Minutes of the Sustainable Tourism Working Group Meeting
9 November, 2003, Krakow, Poland

Participants

Minute-taker

Anna Iványi, CEEweb

Review of the Work Programme

The communication among group members should be improved.

Selected tasks for direct action:

Strategy for next 2 years, in a priority/time order:

1. Create ways and means (web, discussion groups, electronic and printed publications) among the WG NGOs as well as among the stakeholders for spreading the information regarding sustainable tourism in CEE

2. Use suitable resources, e.g. EU PHARE/LIFE programs for implementing pilot projects
3. Compile a reasonable set of information on sustainable tourism
4. Identify good practices and compile them for further use
5. Organize training/education courses for the Working Group in order to achieve a common level of understanding of sustainable tourism
6. Develop a comprehensive document for training and education through compiling existing experiences and provide it through e.g. online training programs
7. Promote the use of widely accepted tools for sustainable planning and management, such as the Ecosystem Approach, Natura 2000 and the Emerald Network
8. Identify and create ways and means for implementing the concept of sustainable tourism in CEE through the selection of different cases in different countries
9. Achieve public-private partnership for supporting sustainable tourism projects

Objective 1

It is ensured that all stakeholders understand and are aware of sustainable tourism according to the definition of CSD

Explanation of „periodical update of compiled information”: after the compilation of a reasonable set of information, this should be updated, with the contribution of each member organization

Relations to other ongoing projects in the field, already running (e.g. www.mojweb.sk/educatour, www.jantarovacesta.sk)

Objective 2

Good practices and lessons learnt, with special focus on those from CEE countries, are made widely known.

Identifying good examples:

1st step: developing a set of criteria/indicators to make examples measurable and comparable; collect good and bad examples from each country

For the next meeting a draft criteria set will be developed, and a consensus should be reached among the group members. Then information on projects running in each of the countries should be collected, and examples should be evaluated based on the agreed criteria set, which is specific to CEE countries.

Objective 3

The attitude and behavior of relevant stakeholders towards sustainable tourism, with regard to e.g. undertaking, planning, management and development is changed, through training and education: training

Use tourism as a tool to raise awareness with regards to biodiversity. Field guides should be educated; first legal frameworks could be compared. Interpreting nature can be used to promote good practices of tourism services. A project can be built upon the training and exchange of experience of guides from different countries, so that they can gain new skills and have their capacity built. CEE experiences should be used and taken as a basis for training and education of guides. Later other tourism facilities, self-guided tours etc. can be targeted for awareness-raising activities.

Piotr Dabrowski promised to write down some ideas in this matter (that is to develop kind of project concept) that will be circulated among group members.

The training of guides could be combined with the compilation of good practices – first the indicators should be developed (based on EISD results).

Objective 4

Policy-makers are supported in using sustainable tourism principles through adequate mechanisms and tools

It was agreed to be realized in the middle term.

Proposal: harmonization with Natura 2000 WG – as a part of the management plan of a Natura 2000 site, sustainable tourism could be included as one way of sustainable use of biodiversity (It has to be checked with the Natura 2000 group!)

Objective 5

Decision bodies (e.g. governments, industry, NGOs) at all levels are influenced to respect the principles of sustainable tourism in policy-making

Assessment of legal frameworks:

All members should do it individually

The CEEweb assessment reports on the implementation of biodiversity-related conventions and treaties can be taken as a basis – this could be used by all member organizations as a starting point

Objective 6

Common pilot projects addressing the components and proving the feasibility of sustainable tourism are developed and implemented

After reaching a common level of understanding on the content of ST, a hot spot, where biodiversity is in decline, partly due to tourism, can be selected as a site for a model project in each CEE country; these model projects could make use of the compiled best practices, as well as the developed criteria – the criteria would allow to compare the projects with model projects implemented in other regions.

The example and experiences of Gömörszölos as a model sustainable village could be distributed in the region through the Carpathian Ecoregion Initiative. Also other existing model projects should be identified, and new model projects should be launched.

The Work Program was adopted by the WG.

Election of Chair

The Working Group unanimously elected Gábor Törocsik as the Chair.

Review of the submitted project proposals

International Visegrad Fund (rejected by VISEGRAD and to be applied next year again)

PHARE Capacity Building

Defra Environment for Europe Fund

The objective of the proposals is to provide NGOs with the same knowledge first, to make the basis for a “train the trainers” program.

It is important to find budget for making projects. All members should seek for funding possibilities.

Tzvetan Spassov informed the Working Group, that a training and education center will be established in Sofia, providing accommodation for the training programs of NGOs, if the topic is recognized – further steps need to be taken to make use of this opportunity.

Discussion on the promotion material

Map in the background of list of MOs; addresses are not correct

No tasks should be included in the WP, only the objectives

The definition of ST should be included

Other photos

Expectations from the WG

• Partnership
• All MOs should participate at the next meeting
• Common level of knowledge
• Discussions, information on indicators, to serve as a starting point for future activities
• Transfer of knowledge
• Complete the task “Compile a reasonable set of information”, create a database on the compiled and the missing information, including information from other relevant institutions; setting up a clearing house mechanism
• Capacity building
• Implementation of practical projects