Blog - Page 6 of 10 - Destination Stewardship Center

How To Handle Voluntourism

Eugene Kim reports on the status and opportunities of voluntourism and experteering, for both travelers and the communities they would help. Key recommendation: It has to be done properly.

February 22, 2016

Keeping a Destination Clean in Style

Dress her in corks and carburetors—Kaikoura, New Zealand has an innovative way to incentivize trash clean-up and recycling: A fashion show featuring the rubbish itself.

December 7, 2015

How to CARE for a Place: Lessons from Cape Cod

Creating a philanthropic stewardship organization for Cape Cod was no easy task. Four years and 15 grant projects later, the director of CARE for the Cape and Islands can point to successes, as well as tips on obstacles and opportunities for civic leaders in other destinations.

November 21, 2015

One Way to Support Paris

Do you want to help bereaved Paris? If you were planning a trip to Paris, don’t cancel it. If you were thinking of a trip to Paris, do it. Terrorists hope to damage national economies by scaring away tourists—Egypt knows this!—and media coverage by its very nature can inflate perceived

November 16, 2015

Two Billion Footprints: Good News Or Not?

The upbeat theme for World Tourism Day – “One billion tourists, one billion opportunities” – does, however, raise questions of carrying capacity and quality of the travel experience. Places are getting crowded, as the late Yogi Berra understood. It’s time to move the emphasis from quantity to quality.

September 27, 2015

Authenticity versus Expectations: The Bushmen of Namibia

Travelers today crave authenticity. It’s the hallmark of a sustainable destination. But when it comes to indigenous tourism, just what is truly authentic? Tamara Olton investigates.

August 31, 2015

America’s Unheralded Gift to Tourism Will Soon Turn 50

In 2016, the poorly known U.S. law that did wonders for heritage tourism will be 50. It’s time to demonstrate the value of the National Historic Preservation Act. The Preservation 50 initiative intends to do something about it.

July 19, 2015

New Tsunami Hits Phuket: Mass Tourism

Facing congestion in Phuket, whether at the airport, on the roads or on beaches has long been a familiar phenomenon. What is different is that the congestion is mostly caused by the onslaught of mass tourism from Russia and China.

May 19, 2015

Tourist to Locals: Go Locavore.

Improve your tourism appeal and lose weight! A Puerto Rico trip inspires a recommendation for all destinations: Grow, serve, and eat more fresh veggies. Boost gastronomic tourism and public health. Here’s how.

April 5, 2015

A First: 440 Destinations Rated by Nat Geo Experts Compiled in One Place

There has been nothing like them, before or since. For seven years, from 2004 to 2010, National Geographic’s landmark Destination Scorecard surveys recorded experts’ opinions on stewardship for hundreds of places around the world. Now, for the first time, the results are amassed here, with easy-to-understand letter grades.

March 19, 2015

Collaborative Blog