Australia and Greece were among 29 countries represented at the Global Sustainable Tourism Conference (GSTC) 2017 in Aysén, Chile this week discussing the growth of sustainable tourism.
This year’s event titled ‘Towards More Sustainable Destinations’ considered the application of the GSTC Destination Criteria and brought together 250 delegates and viewers who joined in via live broadcast.
Speakers came from various parts of Chile, including Mapuche and Yagan, as well as representatives of Central America, Africa, Australia, and Europe.
Participants included both domestic and international tourism stakeholders involved in the development and promotion of sustainable tourism from the public sector, hotels, tour operators, academia, development agencies, NGOs, and consultants amongst others.
A range of topics were covered relating to tourism and climate change such as the marketing of sustainable tourism, sustainable visitor management, indigenous tourism, and sustainable food in the tourism industry.
“The conference gave us the opportunity to connect with people who understand and work in sustainable tourism, not as an alternative way to do things, but rather as an opportunity and need for the future of world tourism,” said Felipe Muñoz Narbona, director of Ecomapu Valparaíso, a sustainable tour operator certified by Chile’s Sello S (a GSTC-Recognised Standard).
With sustainability as a focus, sponsorship from Green Evolution SA ensured the event’s carbon footprint was offset as a ‘carbon neutral event’ through the use of the CO2 Neutral Seal range, while organisers also carried out other sustainable-event practices to reduce overall waste.
