Tourism for Tomorrow Awards one step closer

The WTTC Tourism for Tomorrow Awards have started the next phase in its judging,

The WTTC Tourism for Tomorrow Awards have started the next phase in its judging, making us even closer to determining the 2012 winners!

The on-site evaluations are now underway, with finalists being closely evaluated by  on-site evaluators.

This is also an opportunity for them to display the real projects and achievements being made by their business, organisation or destination. The on-site evaluators are esteemed sustainability experts from all of over the globe with strong experience and understanding of sustainable tourism practices.

Each of the finalists are very strong, projects deserving of the title of Winner. But sadly, there can be only one per category.  The judges have their work cut out for them.

The 2012 winners will be announced on 17 April at this year’s WTTC Global Summit in Tokyo from 16-19 April 2012, following the evaluation of the Winners Selection Committee.

Winner of the Grand Prize of the 7th annual Ecotourism Award (JES) is: Shin-etsu http://www.s-trail.net/english/index.html

The Shin-etsu Trail Club is commended for the continuous progress that it has made for three years after winning the Special Prize and the Semi-Grand Prize of the 2nd and 4th Ecotourism Award, respectively.

The Club has engaged in a variety of activities including establishment of voluntary rules for environmental protection, placement of signboards which not only provide historical and cultural information on local areas but also contribute to the user’s safety, and provision of training programs for registered ecotour guides.

The Club has also set a guide-to-participant ratio for the purpose of quality control and has conducted continuous monitoring of the entire trail system that it serves. Today, 200 guided tours are conducted annually, and the number of participants has reached 2,300 a year.

In order to ensure the proper operation of its activities, the Club examines seasonal differences in trail use by utilizing infrared devices installed for counting hikers and also sets up the Review Committee on the Use and Conservation of the Shin-etsu Trails which consists of specialists in environmental conservation and local residents.

In addition, based on its trail-based activities, the Club actively promotes protection and responsible use of local resources as well as revitalization of local communities as seen in, for example, the establishment of a collaborative system in which trail maintenance work is entrusted to other groups in neighboring areas.

As more long-distance trails are being developed in various parts of Japan, all these achievements have earned the Club high marks as model cases of environmental conservation, local revitalization, and collaborative management.

Valere Tjolle
Valere is editor of the Sustainable Tourism Report Suite 2012 Special Offers HERE