DRAFT TOURISM POLICY jrh060399



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WWF’s mission is to conserve nature and ecological processes, to seek the sustainable use of natural resources, and to promote the reduction of pollution and wasteful consumption whilst recognizing and respecting human needs and livelihoods. Our aim is to slow down, and eventually reverse, the accelerating degradation of our planet’s natural environment; and to help build the future in which people live in harmony with nature.

Tourism is one of the biggest and fastest-growing economic sectors in the global economy and has significant environmental, cultural, social, and economic effects, both positive and negative. Tourism therefore has actual and potential impacts on WWF’s mission. The challenge is to optimize the positive effects whilst minimizing and, wherever possible, eliminating the negative impacts.

WWF’s vision for tourism and its associated infrastructure is that it should:

• be compatible with effective conservation and operate within the area’s natural capacity, for the regeneration and future productivity of natural resources;

• minimize the ecological footprint of tourism;

• give proper consideration to local cultures and local people in host areas, and ensure that these people have an equitable share in the economic benefits of tourism.

Tourism has been noted as the world’s largest and fastest-growing industry. In 1998, it accounted for over 10 per cent of world GNP and directly or indirectly for 200 million jobs worldwide. In the same year GNP grew by 2.4 per cent and 625 million people visited a foreign country, bringing receipts from international tourism to US$445 billion.

Because tourism is essentially dependent on an unspoilt, natural or unpolluted environment, and on environmental services, it follows that tourism has both a responsibility for, and a need to, invest in the maintenance of the natural environment. If undertaken sustainably, tourism can be a positive force for conservation and environmental protection, and can provide unique opportunities for awareness raising and enhancing support for conservation. It can also be developed in more environmentally sustainable ways than can many alternative economic activities.

However, tourism can and often does have destructive effects on biodiversity and pristine environments, and can result in the misuse of natural resources such as freshwater, forests, and coral reefs. For example, in a number of areas tourism development has resulted in serious water shortages affecting local communities and the tourism industry; forests have been depleted through wood collection for fuel; and coral reefs have been damaged by sewage, sedimentation, divers, snorklers, and boats. In order to avoid such impacts, tourism should be planned, managed and undertaken in a way that is environmentally sustainable, socially beneficial, and economically viable.

Tourism can be an important component in the sustainable development of many local communities, provided that the community is actively involved in it, that economic benefits are equitably shared, and that it is part of a diversified local economy and does not undermine local culture and existing local sustainable economic activity. Tourism can also enhance cultural and historical traditions which often contribute to conservation and the sustainable management of natural resources.

It is important that tourists and the tourism industry understand both the negative and positive aspects of tourism so they can contribute to more sustainable approaches. Conservation organizations should use the opportunities tourism provides to raise awareness of the issues, to provide other significant benefits such as income for natural resource management, and to ensure implementation of key measures, such as the protection of fragile areas.

WWF can use its practical experience and technical expertise in conservation, sustainable development and resource use, education and awareness raising, capacity building and advocacy to work with other stakeholders to achieve sustainable tourism.

WWF believes that:

• Tourism must be planned, managed and undertaken in a way that avoids damage to biodiversity, and is environmentally sustainable, economically viable and socially equitable.

Where tourism takes place it should only be undertaken as part of a diversified local economy, within the carrying capacity of the area and in preference to other potentially more damaging forms of development. On occasions tourism itself will be the most damaging activity and should be opposed. Sound land-use planning, including environmental impact assessment (EIA), respect of natural landscapes and protected areas, and avoidance of non-essential consumption, together with sensitive implementation, should help avoid impacts in sensitive areas.

• The tourism industry must recognize and embrace its responsibility for conservation and sound natural resource management by working within principles and guidelines to achieve environmentally sustainable development.

It can do so through ensuring developments are sustainable; supporting conservation policies and activities at the local and national level; helping ensure local resource management is sustainably funded; and financing mechanisms to reduce tourism-related pollution and consumption and to manage tourism-related waste disposal.

• Action must be taken to reduce and, where possible, eliminate negative impacts on natural resources and processes.

These actions include limiting tourism-related pollution so as not to exceed ecological carrying capacity (i.e. the robustness of habitats and their ability to replenish extracted resources), including waste assimilation processes. Tourism-related pollution and exploitation must therefore be carefully controlled and regulated, and the precautionary approach should be considered a fundamental principle in tourism development.

• Tourism should actively contribute to maintaining and restoring biodiversity.

This should be done in particular through a planned approach to managing the biodiversity resources in the areas frequented by visitors, in order to retain their value and protect sensitive areas and species, and by contributing to the establishment and management of protected areas.

• Local communities have the right to maintain and control their cultural heritage.

Tourism must not have a negative effect on local communities’ cultural heritage of historic and natural resources. Their knowledge and experience in sustainable resource management can make a major contribution to sustainable tourism. It is therefore important that they consent to, and participate fully in, the planning, operation and regulation of tourism activities.

• Education, awareness, and capacity building are key to achieving sustainable tourism.

All involved in tourism Β including the industry itself, national and local government, local communities and consumers Β should be made aware of the positive and negative impacts of tourism, encouraged to adopt more sustainable approaches, and to support conservation efforts through their activities.

• The active participation of other players should be encouraged to help address significant issues which are outside WWF’s area of expertise, but which are strongly related to tourism; for instance, the promotion of human rights.

WWF will:

• engage with tourism-related activity where it threatens WWF’s mission or can help deliver solutions.

WWF will use its strengths to build on existing initiatives by others, and initiate other actions where WWF sees a need, working as appropriate with the tourism industry, governments, local communities, multinational organizations, non-governmental organizations, and through its own network. Within the overall tourism context, WWF will work on broader policy issues relating to tourism. These areas include influencing and improving regulatory frameworks and public and private financing; raising awareness and support for WWF’s aims; and promoting the development and use of indicators for monitoring and evaluation of tourism impacts on environmental resources, including biodiversity.

• seek to minimize the negative impacts of tourism and to optimize any benefits to biodiversity and natural resource conservation.

WWF will seek integration of environmental, social and economic benefits wherever possible, and oppose proposals that would degrade biodiversity.

• work to assure the environmental sustainability of tourism through an integrated natural resource management approach to land-use planning at local, national and international level.

WWF will build on existing mechanisms such as Local Agenda 21, EIA, and national sustainable development strategies.

• raise awareness of sustainable development principles and tools.

WWF will promote in particular the precautionary principle; the polluter pays principle; economic instruments; minimum standards; and environmentally sound technologies, especially in sustainable means of travel to reduce fuel consumption and polluting emissions.

• work with the tourism industry, governments and others to support the development of national and regional sustainable tourism policies.

WWF will work to increase awareness among tourists of the environmental impact of tourism, such as excessive consumption of water and energy, and to improve the environmental standards of the industry itself, including promoting clean technologies and adopting responsible marketing.

• seek to influence public and private sector financing and investment in the tourism industry.

WWF will work to ensure that tourism projects have been shown to be environmentally, socially, and economically sustainable through project appraisal, including rigorous environmental impact assessment.

• work with the tourism industry and other stakeholders to promote the development and use of indicators to monitor and evaluate progress towards sustainable tourism.

This will include exploring indicators and the feasibility of independent verification mechanisms.

• support the development of the highest possible standards for sustainable tourism at a national, regional and global level.

WWF is particularly interested to see progressive improvement of environmental standards, which can be independently verified, involve stakeholders in their development and implementation, and are transparent.

• develop and implement tourism-related field projects which promote and illustrate key elements of sustainable tourism.

These projects will demonstrate, test and refine standards; promote dialogue between stakeholders; increase public awareness of the needs for sustainable tourism; establish models of good practice; and inform policy development in WWF and elsewhere.

• support work to define carrying capacity and other key research needs which help to put in place mechanisms to manage tourism within environmental limits of acceptable change.

• help the tourism industry, where appropriate, to develop sustainable use of species by demonstrating good practice.

WWF will help to ensure that ventures, such as whale-watching, promote sustainable use, and will encourage the tourism industry to support more restrictive efforts related to tourism, such as curbing the trade in endangered species and reducing both consumptive and non-consumptive use where this incurs negative impacts.

• contribute to education, awareness raising, and technical capacity development and, where feasible, to the development and distribution of educational and training materials.

• promote the need to respect local cultures and local people.

This implies the need for community consent and participation in the tourism process; encouraging long-term partnerships between local and non-local operators, businesses and suppliers; encouraging capacity building to ensure equitable distribution of economic benefits; and the establishment of locally owned enterprises that benefit conservation and promote the use of local, sustainably produced goods by the tourism industry.

WWF will work only with those in the tourism industry who demonstrate to the highest standards the application and support of the principles and aims outlined above.

Use of the WWF logo

WWF has a well-developed policy on the circumstances and manner in which its trademark Β the panda logo and the initials “WWF” Β may be used by commercial organizations. In relation to tourism this means:

The WWF trademark may not be used as an eco-label or to certify tourism-related destinations, products, services, or enterprises.

Accordingly, whenever the WWF trademark is used in a cooperation between WWF and any commercial organization, including those concerned with tourism, it must be accompanied by a clear statement of the nature and purpose of that cooperation. The development of commercial relationships and use of WWF trademarks will follow WWF’s established procedures, as currently outlined in the “WWF Commercial Procedures Manual”. Subject to the above, the WWF trademark may be used in conjunction with the symbols of partner organizations as appropriate.

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Position Statement

TOURISM

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