti, E., Kristanto, H., Rahayu, H. S., Reza, Y. A., & Kurniawan, W. (2025). Gender Communication Strategies for Women’s Empowerment: Evidence from Community Programs in Indonesia. INJECT (Interdisciplinary Journal of Communication), 10(2 SE-Articles), 1489–1508. https://doi.org/10.18326/inject.v10i2.4985
Downloads
Published
Conference Proceedings Volume
Section
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.