Paradise Found

Was anyone else as shocked as I was to find out that ailing airline Alitalia hadn’t registered a profit since 1999? Yes – 1999! Almost ten years ago! Or how about the speed at which the 3rd largest UK tour operator XL Leisure group went under? Both Alitalia and XL have cited high fuel prices and a sagging economy as the root of their downfall.

There is no doubt that this double whammy has generally taken the tourism industry by surprise – but there are some that have been more prepared than others by taking a more sustainable strategic approach. And as a result, they are in a better position to weather the storm.

Paradise Found, our latest report, is a celebration of this. Focusing on destinations, it demonstrates the imperative for sustainable tourism – for people, planet and profits. The report gives Forum’s take on what a sustainable resort looks like with guidelines on what issues to take into account when developing or refurbishing a destination. The report also includes inspiring case studies showing that it is possible for resorts to become more profitable while benefitting local communities and the environment.

Take Six Senses’ Soneva Fushi resort in the Maldives for example. It is one of a growing number of destinations which are already benefitting from incorporating carbon management into their business. Since starting to manage its energy use in 2006 it has halved its carbon footprint. What’s more it plans to go further by becoming carbon neutral by 2010, offsetting emissions from guest flights, resort travel and operations by building wind turbines in India which are expected to generate more than US$1 million over 20 years. Any surplus will be invested into environmental and social initiatives. This is a leading, sustainable approach to carbon management.

So would Alitalia have survived with a more efficient fleet that reduced its fuel bills? Would XL still be operating if it had managed to come up with innovative, sustainable holiday options for its customers? Who can say? What we do know is that Paradise Found shows that sustainable tourism can be achieved. And another of our projects, Tourism 2023, a multi stakeholder initiative currently underway and due to be released late Spring next year, will help the UK outbound industry and some of its key destinations understand more about their future and be able to plan for it.

In increasingly unpredictable times for the industry, and of course the planet, sustainable tourism has to be the way of the future.

Download Paradise Found here