News
News
News & Updates
From the Pacific Ocean to canyon national parks, from the hills of San Francisco to the bustle of Los Angeles, from happy San Diego to glitzy Hollywood, when you think California, you think of vacations and adventures. In the world of tourism, California is one of the greatest and most renowned global destinations on Earth.
"We're extremely thrilled to welcome Visit California as a new destination alliance to ICTP [International Council of Tourism Partners]," said Juergen Thomas Steinmetz, Chairman of ICTP, "This is an important commitment for the Golden State...
International Galapagos Tour Operators Association Assists Nonprofit in Cargo Inspection / Quarantine Work To Secure Healthy Biodiversity on Archipelago
The International Galapagos Tour Operators Association (IGTOA) is providing funds to a leading nonprofit organization which assists quarantine protocols and inspections of cargo at ports of departure for the endangered archipelago.
This work is conducted primarily at Ecuador's marine port city of Guayaquil. Introducing diseases and non-native plants, animals and insects is one of the greatest threats to the islands...
Sabre Holdings, a global technology company for the travel industry, has announced the launch of its Sabre Eco-Certified Hotel Program, an industry first program that provides clear and easy access to sustainable travel offerings throughout Sabre's portfolio. The program addresses travelers’ growing desire for environmentally responsible accommodations and includes more than 4,700 hotels certified by globally-recognized certification programs.
The Sabre Eco-Certified Hotel Program builds upon Travelocity's Green Hotel Directory, launched in 2009, and extends the...
ESTC12 Call for Speakers
TIES would like to invite our members and industry partners to explore the opportunity to present at the upcoming Ecotourism and Sustainable Tourism Conference (ESTC) in Monterey, California, USA, from September 17-19, 2012. Bringing together 450+ business leaders, industry professionals and community stakeholders, the ESTC 2012 will feature dynamic sessions, public forums and social functions that offer eye-opening insights into the latest on sustainable business strategies and unparalleled networking and knowledge-sharing experiences.
Please review...
PhoCusWright@ITB Berlin (7 March 2012) features a program meticulously designed by PhoCusWright's expert analysts to help executives capitalize on key trends impacting the travel, tourism and hospitality marketplace.
This year's event includes interviews with the CEOs of two of Europe's leading online travel agencies, Booking.com and the recently formed ODIGEO. In addition, PhoCusWright analysts will share insights on key European consumer trends and deliver findings from a recent landmark study of the European vacation rental landscape. Dynamic roundtable...
The global travel and tourism industry could do more for responsible and sustainable tourism, particularly in the area of communications, says a new survey by SustainIT.
The survey found that more than 7 out of 10 industry professionals - including hoteliers, airlines, resorts and tourist attractions - believed the industry could do more to reduce poverty and support sustainable local economic development in destination communities.
It also found that only 18 percent of companies questioned had sustainable supply chains and procurement policies in place.
...
GSTC Criteria
The Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) has recognized ten organizations for their public commitment to using GSTC Criteria to set up specific standards. The standards adopted by the ten organizations are consistent with GSTC Criteria, the first and only global framework for defining sustainable travel benchmarks in a sustainable travel standards structure.
GSTC-Recognized Certification Programs
The following ten organizations have achieved the GSTC-Recognized status for their certification programs:
Austrian Ecolabel for Tourism (Bundesministerium für...
Cal Poly Recreation, Parks, & Tourism Administration (RPTA) 6th Annual Career Development Fair
February 24, 2012 10:00am - 1:00pm
Chumash Auditorium, Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo
The RPTA curriculum includes courses in leadership, marketing, public relations, financial planning, and management. Additionally, students elect to pursue one of our concentrations, with specialized courses in Tourism Planning and Management, Special Event Management, Sport Management, Community Services Management, and Outdoor, Adventure, and Resource Recreation. Dedicated to the development of...
What: A free webinar on Experiential Travel - "Differentiating Your Destination While Spreading The Benefits to Communities"
Who: This webinar is designed exclusively for destination development, marketing and communications professionals.
When: Tuesday, January 10, 2012 9:00 AM - 10:00 AM PST
Hosts: Judy Karwacki (Small Planet Travel) and Dr. Nancy Arsenault (The Tourism Café)
Organized By: Sustainable Travel International
Webinar Description
Set yourself apart from the competition by making the shift from delivering great tourism services to creating...
GreenWizard, a Web-based solution designed to simplify building material selection and management, announced a technology partnership with U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), creators of the LEED green building program and LEED Online. This partnership enables users of GreenWizard and their LEED Assessment tools to easily sync up data and information with LEED Online, the software platform that manages the LEED green building certification process. Using the LEED Automation API, GreenWizard is the first product management solution to integrate with LEED Online, and this integration is the...
By Robert Blasiak for United Nations University (UNU)
At first, the story of Costa Rica's forests seems like a tragedy. In the 1940s, over 75 per cent of the country was covered in indigenous woodland, mostly tropical rainforest. In the subsequent decades, however, rampant and unchecked logging ensued as the nation's valuable forest resources were transformed into cash profits. By 1983 only 26 per cent of the country retained forest cover, and the deforestation rate had risen to 50,000 hectares per year.
At this point, something amazing started to happen. By...
Signalling the beginning of the international tourism calendar for 2012, UNWTO will hold a number of activities at the International Tourism Trade Fair, FITUR, addressing key issues facing the sector in times of uncertainty (Madrid, Spain, 18-22 January, 2012).
Tourism Leadership Forum
17 January, 09.15 – 18.30 (Rooms N104-N105) - Organized by Exceltur and UNWTO on the eve of FITUR, the Forum "Tourism Driving Growth and Employment: Policies to Stimulate Competitiveness" will bring together leading tourism experts to debate policies adopted by countries in which tourism...
By Mary Kuhner
Celebrating 35 years of research and education at the edge of the Arctic, the Churchill Northern Studies Centre (CNSC) recently cut the tape on its state-of-the-art 27,000 square-foot facility. In keeping with its mission to understand and sustain the North and to live sustainably on the fragile tundra, the new building - with arching wooden interior ribs - has been aptly dubbed "the upside down ark" by locals. On track to obtain Manitoba's northernmost LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold certification, the CNSC reduces both...
A series of case studies, presented at the first China Responsible Tourism Forum (CRTF) in Beijing on December 16, confirmed that responsible tourism is firmly on the agenda among small- and medium-sized enterprises in China.
The sold-out forum, organized by PATA in cooperation with the Organizing Committee of the China International Heritage Towns Exposition, was moderated by CCTV Business News anchor, Deidre Morris Wang. Coinciding with the launch of the new PATA China Board, the PATA China Beijing Chapter, and first PATA Student Chapter in China at Beijing International...
Women Win Recognition for Innovative Businesses
From a company that transforms groundnut shells into fuel briquettes in Gambia, to an enterprise that has developed solar ovens in Burkina Faso, to an initiative that trains and employs street youth to collect waste materials in Ghana, which they then transform into handmade designer products, to a business in Kenya where women produce aloe-based skin care products, these are just some the 35 winners of the 2011 SEED Awards, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) announced today. And this year, in addition to the general SEED Awards...
