Fairness, Greenwashing, and Religious Centrality: Explaining Muslim Tourists’ Conservation Payment Intentions in a UNESCO Geopark

Abstract

This study examines how institutional signals shape Muslim tourists’ willingness to pay for conservation in the Rinjani–Lombok UNESCO Global Geopark, Indonesia. Drawing on justice theory, signaling theory, and Islamic stewardship principles, the model positions distributive and procedural justice as positive antecedents of trust in governance, while greenwashing functions as a negative signal. Trust is theorized as the proximal driver of willingness to pay, with perceived overtourism and Islamic religious centrality as contextual moderators. Data were collected through an on-site intercept survey of 235 Muslim tourists across major entry points and viewpoints in the geopark, with balanced coverage of weekdays, weekends, and time periods. Analysis was conducted using partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM). Findings confirm that fairness strengthens trust, greenwashing undermines it, and trust significantly predicts willingness to contribute. The trust–payment link is weakened by overtourism but reinforced by religiosity, underscoring the role of credible and culturally resonant governance.