What was the objective of the
Urban Ecotourism Conference?
It's time to re-energize the ecotourism movement.
Since the International
Year of Ecotourism in 2002, we have not seen significant
attention to this emerging industry.
When ecotourism works, it engages local residents in conserving
biodiversity. Cities play a tremendous role in terms of educating
travelers before they head out to rural communities and protected
areas. What we also see is a new appreciation of services in
the urban environment.
The Urban
Ecotourism Conference, like previous
events hosted by Planeta.com, allowed a simultaneous dialogue
among various stakeholders around the world. This format allowed
participants to discuss lessons learned -- what to repeat and
what to avoid. The frank discussion is archived in our forum.
What did the conference accomplish?
The conference can be measured by the quality of discussion
and the consensus reached in developing a declaration.
Participants from more than a dozen countries took part in the
online dialogue, and at first many could not agree on a common
definition of urban ecotourism.
Most of the participants were able to express what they wanted
to see as ecotourism activities and services that could appeal
to residents and visitors. Specific examples provided a down-to-earth
review of current work around the globe.
What does the declaration say?
The Urban
Ecotourism Declaration is a collective response to a common
challenge -- making urban spaces more liveable while protecting
biodiversity. It includes numerous recommendations to different
stakeholder groups that can be applied in cities around the
globe.
In what way do you think its discussions and conclusions could
be useful to Mexican cities?
The discussion helped educate a number of tourism officials
around the world that Mexico
-- and Mexico City
in particular -- is taking a leadership role in linking tourism
and recreation and environmental conservation.
A second way that this conference is useful to
Mexico is that it brought attention to number of great case
examples -- London's
green roofs, Bogota's hiking and biking trails and Berlin's
bike taxis (just a name a few) -- which have applications in
Mexico.
What should businesses with an ecological conscience be doing?
Eco-minded businesses need to walk their talk. They need to
demonstrate their commitment to the environment and to communities
where they operate.
Businesses do themselves and their clients a service when they
keep on top of trends and technologies that are eco-friendly.
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