Spenceley Tourism And Development cc (STAND)

This website is designed to provide the tourism industry, researchers and consultants with information on sustainable and responsible tourism. You are welcome to download any documents that you find useful, and use the links provided.

Tourism and Protected Areas Specialist Group

The Tourism and Protected Areas Specialist Group is part of the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA). The TAPAS group has six key objectives which are:

1. Provide strategic advice to governments and others on the optimum approaches to sustainable tourism in protected and natural areas.
2. Strengthen the capacity and effectiveness of protected area managers and policy makers and others in relation to sustainable tourism.
3. Enhance the level of tourism contribution to the goals of protected areas and protected area systems.
4. Enhance the capacity of WCPA, including through co-operative ventures with networks and partners and, in particular IUCN members, and recognize their contributions.
5. Develop and disseminate knowledge on tourism and protected areas, including case studies and best practice syntheses.
6. Provide an interactive forum for individuals working on protected areas and tourism, which allows them to network, communicate, collaborate, and develop partnerships.

Benefits of membership include:

• Exchanging dialogue and information with a wide range of colleagues interested in tourism and protected areas
• Sharing research information
• Collaborating on joint publications and Participating in research programs, seminars and conferences
• Membership of an on-line discussion group for the TAPAS group

The group is coordinated by an executive committee comprising:

• Dr Anna Spenceley - Chair
• Dr Glen Hvengaard and Professor Ralf Buckley - Knowledge development and dissemination
• Professor Steve McCool - Capacity building
• Dr Elizabeth Halpenny - Membership
• Professor Robyn Bushell - Linkages and conferences

Links:
TAPAS group - www.iucn.org/about/union/commissions/wcpa/wcpa_what/wcpa_capacity/wcpa_tourismtf/
Membership application - www.surveymonkey.com/s/Q69N3PG

The Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) is a global initiative dedicated to promoting sustainable tourism practices around the world. Momentum around this movement is growing. The GSTC is currently active in all UNWTO regions, including Africa, The Americas, East Asia and the Pacific, South Asia, Europe and Middle East.

Representing a diverse and global membership – including UN agencies, leading travel companies, hotels, country tourism boards and tour operators - the GSTC serves as the international body for promoting the increased knowledge, understanding and adoption of sustainable tourism practices.

The GSTC fosters sustainable tourism through the adoption of universal sustainable tourism principles; compiling, adapting and creating the tools and training to engage in sustainable tourism practices; and increasing the demand for sustainable tourism products and services.

At the heart of this work are the Global Sustainable Tourism Criteria, the minimum requirements that any tourism business should aspire to reach in order to protect and sustain the world’s natural and cultural resources while ensuring tourism meets its potential as a tool for conservation and poverty alleviation.

Links:
Global Sustainable Tourism Council - new.gstcouncil.org
Global Sustainable Tourism Criteria - new.gstcouncil.org/resource-center/gstc-criteria
Participation and membership information - new.gstcouncil.org/participat

All too often conservation efforts are seen to be in conflict with local livelihoods and resource use. As more land and natural resources are incorporated into protected areas ‘responsible tourism’ is often invoked as a way to serve both conservation ends and support local livelihoods and promote economic development. Yet does it actually work in practice?

Employing a series of case studies by practitioners from across southern Africa - one of the testing grounds for the idea that responsible tourism can promote biodiversity conservation and poverty alleviation - this book provides a comprehensive, evidence based examination of the range of issues of what works and what does not.

This is an essential reference and a unique and rich source of cases studies and salient insights for professionals and academics from across conservation, development and tourism. Some reviews of "Responsible Tourism" include:

‘Responsible Tourism presents a wide variety of valuable lessons learned in responsible tourism initiatives in Southern Africa that many tourism practitioners can use in their efforts to make the tourism sector work for the poor and for the environment.’
Dr Harsh Varma, Director, Development Assistance Department, World Tourism Organization (UNWTO)

‘For those interested in how tourism can assist in the economic and social development of societies in need, Responsible Tourism effectively integrates scales and types of knowledge to present an informative, stimulating perspective. It will be on my bookshelf.’
Steve McCool, Professor Emeritus, Wildland Recreation Management, University of Montana

‘Responsible tourism is one of the most significant contemporary issues for tourism scholars and practitioners alike. This useful and clearly written collection of new research demonstrates the innovations in responsible tourism occurring within southern Africa and provides lessons for international research and practice.’
Professor Christian Rogerson, University of Witwatersrand, South Africa

Links :
Earthscan - www.earthscan.co.uk/?tabid=26778
Download Earthscan flyer here (690 KB, pdf file)
Download the contents list here (79 KB, pdf file)

Contact details

Dr Anna Spenceley

Spenceley Tourism and Development cc (STAND)
PO Box 543, Sonpark, Nelspruit, 1206, South Africa
Telephone +27 (0)72 311 5700
Email: annaspenceley@gmail.com
Skype: annaspenceley

Updated September 2011