In Barcelona for two days to participate in a la Caixa funded conference about Responsible Tourism and local economic development and pro-poor tourism.

Responsible Tourism is being taken up in Spain. There are now specialist operators focussed on Responsible
Tourism, and some or the larger operators (Sol Meli� & Exceltur) are beginning
to address the CSR agenda. Salvador Palomo estimates that the market is now
some 250,000 tourists and growing. 

Xavier Font pointed out that the problems are political
rather than technical lack – we know what needs to be done, we know a great
deal about how to do it – the problem is to motivate people to do it.

The first Spanish guide to Responsible Tourism has been
published Carlos Tuduri  Turismo Responsable Athena and there are
several websites.

Taking Responsibility for Development Through Tourism  PowrPoint

The May edition of the British Airways magazine High Life has an interview with Willie Walsh their CEO proudly reporting that in the 1990's the airline decided to increase fuel efficiency per km flown by 30%. BA is reporting that it has improved efficiency, and therefore reduced carbon emissions per km flown, by 28% between 1990 and 2006.

It has set a new target of a further 5% reduction between 2005 and 2025 a net increase in fuel efficiency of a measly 2 or 3% – the overlapping dates mean that part of the achievement of 30% by 2010 will count toward its much more modest target  for 2025. Willie Walsh repeats BA's objective of “neutralising our climate change impact over time” – the very long term obviously.

Lucy McCombes, n�e Hamilton,
has just been appointed as a researcher by PLB consulting. Simon Woodward a
Director of PLB is one of our associates teaching on Cultural Heritage for us
each year. Lucy will join another alumnus Helen Wilkinson who graduated in 2001.
For details of the company see www.plbltd.com

Over the last two weeks I have taken some leave and been to visit two of our ICRT alumni working in the UK. It has been good to catch up with them and with the latest developments in wildlife tourism and sustainable tourism in national parks; and to talk with them about the issues and potential solutions.

Caroline Warburton is working for Wild Scotland a specialist tour operators' trade association which is raising standards and helping to make the businesses sustainable. Caroline took me to see dancing dolphins in the Moray Firth not more than 10 metres off-shore.

Richard Drysdale has recently been appointed  Sustainable Tourism Officer for Dartmoor National Park and we spent a couple of days looking at the issues and talking about what multi-stakeholder strategies might make Dartmoor a better place to live in as well as to visit. While I was there the proposed post office closures were announced – one of the key challenges is to use tourism to maintain sustainable communities, on Dartmoor tourism plays a key role in the local economy .

It was a real pleasure to spend time with Caroline and Richard and to see what they are achieving in the field – I thank them for it.

Today�s Observer carries a story written by Catherine Mack who
recently graduated from the MSc in Responsible Tourism Management about the work
which Cheryl Mvula, one of the students on the ICRT precursor Tourism and Conservation
courses at UKC, has done in the Maasai Mara. It is good to see two of our
alumni working together �to make better places for people to live in, and
better places for people to visit.�

�In January 2006, Dr Cheryl Mvula, a consultant in responsible tourism, came
to the Maasai Mara on holiday from the UK, and decided to take a cultural tour
of Enkereri, a Maasai village. She paid $20 and watched as the money was given
to the village elders. After her tour, she was shown the women's craft work.
The women appeared really desperate to sell to the tourists, even though her
tour group had just given the village $100.

Cheryl made some enquiries and a contact who worked for a Kenyan tour operator
told her: 'While you are off looking at curios, your driver guide takes the
money back from the elders. They leave them $4 out of the $100. That's how it's
been working here for 30 years.� Read the rest of the story at www.guardian.co.uk/travel/2008/may/11/kenya.africa

The Observer is running some very good features promoting Responsible
Tourism – see for example its piece on 20 Best Agrotourismos in Mallorca. Read it online at

http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/2008/may/11/balearicislands.spain