Queensland’s Government to promote sustainable tourism destinations

According to the Tourism Minister, Honourable Stirling Hinchliffe, the Eco-certified Tourism Destination Program is set to offer grants to both councils and key local tourism companies with the goal of obtaining Ecotourism Australia or EarthCheck certification.

 

The Minister explained:

“This program offers grant funding up to $150,000 for activities directly associated with achieving certification.

“The Eco-certified Tourism Destination Program underpins our government’s vision to become a leader in sustainable tourism and will leverage the growth potential in nature-based tourism experiences to support good jobs and deliver better services.

“Most importantly, it supports actions to achieve a Climate Positive Olympics in 2032 and the target of net zero emissions by 2050.

“The program is part of the Palaszczuk Government’s response to the independent Tourism Industry Reference Panel’s final Action Plan titled Towards 2032: Reshaping Queensland’s Visitor Economy to welcome the world.

“In the Towards 2032 plan, the Panel recommended investing now in sustainability measures to avoid the need for expensive intervention and regulation later. It also meets a growing customer demand for low-impact travel which is fast becoming an expectation.”

Minister Hinchliffe also declared that tourism destinations in Australia are experiencing higher demand for sustainable tourism, while officials in the continent are fully committed to achieve travel sustainability goals in the near future.

“Port Douglas-Daintree was Australia’s first location to obtain ECO Destination certification and a number of other Queensland destinations including the Scenic Rim, Bundaberg, Cassowary Coast and Townsville are working through the process”, the Minister stated.

Ecotourism Australia Chief Executive Officer Elissa Keenan added about the Queensland Government’s initiative:

“We know visitors, now more than ever, are looking for sustainable tourism experiences.

“We know when regions commit to an ECO Destination Certification process, they are committing to ongoing sustainable practices and continuously improving their actions, the provision of high-quality nature-based experiences in the region, and are focused on improving the environmental, social, cultural and financial outcomes for their local community.”

Stewart Moore, EarthCheck’s CEO also stated:

“Certification helps bring all your resources, efforts and data together to measure and track your destination's health, promote continuous improvement and deliver better outcomes for your residents and visitors.”

Available grants will vary between $50 000 and $150 000. Funding will not require financial co-participation from applicants. Applications can be submitted starting 18 August. The program will close on October 7, 2022. Grant winners will be officially announced by the end of the year.

 

source: statements.qld.gov.au