Sustainable Tourism

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14 Comments

Comment by Jan Herder on June 3, 2008 at 2:23pm

Hello, great to see the good work occurring in sustainable tourism. I wondered what the prognosis is for peak oil scenarios in this industry--specifically for so-called exotic destinations or destinations served primarily by air.

Comment by Andres Hammerman on May 27, 2008 at 2:25pm

Should we take a survey of the general public and ask them which they would choose?

Green Tourism
Ethical Tourism
Nature Tourism
Community Based Tourism
Sustainable Tourism
Responsible Tourism
Earth Tourism
Planet Tourism
Carbon Neutral Tourism
Permaculture Tourism
Geotourism
Ecotourism

Or take a survey that asks people to define each of the above?
Which came first? Does it matter?

I am actually not cynical, but the general public has been confused by many types of ecotourism.
Perhaps unity is needed that promotes environmental and resource conservation.

signed the Black Sheep

Comment by Menno on May 18, 2008 at 11:07am

Presenting one myth in European mainstream tourism: it's not possible to go to an exotic destination by train or bike.

Travelers are often looking for exotism much further away than they should...what is an exotic destination? Could we consider Belarus for example as an exotic destination? In our "RebelFarmer" point of view 'yes': this destination, 1 night-train traveling from Düsseldorf, opens directly your eyes on one of the last centrally-planned economies left in the world. It helps you understand how subsistence farming is working and relevant for surviving next to poorly paid job. By doing this actually they safeguarded a tradition that we lost in Western Europe namely the art of organic farming and cooking based on local ingredients including all kind of wild products. Did you know that research from our team revealed that almost all village people in Belarus know at least 10 types of mushrooms! Did you also know that most songs and dances practiced in Belarusian villages are connected to a nature-based religion dating back far before Christianity (pagan rituals)?
RebelFarmer supports the GREENWAYS of Eastern Europe, an sustainable way to discover the exotic Belarusian countryside.
See RebelFarmer and greenways.by.

Comment by Scott Rains on May 17, 2008 at 11:42am

Roseanne Ramos at Inclusion by Design has done a unique green/accessible resort on St. John Virgin Islands. She is working on next generation projects in Central America.

Comment by Dr. Rachel Dodds on May 10, 2008 at 3:41pm

Sounds like a great group - a website you might like for case studies etc is www.sustainabletourism.net

Comment by Katie Fewings on May 6, 2008 at 4:23am

Hi Shaun, these look great, we are more than happy to receive nominations for these projects at www.responsibletourismawards.com/nominations
Thanks for your help with this!

Comment by Shaun Gilchrist on May 4, 2008 at 9:30pm

Hey Katie,
Just following on from Tyler's post earlier, we have seen some outstanding examples submitted through thewww.changemakers.net/geotourismchallenge competition with National Geographic/Ashoka/WHL.travel - having read through the short lists, there is most definitely some projects worthy of nomination.

Comment by Katie Fewings on April 30, 2008 at 12:00pm

Hi everyone,
We have just launched our fifth annual Responsible Tourism Awards and are looking for nominations for tourism organisations, companies and individuals who are having a positive impact on local people and destinations.

Make your nomination here or find out more about the Awards here

The deadline for nominations is Monday 16 June and the winners will be announced at World Travel Market on Wednesday 12 November.

Any queries, give me a shout!

Katie

Comment by Faisal Ibn Jafar on April 17, 2008 at 1:09pm

Hello to all the members of this Group

Comment by Craig Grimes on April 10, 2008 at 6:39pm

This is to do with what Shaun said on April 6th:

The first International Conference on Responsible Tourism also recognised the needs of people with disabilities (PwD's):

- provides access for physically challenged people; and is culturally sensitive, engenders respect between tourists and hosts, and builds local pride and confidence.

Recognising the principles of the Cape Town Declaration which defined Responsible Tourism, the 2nd conference gave way to the following Kerala Declaration:

- minimises negative economic, environmental, and social impacts;

- generates greater economic benefits for local people and enhances the well-being of host communities, improves working conditions and access to the industry;

- involves local people in decisions that affect their lives and life chances;

- makes positive contributions to the conservation of natural and cultural heritage, to the maintenance of the world's diversity;

- provides more enjoyable experiences for tourists through more meaningful connections with local people, and a greater understanding of local cultural, social and environmental issues;

- provides access for physically challenged people; and

- is culturally sensitive, engenders respect between tourists and hosts, and builds local pride and confidence.

Full Kerala Declaration 2008

I'm currently working with Len at WHL with regards to this and the inclusion of people with disabilities and the project will be starting in Matagalpa, Nicaragua and then will be replicated through WHL's site.
This wil be a huge breakthrough for PwD's and Geotourism providing information about Inclusive Travel in over 50 countries.

See Scott Rains blog post and Len's comment.

PwD's also have a large spending power although there are few statistics. The Open Doors Organization found that just Americans with Disabilities spent $13.9 million in 2005 on tourism and related products. There is a huge market out there, we as PwD's want to be able to travel in the developing world, we're just waiting for the information and facilities that we require.

Hopefully, through working we WHL we can start providing this information and begin to raise awareness within the sustainable and responsible tourism sector.

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