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EXPLORING ECOTOURISM

Awards Index

PLANETA FORUM

The index profiles more than a dozen awards given for exemplary tourism services, journalism and environmental conservation. Work in progress!

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YOUR TURN

How well do government websites spotlight ecotourism? We ask readers to nominate the best for the Ecotourism Spotlight Award.

FEATURES

g Reflections on Awards

PLANETA.COM AWARDS

g Nominations for Book of the Year Award
g Colibri
g Ecotourism Spotlight Award

TOURISM

b ASTA
b Geotourism Challenge - Ashoka
b World Savers Awards - Conde Nast Traveler
b ECOCLUB Ecolodge
b Responsible Travel
b Skal
b Skal Ecotourism Award (PDF)
b TO DO!
b Tourism Cares for Tomorrow
b Tourism for Tomorrow
b Tourism Industry Awards (New Zealand)
b TravelMole
b Victorian Tourism Awards (Australia)
b World Legacy
b World Travel Awards

ENVIRONMENT

b Alcan
b Goldman Prize
b Rolex Awards for Enterprise

JOURNALISM

b Biodiversity Reporting
b Society of Environmental Journalists
b IUCN/Reuters

Most awards for journalists are given to individual reporters. This has its value and we encourage those organizing such awards to announce the winners on our forum.

Thinking outloud ... we would like to see an award for a publication that journalists view as exemplary in terms of its treatment of writers, its environmental or tourism coverage and prompt payment.

ETHICS

b Dewey Award - SXSW
b Right Livelihood

WORLD

b Australian of the Year

WEB

g Lente de Plata
b Bloggies
b Webbies

SPOTLIGHT ON TOURISM FOR TOMORROW

According to Costas Christ in a post on TravelMole: The point of the Tourism For Tomorrow Awards, completely revised and redesigned by WTTC since the days when British Airways first sponsored them, is to promote and encourage the world's leading examples in sustainable tourism best practices. The Awards have a detailed criteria, involve a team of 17 expert judges from all around the world and are the only global awards to my knowledge that carry out an on site verification inspection of all finalists to make sure that what is said is being done in regards to sustainable tourism practices is really happening on the ground. This is not an Award program to recognize individuals as leaders in sustainable tourism, as other responsible tourism awards already do this. Rather, the Tourism for Tomorrow Awards specifically focus on raising the bar of sustainable tourism practices within the private sector. The Awards recognize and promote best practices within the travel and tourism industry that contribute to the protection of cultural and natural heritage (local, regional and at the destination stewardship level), make meaningful and tangible contributions to the wellbeing of local peoples, and engage in environmentally sensitive operations, among other criteria. While many tourism award programs have recognized successful small scale sustainable tourism projects, which the Tourism or Tomorrow Awards also do, few have focused on demonstrating that sustainable tourism is a viable practice within the larger mainstream tourism industry. This is something that is important to the Tourism for Tomorrow Awards, as demonstrated by an Award category for "Global Tourism Business." The Tourism for Tomorrow Awards bring the message of sustainable tourism into the mainstream tourism industry, where it needs to be heard and built upon if we are to truly have an impact in helping to transform tourism into a real catalyst for protecting the cultural and natural heritage of our planet.

SPOTLIGHT ON ECOCLUB

For its fifth anniversary, ECOCLUB launched its own Ecolodge Award. ECOCLUB Members were asked to choose by email vote from project proposals submitted by Ecolodges around the world.

Presenting the award at a live on-line event, ECOCLUB Founder, Antonis B. Petropoulos, noted that the award "aims to verify the implementation of meaningful small-scale projects, by existing, successful, genuine Ecolodges, selected in a democratic fashion. ECOCLUB believes that genuine Ecotourism should be self-sustained, and supported from within, from its roots, rather than from governmental organisations and charities that arbitrarily splash out millions to the wrong hands, without even following up, and in so doing encourage corruption."

OTHER

b World Challenge
b Lulu Blooker Prize
b Telly- Tubbies - Maine Web Report
b Ecotourism company makes the Green List - Melissa DeVaughn/ADN


EVALUATING WEBSITES

As you review these sites, consider the following questions:

Who makes the decision to offer the award?
Who are the judges?
What is the application process?
If the award goes to a destination or operator, is there a site visit?
When are finalists notified? When are those not chosen notified?
Does the award program provide updated information about past winners?
Does the award offer a cash incentive?
Does the award create an incentive for others to improve their practices?


PLANETA FORUM

g Awards
GUIDELINES

FLICKR

g Awards
ONLINE FLICKR

WIKI

g 2008 Ecotourism Spotlight Wiki
g Awards
ONLINE WIKI


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