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The Cape Town Declaration on Responsible Tourism in Destinations:
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The Cape Town Conference was organised by the
Responsible Tourism
Partnership and Western Cape Tourism
as a side event preceding the World Summit on Sustainable Development in
Johannesburg in 2002. The Cape Town Conference on Responsible Tourism in
Destinations was attended by 280 delegates from 20 countries. The conference
grew out of the South African work on responsible tourism guidelines and
involved delegates field-testing the South African Guidelines on sites in
and around Cape Town.
The Cape Town Declaration on Responsible Tourism in Destinations is the
common platform on which the International Centres base their work.
Responsible Tourism in Destinations:
Shaping sustainable spaces into better places
Relishing the diversity of our world's cultures, habitats and species and
the wealth of our cultural and natural heritage, as the very basis of
tourism, we accept that responsible and sustainable tourism will be achieved
in different ways in different places.
Recognising that dialogue, partnerships and multi-stakeholder processes -
involving government, business and local communities - to make better places
for hosts and guests can only be realised at the local level, and that all
stakeholders have different, albeit interdependent, responsibilities;
tourism can only be managed for sustainability at the destination level.
Recognising that Responsible Tourism takes many forms, that different
destinations and stakeholders will have different priorities, and that local
policies and guidelines will need to be developed through multi-stakeholder
processes to develop responsible tourism in destinations.
Having the following characteristics, Responsible Tourism:
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minimises negative economic, environmental, and social impacts;
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generates greater economic benefits
for local people and enhances the well-being of host communities, improves
working conditions and access to the industry;
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involves local people
in decisions that affect their lives and life chances;
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makes positive
contributions to the conservation of natural and
cultural heritage, to the maintenance of the world's diversity;
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provides more enjoyable experiences for tourists
through more
meaningful connections with local people, and a greater understanding of
local cultural, social and environmental issues;
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provides
access for physically challenged people; and is
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culturally sensitive
engenders respect between tourists and hosts, and builds local pride and
confidence.
Convinced that it is primarily in the destinations, the places that tourists
visit, where tourism enterprises conduct their business and where local
communities and tourists and the tourism industry interact, that the
economic, social and environmental impacts of tourism need to be managed
responsibly, to maximise positive impacts and minimise negative ones.
We undertake to work in concrete ways in destinations to achieve better forms
of tourism and to work with other stakeholders in destinations. We commit to
build the capacity of all stakeholders in order to ensure that they can
secure an effective voice in decision making. We uphold these guiding
principles for Responsible Tourism:
Guiding Principles for Economic Responsibility
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Assess economic impacts before developing tourism and exercise preference
for those forms of development that benefit local communities and minimise
negative impacts on local livelihoods (for example through loss of access
to resources), recognising that tourism may not always be the most
appropriate form of local economic development.
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Maximise local economic benefits by increasing linkages and reducing
leakages, by ensuring that communities are involved in, and benefit from,
tourism. Wherever possible use tourism to assist in poverty reduction by
adopting pro-poor strategies.
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Develop quality products that reflect, complement, and enhance the
destination.
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Market tourism in ways which reflect the natural, cultural and social
integrity of the destination, and which encourage appropriate forms of
tourism.
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Adopt equitable business practises, pay and charge fair prices, and build
partnerships in ways in which risk is minimised and shared, and recruit
and employ staff recognising international labour standards.
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Provide appropriate and sufficient support to small, medium and micro
enterprises to ensure tourism-related enterprises thrive and are
sustainable.
Guiding Principles for Social Responsibility
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Actively involve the local community in planning and decision-making and
provide capacity building to make this a reality.
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Assess social impacts throughout the life cycle of the operation –
including the planning and design phases of projects - in order to
minimise negative impacts and maximise positive ones.
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Endeavour to make tourism an inclusive social experience and to ensure
that there is access for all, in particular vulnerable and disadvantaged
communities and individuals.
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Combat the sexual exploitation of human beings, particularly the
exploitation of children.
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Be sensitive to the host culture, maintaining and encouraging social and
cultural diversity.
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Endeavour to ensure that tourism contributes to improvements in health and
education.
Guiding Principles for Environmental Responsibility
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Assess environmental impacts throughout the life cycle of tourist
establishments and operations – including the planning and design phase -
and ensure that negative impacts are reduced to the minimum and maximising
positive ones.
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Use resources sustainably, and reduce waste and over-consumption. Manage
natural diversity sustainably, and where appropriate restore it; and
consider the volume and type of tourism that the environment can support,
and respect the integrity of vulnerable ecosystems and protected areas.
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Promote education and awareness for sustainable development – for all
stakeholders.
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Raise the capacity of all stakeholders and ensure that best practice is
followed, for this purpose consult with environmental and conservation
experts.
We recognise that this list is not exhaustive and that multi-stakeholder groups
in diverse destinations should adapt these principles to reflect their own
culture and environment.
We commit to making our contribution to move towards a more balanced
relationship between hosts and guests in destinations, and to create better
places for local communities and indigenous peoples; and recognising that
this can only be achieved by government, local communities and business
cooperating on practical initiatives in destinations.
Read the complete text
here
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