It isn’t uncommon for tourism policies and plans to be made without community input, but tourism does not exist in a vacuum. Communities feel the consequences of being excluded: from overtourism and climate and biodiversity threats, to cultural heritage loss and widening social inequities. In order to build a more sustainable and responsible future for tourism – for destination communities, businesses, and tourists alike – we need a more holistic approach, one that puts communities at the center of tourism planning and decision-making. Without doing so we risk losing what makes so many destinations unique and worth visiting.
Our goal for this event is to have a research-based discussion with practical examples of how destination stewardship is being implemented around the world. We want you to walk away with a better understanding of destination stewardship as a tourism model and the value of using community-centered destination marketing, and to identify your role in your destination and use that role to advance new, or support existing, destination stewardship plans in your community.