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Kochi hosts 2nd Intl Conference on Responsible Tourism

Gayatri Vijaykumar - Kochi

The four-day second International Conference on Responsible Tourism, the first of its kind in India, held at Le Meridien, Kochi between March 21-24 witnessed delegates and speakers from 29 countries giving presentations for initiatives undertaken at the international, regional and local levels.

Speaking on the progress made post the first conference held in Cape Town in 2002, Dr Harold Goodwin, co-chair of the conference on responsible tourism, said, "We have not achieved much progress in the last five years since Cape Town. The challenge is to ensure that all forms of tourism are made responsible. We have to address both the environment and development and work together in multi-stake holder partnerships." Dr H Varma, director (Development Assistance Department), said, "We at WTO feel that it is the duty of the supply side to practice responsible tourism and the duty of the demand side to adhere to these practices." Dr Venu V, secretary for Kerala Tourism, said that responsible tourism practices were crucial given the increase in the number of tourists visiting Kerala. "The efforts of Kerala to involve a participatory, sustainable initiative providing linkages between the local communities and tourism businesses have been strengthened by the insights we have received at the conference."

The four-day conference concluded with the release of a Kerala Declaration on Responsible Tourism, which urged those involved in the movement of Responsible Tourism to work with others and take responsibility for achieving the economic, social and environmental components of responsible and sustainable tourism.