DESTINATION FOCUS: The Tourism for Tomorrow Destination Award is given to towns, cities, regions or countries that show commitment to supporting and delivering sustainable tourism best practices in their destinations.
The finalists for 2016 are:
Parkstad Limburg, Netherlands
By the end of the 20th century, the neighbouring regions of Hill Country and Parkstad in the Netherlands’ Limburg province were both marked by economic decline. However, for the last 15 years the two have combined on a programme of developing Parkstad - a former coal mining district - as a wet weather tourism destination. The idea is that by providing a complement to Hill Country's summer charms, they might turn the pair into a success story of sustainable year-round tourism. It's worked, as 15 years after the scheme began in a region with no income from tourism, Parkstad's turnover in 2015 was € 368 million (ca. $US400million), and now provides 5,800 full time jobs.
Swiss Parks Network
Since 2008, some 19 new parks and park candidates have been created in Switzerland, designed to protect some of the country's best landscapes and to promote sustainable tourism within them. Now covering some 15% of the country's landmass, together they form the Swiss Parks Network. Significantly, the parks were not formed as the result of top down government initiatives. Instead, local residents worked together to develop a project that would demonstrate the viability of creating each park, which was then submitted to a popular vote among those living there. Because this meant the local population believed in them, once established these parks have become a source of great civic pride and opportunity.
V&A Waterfront, South Africa
It's hard to walk around Cape Town's V&A Waterfront and not be struck by the sense of optimism and renewal. Over the past 9 years, what was once an industrialised brownfield site has been decontaminated, and reinvigorated to become a mecca of independent shops, restaurants and hotels, while still supporting a marina, local fishing industry and residential developments. According to an independent economic impact assessment, in 2014 alone it contributed an estimated R33.4 billion (US$3.34 billion) to the country's GDP. And all this has been done with the backdrop of Table Mountain everywhere you look. It's no wonder it is South Africa's most popular tourist destination, with 24 million people visiting each year.
UN declares 2017 year of sustainable tourism for development
The United Nations General Assembly has approved the adoption of 2017 as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development.
The resolution, adopted on 4 December, recognizes “the importance of international tourism, and particularly of the designation of an international year of sustainable tourism for development, in fostering better understanding among peoples everywhere, in leading to a greater awareness of the rich heritage of various civilizations and in bringing about a better appreciation of the inherent values of different cultures, thereby contributing to the strengthening of peace in the world”.
“The declaration by the UN of 2017 as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development is a unique opportunity to advance the contribution of the tourism sector to the three pillars of sustainability " economic, social and environmental, while raising awareness of the true dimensions of a sector which is often undervalued” said UNWTO Secretary-General, Taleb Rifai.
The decision follows the recognition by global leaders at the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20) that “well-designed and well-managed tourism” can contribute to the three dimensions of sustainable development, to job creation and to trade.
