Update from Division – Issue 47

Mālō e lelei from the Pacific Tourism Organisation (SPTO) Division of Sustainable Tourism!

July is the beginning of the second half of the year, and projects are either at their startup, its peak or somewhere in between. In July, the SPTO launched the Digital Champions Training for its member countries, where American Samoa, French Polynesia, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Timor Leste and Vanuatu were the first recipients. This training offers significant insights into digital marketing tools that can support industry and National Tourism Organisations in connecting to markets and stakeholders about their journeys.  Through such trainings they are also equipped with the skills to share their stories on the benefits and challenges they face in sustainable tourism. More on this can be accessed here.

In this Pacific Sustainable Tourism Newsbeat Issue, the country of focus is the Kingdom of Tonga.

Tonga has a land mass of approximately 748.5 square km. These Polynesian islands are known for whale watching, strong cultural ethos, diverse terrestrials and bird species.

In this Issue, you will learn more about Tonga’s target to plant a million trees by the end of 2023 as a part of its sustainable tourism programme, and as a means to tackle environmental challenges.

Also in store for you are the updates from the launching of the Tonga Mark a quality assessment programme for accommodation facilities, services, business practices, and sustainable initiatives.

Check out the Paquette Tree House that uses local materials and promotes a unique experience that allow visitors the opportunity to connect with nature.

The Resource of the Month – is the UNWTO Toolkit of Indicators for Projects that have been compiled to support reporting on the Sustainable Development Goals at project level.

We congratulate Papua New Guinea for being the latest signatory to the Pacific Sustainable Tourism Commitment.

Lastly, look out for the upcoming events and announcements in the Newsbeat, principally the upcoming SPTO Pacific Sustainable Tourism Youth Forum 2023.

The Division of Sustainable Tourism has been supporting efforts of SPTO to deliver value for you through the following projects:

• Trialed the Sandwatch Tool with the support of the Sandwatch Foundation and UNESCO
• Advanced preparations for the 2023 Pacific Sustainable Tourism Leadership Summit
• Commenced work with TRC Tourism team Ms. Penny Spoelder and Mr. Simione Sevudredre on the Pacific Cultural and Heritage Tourism Guidelines and the Sustainable Tourism Assessment for Pacific World Heritage Sites in collaboration with New Zealand Maori Tourism and UNESCO
• Welcomed the assistance of the SPTO Volunteers from New Zealand as part of the Volunteer Services Abroad – Nga mihi Aotearoa!
• Presented its priorities at the UN – SPTO Roundtable in Suva
• Supported the launch of the SPTO Gender Audit in collaboration with the Executive Team and the Private Sector Development Initiative
• Continued planning on the proposed Japan Geoparks Study Tour for the 4 pilot sites in the Pacific
• Advanced consultations with SPREP on the Environmental Auditing Guidelines, Marine Tourism Guidelines and Pacific Ocean Litter Project

In the next Newsbeat Issue, we take you to the Micronesian beauty – The Republic of the  Marshall Islands.

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Let us continue to collectively work together as a Pacific region to achieve sustainable tourism by 2030.

Please feel free to email sustainable@spto.org for any queries.