Our project TourCert Andina, aimed at making the touristic value chain in Andean destinations sustainable, convinced the EcoTrophea jury.
How does tourism need to be designed in principle in order to make tourists happy and at the same time improve the lives of people in the destinations? And how can tourism contribute to the global Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations? Our project TourCert Andina deals with these questions.
The project promotes sustainable tourism products by building a network with local partners to qualify businesses in CSR management and product development. The network TourCert Andina enables the certification of businesses and the marketing of sustainable tourism products.
The project ”TourCert Andina“ was launched in 2015 with the support of ADA (Austrian Development Agency). Starting in the Andean countries Peru and Ecuador, we consistently work on making enterprises in the destinations more sustainable.
from left to right: Prof. Dr. Harald Zeiss, Chairman of the DRV Sustainability Committee, Marco Giraldo, Managing Director of TourCert and Martin Balaš, TourCert Consultant and Destination Specialist
The Objective – Creating Learning Structures
The key to sustainable tourism is “empowerment“! By training local people and sensitising them for social and ecological issues, we ensure that structures can continue to develop on their own and take permanent roots. The project thus contributes to the global Sustainable Development Goals and corporate social responsibility in tourism!
Together with partner organisations in Latin America we build a network, adapt the tried and tested TourCert label to the needs of the Andean countries, and promote them.
Local consultants visit the companies and train their CSR managers in the application of tools and methodologies (use of software, compilation of sustainability reports, communication with stakeholders, etc.). The local auditors are experienced experts; they evaluate the companies in line with the strict TourCert guidelines and report to the regional certification council.
The certified companies in the Andean countries are supported in the process of further developing their products and their product quality. They are available as reliable partners for European tour operators. In the TourCert community, dialogue and joint marketing are promoted – at workshops and events, on the online learning platform, via social media and newsletters, press trips, or at trade fairs.
Tags
2016, ADA, Andean countries, awarded, EcoTrophea, Ecuador, Network, Peru, TourCert Andina
