Holland naturally launched on water

See video interview with Fred Witte: www.travelmole.tv/watch_vdo.php

New long-term strategy to save the Dutch landscape announced at World Travel Market

At the World Travel Market (WTM) 2010, the Netherlands Board of Tourism & Conventions (NBTC) will be launching the theme year for 2012: Holland, Naturally. This theme year is the start of a long-term strategy to save the Dutch landscape from disappearing over the years and preserving it for the future.

Holland is home to many beautiful national parks and natural landscapes. They are often overlooked by visitors but are typical of a country made by water, where windmills, dikes and historical little towns come together in a green environment.

To make sure that these unique places are kept for the future the Netherlands Board of Tourism & Conventions, together with other national stakeholders, want to show visitors the uniqueness and diversity of the Dutch nature.

Through tourism they also want to guarantee its survival for future generations by raising awareness and creating a financial flow to the parks and regions.

2012 has been chosen as the launch of this long-term strategy. Two major events in this year, Floriade Horticultural Expo and Dutch Delta Design, will be used to structurally and sustainably, showcase and promote the Dutch nature and the relationship of the Dutch with water.

Floriade is a World Horticultural Expo staged once every ten years in Holland. From April until October 2012, the sixth edition of Floriade will be organised in Venlo in central-eastern Holland and will be open daily to the public.

Visitors to Floriade 2012 will have the opportunity to enjoy the most exquisite and exceptional flowers, plants, trees, fruit and vegetables of the world exhibited over 40 hectares, 7,000m2 of which are indoor flower and plant shows.  Each day will also feature a cultural programme of music, dance, literature, theatre and visual art from all over the world. 

Floriade also wants send out a signal about sustainability in society and will create an ideal image of what can be achieved by thinking and acting with sustainability in mind.

Once Floriade 2012 has come to an end, a legacy will be left behind on the site in the form of Venlo GreenPark: an innovative and sustainable business park in lush green surroundings.

Dutch Delta Design aims to position Holland as the leading expert on everything water and water management. With over a quarter of Holland below sea level and its lowest point being 6.7 metres it is no wonder the Dutch have had a love-hate affair with water for centuries. They have often battled to keep the country from flooding, but at the same time the Dutch have used water to their advantage. Therefore water is a very important aspect of Holland’s nature and cultural-historic identity. Water is a key element in more than half of Holland’s national parks and has shaped the majority of the Dutch natural landscapes.

Having turned water to their advantage, the Dutch have developed unbeatable experience and groundbreaking techniques in the water management field.

Holland’s water experts have always been at the forefront of major worldwide projects and developments such as the newly build Palm Island in Dubai and the building of new coastal flood defences in New Orleans.

As chair of the Dutch Water Advisory Committee and Chair of the UN Secretary-General’s Advisory Board on Water and Sanitation, Holland’s Crown Prince Willem-Alexander is a key contributor to solving water-related problems all over the world.

Water-related events in Holland will include

• A variety of tours showcasing the major Dutch water works
• An exhibition highlighting the relationship between Holland and water with big Dutch museums including the Rijksmuseum, Kröller-Müller Museum and the Boijmans van Beuningen  contributing key pieces, some which have never been shown
• A recreation of one of the battles on the Dutch Water Line during the 80 year war of independence against Spain

Look out for a flood of watery experiences.

Valere Tjolle

Get free sustainable tourism reports from Vision on Sustainable Tourism HERE

Valere Tjolle is editor of the Sustainable Tourism Report Suite: EXTRA SPECIAL OFFER at: www.travelmole.com/stories/1144671.php