The Hindu : Kerala News : Kochi to host international meet on responsible tourism

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Thursday, Mar 13, 2008
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Kerala

Kerala

Kochi to host international meet on responsible tourism

John L. Paul

Union Minister for Tourism Ambika Soni to open meet on March 21

KOCHI: The city is getting ready to host the most high-profile tourism summit to be held in the State, the Second International Conference on Responsible Tourism in Destinations, scheduled to be held at Le Meridien International Convention Centre here from March 21 to 24.

The conference, a joint effort of Kerala Tourism and the International Centre for Responsible Tourism (India), will be inaugurated by Union Minister for Tourism and Culture Ambika Soni.

As many as 300 delegates from India and over 100 from abroad are expected to participate. India Tourism is the premier partner of the conference and has sponsored 108 delegates from rural-tourism project sites where the credo is sustainable and eco-friendly tourism.

T. Damu, member of the National Tourism Advisory Council and vice-chairman of the organising committee, said that Kerala had much to show to the outside world on how responsible tourism was being practised in many destinations of the State.

“We also have much to learn from the others and the summit will be an education ground for us,” he said.

Private players

Tourism Secretaries and Directors from the Indian States of Jammu and Kashmir, Goa, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh will be among the delegates, apart from prominent private players.

Kerala, as a practitioner of responsible-tourism practices even from the early stages of tourism development in the State, was highlighted at the first summit on the topic held at Cape Town, South Africa, in 2002. This resulted in the summit being held in Kerala.

Eco-friendly practices

The executive assistant manager of Le Meridien, Ashwini Nair, said that eco-friendly practices would be adopted at the convention centre. Recyclable and reusable materials would be used and plastic will be avoided, he added.

Sources in Kerala Tourism said that the display boards and other items would be made using bamboo and eco-friendly materials. Bags given to delegates would be made of jute and bamboo products. They would be given CDs to minimise paper usage, the sources said.

Site visits have been arranged for the delegates, keeping in mind many responsible-tourism practices being adopted at Thattekad, Kumbalanghi, Fort Kochi, Mattancherry, Kumarakom, Alappuzha and Mararikulam in the State. The delegates will have a chance to interact with members of local communities and exchange views.

Among those who will present papers at the summit are Harold Goodwin from the International Centre for Responsible Tourism; Renton de Alwis, Chairman of the Sri Lanka Tourism Board; Kaliba Senghore, Director of Gambian Tourism Authority; and Reza Azmi, Founder and Director of Wild Asia, Malaysia. Apart from these regions, delegates are expected from South Africa, Bhutan and Nepal and countries in the Asia-Pacific.

A review of responsible tourism since the Cape Town summit, corporate social responsibility practices, low-impact camps and eco-lodges are among the topics to be discussed. On the final day, the Kerala Declaration on Responsible Tourism will be drafted.

The importance of responsible tourism based on conservation-preservation is the key to Kerala’s tourism policies and this is made evident in the guidelines set by Kerala Tourism.

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