2002 - THE INTERNATIONAL YEAR OF ECOTOURISM AND NZ

Anna Carr from the Universiy of Otago advises...

NZ is doing something. This conference is
for industry operators, managers, commentators and researchers. It is
expected to attract national and international delegates.

Ecotourism 2002 Mountains and Wilderness Conference.
The Department of Tourism at the University of Otago will be hosting an
international conference from 27th to 29th August 2002 on 'Ecotourism,
Wilderness and Mountain Tourism: Issues, Strategies and Regional
Development; as part of the Department's contribution to the International
Years of Ecotourism and Mountains.

The conference will be housed at the
University of Otago, Dunedin. The conference is co-sponsored by the
International Geographical Union Study Group on Tourism, Leisure and Global
Change (which has over 350 members worldwide) and Channelview Publications,
the UK based publishers of Journal of Ecotourism, Journal of Sustainable
Tourism and Current Issues in Tourism. For further information contact
ecotourism2002@business.otago.ac.nz
or view
http://divcom.otago.ac.nz/tourism/news/index.html

Also we have two ecotourism reports available in PDF format on our website -
just navigate from the address below.

Anna Carr
Lecturer/FRST Ecotourism Project
Department of Tourism
University of Otago
P.O. Box 56
DUNEDIN
NEW ZEALAND
Tel ++64-3-479-8057
Fax++64-3-479-9034
Email acarr@business.otago.ac.nz
http://divcom.otago.ac.nz/tourism/staff/carr.html

NEW ZEALAND TOURISM STRATEGY 2010
INTERNATIONAL YEAR OF ECOTOURISM AND AUSTRALIA

The year 2002 has been declared the "International Year of Ecotourism" by the United Nations - but what are New Zealand's plans....?

This is a time for "ecotourism" to be celebrated around the world.
Resolution 53/200 mandates the United Nations Environmental Program and the World Tourism Organization to organize a number of events and activities around the International Year of Ecotourism, including the May 2002 World Ecotourism Summit in Quebec, Canada.

Some groups are critical, citing lack of transparency and information from the United Nations. and question whether we need the international year of ecotourism. They claim the International Year of Ecotourism serves as "an instrument for ecotourism experiments in developing countries, which are likely to cause more harm than good.". (click here for details).

So what are New Zealand's plans to formally mark the UN International Year of Eco-tourism, 2002.? Well the answer so far seems to be hard to find. If you can provide any information (any at all!) on official New Zealand initiatives for the International Year of Ecotourism, please click here. We will publish your response.

NEW ZEALAND TOURISM STRATEGY 2010

The New Zealand Government released the New Zealand Tourism Strategy 2010 on May 17, 2001, with Minister of Tourism Mark Burton calling it a visionary document, which signalled a clear way forward for sustainable tourism development. The 10 year strategy focuses on conserving the environment, minimising duplication of services and reducing barriers to development.

However it is questionable whether the sustainable tourism objective is compatable with other objectives. By 2010 Tourism New Zealand aims to have visitor numbers hitting more than three million a year, but to achieve its goal it wants up to $5-$11 million extra funding over three to four years. Can the New Zealand environment sustain such a relatively large increase in visitors?

Tourism Minister Mark Burton said while pressure is going on some of the better known places there are many regions that "we have not even begun to develop". Last year the country had two million foreign visitors and by 2010 the target is 3.2 million visitors. The amount spent by all tourists is set to grow from $16 billion last year to $27 billion in 2010.

INTERNATIONAL YEAR OF ECOTOURISM AND AUSTRALIA

Our cousins across the Tasman in Australia propose a huge range of initiatives including:

For more information on Australian initiatives for the International Year of Ecotourism - click here