Dinaric Arc Parks Sharing nature, sharing values ….Helping to establish a positive regional identity built on shared values, personal contacts and joint actions… ….Fostering understanding and co-operation between the countries of the Western Balkans… RICHARD PARTINGTON 21 OCTOBER 2013

Purpose of WebEx training session: Learning through discussion and questions Building on information from earlier workshops and study visit Helping staff and coordinators prepare for, develop and write the ECST strategy and five year action plan, specifically: (a) what are the main elements and requirements of Charter verification (b) how to develop the material required for your specific Charter application (c) what other documentation will an independent/EUROPARC Consulting verifier look at and evaluate?

Agenda (i)Introductions (ii) Partnership - an essential requirement (iii) Writing the Tourism Strategy and Action Plan for Charter Part 1: - getting started (telling the story in your own way) - Long or short (Rolls Royce or Hyundai - your choice!) - Structure & Chapters - Context & contents (where have you come from and where are you going? Charter "Journey" and principles) - Gathering data and its analysis - Agreeing and setting objectives/goals for park and business - How will you know when you’ve achieved your goals/monitoring? (iv) What the Verifier will look for/check (supporting information; interview key park staff, partners and stakeholders)

Who we are… The consultancy of the EUROPARC Federation What we do… provide low-cost, high-quality expert consultancy services

The aim of the Charter... ‘to improve sustainable development and management of tourism in protected areas......which takes account of the needs of the environment, local residents, local businesses and visitors’

How to gain Charter status? Accepting the 10 Principles Involving and working with partners Analysing the area and tourism offer Writing a tourism strategy (5 years) Consult local people/stakeholders Allocating resources Developing an Action Plan Completing an Application Planning the Verification visit

FORUM Nature + Landscape Culture Information + Education Local Economy Transport Sport + Leisure Food + Accommodation Marketing (ii) Partnership - an essential requiremen t - working with your permanent stakeholder forum or partnership structure to develop the Strategy & Action Plan

What is working in partnership? To achieve the development of sustainable tourism your protected area must be fully committed to partnership working. You will need working methods based on partnership at every stage, from developing the sustainable tourism programme to its implementation. You will need to: take a global view of tourism in and around your area engage in a process of wide consultation strengthen the relationships between tourism and other economic sectors in the area; and develop clear partnership and cooperation agreements between the park, tourism service providers and local people.

How should the Sustainable Tourism Forum work? It should be a permanent forum or similar partnership structure. It must: document its work (i.e. record minutes of meetings including notes of decisions) and make these publicly available; aim to distribute the benefits of tourism across the area; promote ways of receiving visitors in the best possible way for nature conservation, local residents, visitors and those involved in tourism in the area; engage, and have evidence of participation from, all key stakeholders relevant to developing sustainable tourism in the protected area (e.g. local municipalities, conservation and community organisations and representatives of the tourism industry, including businesses); develop and maintain links with regional and national bodies responsible for tourism, conservation and regional development.

Preparing to write the strategy and action plan for sustainable tourism… Charter part 1 The strategy and action plan for sustainable tourism should be prepared in accordance with Charter principle 2 (see How to Join the Journey - pages 7-8) They should be presented as separate, self-contained documents, not included within wider documents such as protected-area management plans. This is important for increasing the sense of ownership of the final strategy and action plan amongst the protected area’s partners. Tip… “ The protected area must have a written commitment with all the partners and stakeholders showing evidence of a real partnership.

What is the aim of the strategy and action plan? To improve the quality of the tourism product, at the same time as working to fulfil the conservation and sustainable development objectives of the area. This is done by guaranteeing the best possible integration of tourism within the natural, cultural, economic, and social environment. Who does it belong to? The strategy and action plan should have the support of all stakeholders and relate to the protected area as a whole for the next five years. It must be based on careful consultation with the main local stakeholders, working with the permanent sustainable tourism forum, and be approved and understood by these stakeholders.

How do you write the Tourism Strategy and the Action Plan ? - getting started (telling the story in your own way) - long or short (Rolls Royce or Hyundai - your choice!) - working in stages is best - a recommended approach is to: define the main aims of sustainable tourism development; produce a SWOT diagnosis of the area; evaluate the costs and resources required; redefine objectives and strategic choices on the basis of resources available and priorities; define indicators and tools for monitoring & evaluating the strategy; finally create the action plan with reference to the objectives of the strategy and the resources available.

Key content and structure? - where have you come from and where are you going on the sustainable tourism journey following the principles? It should: define the geographical area; assess the areas circumstances – SWOT; calculate current and future visitors; identify key issues; include strategic objectives, an action plan to deliver them and resource allocation and evaluation. Follow the more detailed guidelines set out in the Charter page 7

Which questions should you ask? - agreeing and setting objectives/goals for park and business - make sure your strategy answers the following kinds of questions: What are the heritage protection issues/how can the heritage be enhanced? What are the environmental protection issues? What problems exist with regard to tourism? What part can tourism play in the area’s economic and social development/how can tourism be better organised to increase the profitability and feasibility of tourism businesses/what kind of tourism should be developed to respect and help to improve the local environment and services to the population? How can the area’s tourist facilities be improved? What sort of consumer group should be given priority?

What issues do you need to address? - gathering data and its analysis The strategy needs to address and summarise evidence for each of the following key issues that arise from the Charter principles and are explained in more detail in The Charter Protection and enhancement of natural and cultural heritage Improving the quality of the tourism experience Raising public awareness Development of tourism specific to the area Training Protection and support of the quality of life for local residents Social and economic development Control of tourist numbers

How do you create the action plan? - the action plan is the operational phase of the strategy It must come directly from the evidence presented in the strategy and must address all the issues in the strategy. It is best as a separate document. The action plan should: specify the measures which will be taken to achieve the objectives and address the issues set out in the strategy (the actions must result clearly from the findings of the strategy); cover the five-year period of the strategy; address each of the key issues from the Charter principles; identify the resources (staff and financial budget in relevant currency) allocated over the five years to each of the actions and specify the commitment of the protected area and its partners to each of the key issues; and identify targets, indicators and methods for monitoring and evaluating progress with the actions.

What kind of indicators should you use? - how will you know when you have achieved your goals? Indicators should be based on the Charter principles and be assessed over the five-year period. For example: to measure protection and enhancement of heritage you could record the increase in the number of visitors travelling from home by public transport; to measure improving tourism quality you could measure the increase in the number of visitors in new target consumer groups visiting the area; to measure effective management of tourists you could measure the reduction in user conflict incidents in specified areas.

How will your plan be assessed? - what will the Verifier will look for/check (supporting information; interview key park staff, partners and stakeholders) EUROPARC will assess your strategy and action plan and check that: it addresses the required aspects, follows the process set out for developing the strategy and respects the fundamental principles of sustainable development; the action plan addresses all the sustainable tourism themes covered in the Charter; and you have provided sufficient evidence that you and your partners can realistically achieve the objectives and actions set out with the resources available. Tip… “The actions derived from a SWOT analysis provide the basis for the tourism strategy and the action plan. The key questions in the assessment are the main part of the verification.”

Sustainable Tourism Strategy … - Structure & Chapters - Context & contents (where have you come from and where are you going? Charter "Journey" and principles) Example A 1.Introduction 2.Area Covered by the Plan 3.Operating Environment 4.XXXX national park as a tourism destination 5.Sustainable Tourism objectives 6.Guidelines for businesses 7.Environmental Impact & indicators 8.Co-operation and partnership 9.Monitoring the Plan 10.Appendices e.g. SWOT etc.

Example B 1.Analysis of the Situation and Strategic Objectives 2.Target Markets 3.Organisational model 4.Action Plan (priority projects) Example C 1.Introduction 2.Assessment 3.Strategy 4.Action 5.Implementation & Monitoring 6.Appendices e.g. visitor survey; enterprise survey