Green Economy in a Blue World-Full Report

in a Blue World

Blue Flag up!

Norway

Slovenia

Denmark

Sweden

Netherlands

UK

Iceland

Canada

Russian Federation

Lithuania Latvia

Ireland

Croatia Poland Germany

France

Ukraine

Spain

Montenegro

Turkey

North Paci c Ocean

North Atlantic Ocean

Portugal

Italy

Jordan

Greece

Cyprus

Tunisia

Bahamas

Morocco

UAE

Romania

Dominican Republic

US Virgin Islands

Jamaica

Puerto Rico

Indian Ocean

French Polinesia

Brazil

South Atlantic Ocean

South Paci c Ocean

South Africa

New Zealand

1 000 1 500 2 000 2 500 3 000 3 500 Number of Blue Flags

Countries with Blue Flags

Number of blue Flag certi cations by country Total beaches and marinas

The Blue Flag is a certi‹cation assigned towards sustainable development of beaches and marinas through strict criteria dealing with Water Quality, Environmental Education and Information, Environmental Management, and Safety and Other Services.

0 10 20 30 40 50

600 300 130 15

0 500 1987 1990

1995

2000

2005

2010

Source: Blue Flag International Coordination.

3.4 Destination planning and development

The increased use of industry-oriented decision support tools through capacity building efforts would help speed the adoption of green practices (Hotel Energy Solutions, TourBench and SUTOUR). The promotion and widespread use of internationally recognized standards for sustainable tourism is necessary to monitor tourism operations and management. The Global Sustainable Tourism Criteria (GSTC) provides a promising current platform to begin the process of grounding and unifying an understanding of the practical aspects of sustainable tourism, and prioritising private sector investment. Promoting the adoption and implementation of voluntary codes of conduct and initiatives will bring added value in this context. Economies of scale in the tourism sector could be achieved by means of clustering. A high environmental quality is a key input by those companies that pursue competitive advantages based on sound environmental management. In the case of tourism, the conservation of the natural capital of a country has a chainable effect and complementary influence on many firms.

Advancing greening goals through tourism planning and destination development requires the ability and institutional capacity to integrate multiplepolicyareas; consider avarietyof natural, human and cultural assets over an extended time frame; and put in place the necessary rules and institutional capacity. A destination cannot successfully implement a green tourism strategy without laws, and regulation and private sector incentives, or the appropriate governance structure to enforce them. Higher-level government, community and private tourism authorities must establish mechanisms for coordinating action with regard to zoning, protected areas, environmental rules and regulations, coastal zone modification, labour rules, agricultural and fisheries standards, and health requirements. Create a regulatory framework conducive to green tourism investment. Organizations engaged in developing tourism methods and tools encompassing economic, Enabling conditions for greener destination planning

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