Destinations and environmental organizations join hands to promote the sustainable development of outdoor tourism

Sustainability and tourism can be combined in many ways, and tourism destinations and environmental protection organizations can minimize the impact of tourists on the environment in outdoor activities, maintain the original appearance of nature, and achieve sustainable tourism development through publicity, education and marketing strategies.

Andrew Leary, director of sustainable tourism and partnerships at Leave no trace, an environmental group that focuses on the intersection between outdoor activities and tourism, says there are many ways sustainability and the tourism market can be integrated. He noted that all people should enjoy the health and mental benefits that outdoor space has to offer, which is especially important for destinations that use nature as a tourist attraction. As long as we can strengthen the ability of natural attractions to receive tourists, while allowing tourists to minimize the impact on the environment when carrying out activities in the natural environment, maintain the original appearance of nature, do not leave any traces or damage, and minimize the impact of tourists on nature, tourism can become sustainable.

What Leave No Trace provides through advocacy and training is a real-time environmental solution that any resident or visitor can immediately put into practice. For example, pick up garbage at random; Dispose of your pet's stool properly when taking it outdoors; Make good use of public toilets, etc. When people think about something as big as climate change, it seems that the power of the individual is always small. But as long as you act along the lines of leaving no trace, any small step you can take at any time can have a positive impact on the environment. In addition, individual actions can also take the lead under the unconscious observation of other tourists, thus contributing to environmental action.

Some destinations, he said, will enforce rules to reduce the amount of outdoor pollution caused by tourists. However, through advocacy and education, environmental organizations can also raise the personal moral awareness of visitors and let people understand their proper practices in outdoor activities, and encourage more and more people to participate in them. Leave No Trace's current approach is to partner with the destination tourism board, integrate the marketing strategy and content of the local tourism board, and guide visitors to make appropriate environmental measures during their visit with the support of local tourism operators.

For the international market, its strategy is to let the target audience understand the nature and proposition of "Leave no trace" through brand packaging, and link it with the relevant environmental protection measures in the tourist place, so as to encourage tourists to maintain environmental awareness in the tourist destination. On the other hand, relevant research and data are localized through branches in Ireland, Japan, New Zealand and Canada to make relevant concepts easier to understand and accept by foreign visitors. In July of this year, Leave No Trace and the U.S. Commerce Department launched an international campaign, including through embassies and consulates in China, inviting tourists to visit, but also to participate in environmental action, together to maintain the sustainable development of outdoor tourism.