Sustainability in tourism destinations requires not only the commitment of government and nonprofit organizations, but also the work of the private sector to maintain places in ways such that they can be enjoyed for years to come. DMOs need to encourage that. Continue reading
The pandemic exposed the dangers of ‘tourism monocultures’ – dependence on one product only – versus a more holistic approach to tourism fare. Gayathri Hegde has been researching the differing tourism experiences of Dandeli and Joida, neighboring towns in Karnataka, … Continue reading
Dubrovnik, Croatia, a UNESCO World Heritage city, is known as the ‘Pearl of the Adriatic Sea’, its historic city center surrounded by original medieval stone walls – and until recently, thronged with cruise ship passengers. In 2017, that began to change. … Continue reading
How can destinations plan better for a post-Covid recovery? What have we learned about tourism during the ongoing crisis? The Autumn edition of the GSTC/DSC-sponsored Destination Stewardship Report addresses both those questions with examples and practical guidance: Continue reading
How should undiscovered coastal destinations handle sustainable tourism? Learn tips from Jonathan Tourtellot’s interview with Urdaibai, a Basque magazine. Continue reading
Salli Felton, CEO of The Travel Foundation in the U.K., shows how mass tourism can get out of hand. There’s a solution, she says: Measure success in terms of impacts, not arrivals. The tools for doing so already exist. But does the will to use them? Continue reading
A development bank’s well-intentioned report maps out a “critical path” for growing Guyana tourism, but—as is often the case with such plans—fails to lay out the critical stewardship practices needed to protect what tourists would come to experience, as well as a way of life that locals may wish to retain. Continue reading
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. Continue reading
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. Continue reading
A squabble over gift-shop tourist dollars on Santa Cruz island, Galápagos, is now threatening the renowned, if often troubled, Charles Darwin Research Station and its conservation work. Could better destination stewardship have avoided this? Continue reading