01/08/09, 00:58:09 UTC

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Scots tourism chiefs seek to lead way on sustainability

scotsman.com

SCOTLAND'S first national sustainable tourism conference will be held next month in Edinburgh in a bid to become Europe's number-one sustainable tourism destination by 2015.

The first event of its kind to be held nationally, the conference is expected to be attended by more than 100 tourism industry professionals keen to explore the business and environmen-tal benefits of non-damaging tourism.

Sustainable tourism practices are being adopted across the industry with more and more businesses catering for a growing number of tourists who crave experiences in the wildlife, green and ecotourism sectors.

Hosted by the writer and commentator Muriel Gray, the conference will be held on 2 October in the Radisson Hotel in Edinburgh.

The line-up of speakers includes Auden Schendler, leading authority in the US on sustainability in commercial tourism, Justin Francis from the world's largest tour operator of eco- holidays, responsibletravel.com, Sarah Rooney of the Rezidor Hotel Group and Peter Grant of globaltrees.co.uk.

Paul McCafferty, tourism manager at Scottish Enterprise, said: "Tourists and businesses alike are increasingly recognising the need to protect some of Scotland's most valuable assets and this event will not only help underline the importance of protecting those assets but will also help enhance Scotland's reputation as one of Europe's most sustainable tourism destinations.

"There are significant business benefits to be achieved from adopting sustainable practices and we hope that by bringing together some of the world's leading industry experts to share knowledge and experience from their field we will help encourage greater uptake of environmentally friendly tourism practices as well as more innovation in the market."

The national tourism strategy, Tourism Framework for Change, launched in 2006, set the ambition for Scotland to be Europe's number-one sustainable tourism destination by 2015.

The strategy defined "sustainable tourism" as "an industry which attempts to make a low impact on the environment and local culture, while helping to generate income, employment and the conservation of local ecosystems. It is responsible tourism, which is both ecologically and culturally sensitive".

 Printable Version  | published Sep 25, 2007