Our Experience

The European Charter for Sustainable Tourism in Protected Areas

The European Charter for Sustainable Tourism in Protected Areas is a reliable management tool which helps to ensure that tourism development in protected natural areas is managed in a sustainable manner.
This was one of the worldwide and European priorities laid out by the recommendations of Agenda 21, adopted during the Rio World Earth Summit in 1992, and the 6th Community Action Programme for Sustainable Development 2002. It was one of the priorities of the action programme for protected areas “Parks for Life” (1994) by the World Conservation Union.
It commits the signatories to implementing a multi-year local strategy in support of “sustainable tourism”.
Therefore, members undertake to:

• Comply with the strategic approach of sustainable tourism development defined by the Charter,
• Favour working through partnerships,
• Comply with the basic rules of sustainable tourism.

The European Charter makes reference to several types of stakeholder:

• The protected area (territorial project): section 1,
• The tourism company: section 2,
• The travel organiser: section 3,

The development strategy for the protected area and its action programme are submitted to the European Evaluation Committee which judges the quality of the projects with a view to the signature of the contract of commitment.

Applied to territorial projects (Section 1)

• Tourism development strategy for the Livradois-Forez Regional Nature Park
• Setting up of a responsible tourism approach in the Pays des Vallées des Gaves
• Tourism development strategy for the Perche Regional Nature Park

Applied to territorial projects (Section 2)

• Realisation of the Section 2 methodological guide for IPAMAC (Massif Central Inter-Park) project officers from ten Regional Nature Parks and one National Park.
• Study for the setting up of a plan to accompany private service providers in their membership to the Mercantour National Park in Section 2
• Support for the setting up of itinerant tourist products for the Grands Causses Regional Nature Park