Welcome to the second edition of GSTA Pathways! This edition features GSTA news, project updates, featured partner George Washington University, and a “lesson learned” on private sector partnerships.

GSTA Overview
The Global Sustainable Tourism Alliance (GSTA) is a single award, five-year, Leader with Associates (LWA) cooperative agreement funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

Since May of 2007, 15 organizations have come together to create this alliance and advance the practice of sustainable tourism development in countries around the world. The GSTA is assisting USAID missions to design and implement innovative, integrated, and market-based tourism approaches that foster sustainable futures for individuals, communities, and societies.

Dogon Country Guides

Throughout the design phase in Mali, training and collaboration between guides in the Dogon region was a recurring issue. Unofficial guides had a reputation for harassing tourists and many guides had a poor knowledge of the region. There were also many different guide associations and individual guides that did not work together or collaborate. The Whole-System-in-the-Room workshop (WSR), which was the culmination of the design phase in December 2007, brought many of these individuals and associations together for the first time to openly discuss their issues and needs.

Within months of the completion of the WSR, the guide associations have taken it upon themselves to form an overarching association, initially in Bandiagara (the gateway to Dogon country) and now spreading to incorporate all of the associations in the region. They have petitioned the government for training and updates to their guide certifications, the Mayor of Bandiagara has provided them with a building through which they can coordinate their activities and promote their services, and they are establishing a system of guide rotation, to ensure fair practices and improve the way tourists and tour operators access guides.  OMATHO (the Mali tourism office) has also agreed to conduct first-aid training for guides in April 2008, the first step in many for local action stimulated by the collaborative process that the GSTA project is facilitating.

 OVER 200 TOURISM INNOVATORS COMPETE IN THE GEOTOURISM CHALLENGE!
Sustainable tourism community encouraged to comment on applicants

The GSTA is a proud sponsor of The Geotourism Challenge—an online competition created in partnership by Ashoka’s Changemakers and the National Geographic Society.  This challenge is identifying and showcasing innovators in tourism development, management, and marketing to raise awareness about how tourism can help sustain, enhance, and preserve local culture and the environment. 

Online entries for the competition were accepted through Monday, April 21, 2008, and judges are now set to begin reviewing the over 200 innovative entries from 65 different countries.  To qualify, entries had to demonstrate an innovation that furthers geotourism, defined as “tourism that sustains or enhances the geographical character of a place; its environment, culture, aesthetics, heritage and the well-being of its residents.” 

From April 21 – May 28, the broader sustainable tourism community is invited to visit the competition website to debate, endorse and provide additional information on the entrants.  On May 28th, a distinguished panel of judges will announce the twelve finalists.  The online community will then vote for three winners, whom will each receive a cash prize of $5,000 and the opportunity to present their geotourism innovation at a Change Summit in Washington, DC this fall!

The GSTA is working to establish the Sustainable Investment and Financing for Tourism (SIFT) network in partnership with UNEP, UN Foundation, the World Bank Group, GEF, and the French Ministry of Ecology and Sustainable Development.  This network is designed to help private investors, multi-lateral and bilateral donors, and financing institutions strategically address sustainability aspects of tourism investments.

Today, investments in the tourism sector represent almost 10% of total investment value worldwide—a figure that can reach as high as 50% in areas such as the Caribbean.  While there is a growing focus on tourism as a generator of foreign direct investment in developing countries, investors and developers often struggle with how to integrate sustainability into tourism investment decision-making.   

The SIFT network will help mainstream sustainability into tourism development investments and financing by: 

The International Institute of Tourism Studies at The George Washington University is a world class educational institution that has been involved with tourism development and education for over 40 years.  Situated within the School of Business, GW’s Tourism Programs include several professional development programs including tourism, events, hospitality and sports management. Each is targeted at building human capacity in a relatively short time frame. Additionally, GW offers a Master of Tourism Administration Degree either in Washington, DC or on-line. The on-line degree was ranked in the top 25 on-line business degrees in the US.  GW is known for its experience in international tourism development at the national, regional, and local levels, including tourism destination management, event management, hospitality management, conservation, parks and protected areas, and other areas.

GW has served as Chair of the World Tourism Organization Education Council, a council of the world’s leading tourism educational institutions. GW is now serving on the Board of Directors for the new UNWTO Center of Excellence on Destinations, which is sponsored by Tourism Montreal, National Geographic Society, Canadian government agencies and selected government tourism authorities.

For more information visit http://www.gwutourism.org. 

Partnerships provide an opportunity to do development better.  Through emails, tailored communications, and outreach at various conferences, the GSTA has established a variety of partnerships with international tour operators that have been critical to strengthening the tourism value chain.  These partners bring a level of energy and innovation to the table—and have the ability to link their customers directly to the communities and regions the GST A is working to support.