1. Moving towards sustainable tourism Paddy Mathews Environment and Planning Unit

2. Environment Unit Established 2006 Published EAP 2007- 2009 www.failteireland.ie Key Objectives -Promote good environmental practice -Protect the tourism asset

3. Sustainable tourism Happy tourists + Happy locals + A clean, high quality environment + Profitable tourism businesses = Sustainable tourism

4. Four environmental challenges for sustainable tourism 1.Reduce environmental impacts of tourism 2.Protect the key environmental assets 3.Adapt to external environmental changes 4.Innovate through the adoption of environmental strategies in business practice

5. Four environmental challenges of sustainable tourism 1.Reduce environmental impacts of tourism –to reduce the cost of doing business 2.Protect the key environmental assets 3.Adapt to external environmental changes 4.Innovate through the adoption of environmental strategies in business practice

7. Four environmental challenges of sustainable tourism 1.Reduce environmental impacts of tourism –to reduce the cost of doing business 2.Protect the key environmental assets –they are the raw material of the industry 3.Adapt to external environmental changes 4.Innovate through the adoption of environmental strategies in business practice

8. Water Landscape Biodiversity Built heritage

9. Four environmental challenges of sustainable tourism 1.Reduce environmental impacts of tourism –to reduce the cost of doing business 2.Protect the key environmental assets –they are the raw material of the industry 3.Adapt to external environmental changes –to ensure an easier adjustment to climate change 4.Innovate through the adoption of environmental strategies in business practice

12. Four environmental challenges of sustainable tourism 1.Reduce environmental impacts of tourism –to reduce the costs of doing business 2.Protect the key environmental assets –they are the raw material of the industry 3.Adapt to external environmental changes –to ensure an easier adjustment to climate change 4.Innovate through the adoption of environmental strategies in business practice –embrace new opportunities, e.g. ecotourism

13. Opportunities for ecotourism Ecotourism – The Greenbox: Ireland’s first ecotourism destination Need to guard against ‘greenwashing’ Ecotourism accreditation

14. Sustainable Tourism Indicators Failte Ireland Environmental Protection Agency Dublin Institute of Technology – Dr. Kevin Griffin 3-year project to test the DIT ACHIEV model of sustainable tourism indicators €300,000 investment in indicators Killarney, Co. Kerry & Carlingford, Co. Louth

15. Clonakilty Energy Audit Clonakilty – Failte Ireland funded energy audit First energy audit of a tourist destination in Ireland Mark Holland and Peter Madden, Sustainable Clonakilty

16. THANK YOU paddy.mathews@failteireland.ie