Category Archives: SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

France: Citizen vote against nuclear power

. . SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT . .

An article from La Depeche

From March 11 to 18, 2018, the members of the action group France Insoumise have launched several demonstrations against nuclear power.

Following the three themes, defined at the convention led by Jean-Luc Mélanchon in Clermont Ferrand, this group of 22 members have elevated the debate to a national level. “We are a political movement and not a political party. We are the leading opposition force on the Left, “claims Jean Bech, one of the leaders of the action group.

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(Click here for the french version of this article.)

Question related to this article:

Is there a future for nuclear energy?

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The arrival of the former Japanese minister, stationed during the Fukushima accident, precipitated the program. “Our goal is to make the French aware of the danger of nuclear power. There are alternative solutions, and we should seek them ahead of the next deadlines of nuclear power plants. We must act now.”

Locally, Jean Bech and its members will be present on the markets of Tuesday and Saturday with urns for a citizen vote. Without being official, it will allow people to express themselves. A ballot box will receive the ballots whose main indication will be “yes or no to exit from nuclear power.”

A stand will also be built during the festival “printemps des Plantes” on March 18. “There will also be a distribution in mailboxes, and people can also express themselves via the website. An ID will be just requested. We want this vote to be as wide as possible, while keeping a genuine aspect. “All this information will be sent back to the national level, there will be a follow-up of the results. Our actions will continue during the year with different themes to be decided, depending on current events. Among the priorities for 2018 will be the fight against poverty in all its forms and the fight against tax evasion. Website: https://nucléaire.vote

Europe, SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

China Reassigns 60,000 Soldiers to Plant Trees

. . SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT . .

An article by Lorraine Chow for Ecowatch

Earlier this year, the Chinese government announced plans for a major reforestation project—growing 6.66 million hectares of new forests this year, an area roughly the size of Ireland.


The Great Wall of China, Badaling. Hrvoje Sasek / Flickr

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Question for this article:

When you cultivate plants, do you cultivate peace?

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To achieve this goal, China has reassigned more than 60,000 soldiers to plant the trees. According to the Asia Times, a large regiment from the People’s Liberation Army, along with some of the nation’s armed police force, have been withdrawn from their posts near the northern border to work on the task.

The majority of the troops will be dispatched in the heavily polluted industrial province of Hebei, which has pledged to raise total forest coverage to 35 percent by the end of 2020.

China’s State Forestry Administration aims to increase the whole country’s forest coverage rate to 23 percent from 21.7 percent by the end of the decade. Then from 2020 to 2035, China plans to further boost the percentage of forest coverage to 26 percent.

China is the world’s largest emitter and remains heavily dependent on coal, but has been cleaning up its act in recent years due to concerns over the impacts of air pollution and climate change. The country is investing heavily in renewable energy, energy efficiency and electric cars.

East Asia, SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

‘Tide Is Turning’: Cheers Erupt for NYC’s Suit Against Fossil Fuel Giants and for Divestment

. . SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT . .

An article by Andrea Germanos for Common Dreams

Climate advocates hailed what they say is a “watershed” moment on Wednesday following two announcements by New York City: that the city would seek to divest its pension funds from fossil fuels within five years, and that it filed suit against five fossil fuel giants for their role in driving the climate crisis.


New York City on Wedensday announced its plans to divest billions of its pension funds from fossil fuel companies and that it filed a suit against five giants in the industry for billions in damages. (Photo: Rae Breaux/FossilFree.org)

“This is a first-in-the-nation step to protect our future and our planet—for this generation and the next,” said Comptroller Scott M. Stringer.

Stringer announced last month that he would soon bring a proposal to the trustees of the pension funds that included divestment. Following through on that promise, a statement from the city released Wednesday says that he and Mayor Bill de Blasio “will submit a joint resolution to pension fund trustees” to begin the steps needed to purge the funds from the dirty industry, which will first entail an analysis on the financial impacts to be carried out by the City Comptroller’s Bureau of Asset Management.

350.org co-founder Bill McKibben said in a tweet responding to the news that it was “One of the biggest days in 30 years of the climate fight.”

The city’s five pension funds hold $189 billion in assets, and roughly $5 billion of that amount are held in the securities of over 190 fossil fuel companies, the city says.

The new lawsuit names BP, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, Exxon Mobil, and Royal Dutch Shell and seeks billions of dollars in damages for harm already inflicted on the city as a result of the climate crisis as well for preparing for effects yet to come, including “imminent threats to its property, its infrastructure, and the health and safety of its residents.”

New York’s lawsuit follows similar suits filed by seven cities and counties in California.

The city’s statement references the industry’s deliberate misinformation campaign to cover up the effects of fossil fuels.

“We’re bringing the fight against climate change straight to the fossil fuel companies that knew about its effects and intentionally misled the public to protect their profits,” de Blasio said in a statement. “As climate change continues to worsen, it’s up to the fossil fuel companies whose greed put us in this position to shoulder the cost of making New York safer and more resilient.”

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Question for this article:

Divestment: is it an effective tool to promote sustainable development?

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Daniel Zarrilli, the city’s senior director of Climate Policy and Programs and Chief Resilience Officer, echoed that statement, saying, “Today, after a decades-long pattern of deception and denial by fossil fuel companies, New York City is holding them to account. By seeking damages for the investments necessary to protect New Yorkers from the impacts of climate change, and divesting our pension funds from fossil fuel reserves, we are taking the largest action by any city to confront the growing climate crisis and demonstrate the leadership necessary to win this fight against fossil fuels and the damages they’ve caused.”

Among the state lawmakers praising the city’s action was Democratic Sen. Liz Krueger who said, “Divestment sends the clear message that it is no longer acceptable to support companies whose fundamental business model puts our entire society at risk.”

Climate campaigners heaped praise on the city as well.

McKibben said in a statement, “New York City today becomes a capital of the fight against climate change on this planet.”

“With its communities exceptionally vulnerable to a rising sea, the city is showing the spirit for which it’s famous: it’s not pretending that working with the fossil fuel companies will somehow save the day, but instead standing up to them, in the financial markets and in court,” he added.

The announcements also drew praise from Carroll Muffett, president of Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL), who said they marked “a watershed in corporate accountability for climate change and a wake-up call to investors that the risks facing fossil fuel companies are real, material, and rapidly growing.”

The city’s move also follows New York State’s announcement last month that it was putting forth a “a de-carbonization roadmap” that included divesting from fossil fuels.

With NYC becoming the first major U.S. city to call for divestment—a call over 800 institutions have heeded—and a growing number of municipalities filing suit against the industry, climate activists say it’s clear “the global tide is turning.”

According to Betámia Coronel, U.S. reinvestment coordinator at 350.org, “Divesting our city’s pensions from the dirtiest companies is an enormous hard-won first step; holding companies like Exxon accountable for their role in climate deception is next. Today’s announcement is a rallying signal to cities all over the world that the dawn of a fossil free world has arrived.”

“The signal is clear,” McKibben adds in an op-ed. “The oil industry is not the future, it’s the past. And indeed it will be held responsible for what it’s done in the past: namely, push climate denial when it knew the truth.”

“They should light up the Empire State Building in green tonight — for the money the city is going to save, and for the planet it will help protect in the process,” he concludes.

North America, SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

Washington activists launch ‘Climate Countdown’ to push lawmakers for urgent action

. . SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT . .

An article by Brandon Jordan from Waging Nonviolence

As Washington state senators prepared for the first legislative session of 2018 at the capitol building in Olympia yesterday, their traditional welcome ceremony was disrupted by at least a hundred activists from across the state, who had made their way into the balconies. From there, to the dismay of their elected officials, they delivered a loud message for all in attendance: “We have a climate crisis. You need to act now!”


Climate Countdown activists rallied outside the Washington state capitol building in Olympia on Monday. (Twitter / 350 Seattle / Alexandra Blakely)

The demonstration was part of an effort organizers are calling Climate Countdown, a campaign pressuring Democrats to pass and implement legislation that reduces carbon emissions. With a Democratic majority in both legislative chambers, organizers from a handful of organizations, from local 350.org chapters to indigenous groups, believe this is the perfect — and perhaps the only — opportunity to act.

Since 2013, passing any form of climate-related legislation in Washington was difficult at best. Republicans held a majority in the state Senate and used this advantage to block proposals, such as a cap-and-trade system, from Democrats. Gov. Jay Inslee, considered  the “greenest governor in America” by the League of Conservation Voters, often felt frustrated by Republican opposition to his climate plans.

Yet, on Nov. 8, Democrats succeeded in regaining control of the state Senate with a slim 49-48 majority. Alec Connon, an activist with 350 Seattle, said this victory led to activists discussing a potential plan to ensure lawmakers took responsibility without using Republicans as an excuse.

“It’s about time that the rhetoric we’ve seen from climate leaders in Washington state [translate into] actual meaningful policy,” Connon said.

As part of the campaign, residents are putting forward two demands to lawmakers. First, they want officials to follow a climate test, which are guidelines that determine a project’s approval if it harms the climate. This would reject all fossil fuel proposals.

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Question for this article:

Despite the vested interests of companies and governments, Can we make progress toward sustainable development?

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Second, activists want lawmakers to pass a bill that ensures the state switches to 100 percent renewable energy by 2028. All sectors under the government’s jurisdiction would move toward using alternative fuels.

The window to do this is short, as Washington lawmakers will only meet for 60 days this session. As 350 Seattle communications coordinator Emily Johnston explained, every minute is precious. She referred to scientists who warned  world leaders last June that we have only three years to reduce greenhouse gases to a point where the Paris climate agreement target of 1.5 degrees Celsius is still attainable.

“We know what happens beyond that,” she said. “[Climate] acceleration and the disasters we are starting to see become unstoppable.”
Johnston referred the federal government’s refusal to deal with climate change as a major reason for not only Washington, but also other states to focus on the environment.

“If the entire West Coast were to develop laws that were very aggressive on climate then that would have a [massive] impact because the economies of Washington and California are huge,” she said.
Connon used Montgomery County, the largest county in Maryland, as an example of what Washington state could do. Last month, officials there passed a resolution declaring a “climate emergency” and aimed to reduce the county’s greenhouse gas emissions by 80 percent by 2027, and ultimately 100 percent eight years after that.

“The example set by Montgomery County is a commendable example and one we hope Washington state will follow,” Connon said.
Washington does have commitments by law to reduce its greenhouse gases  to 1990 levels by 2020. But Olympic Climate Action member Melanie Greer said Washington will fail to meet that deadline barring a significant policy change.

“I want to see real legislation that matches what scientists say has to be done, as well as demonstrable action — so that the state moves in the right direction,” Greer said.

After the activists in the balconies finished their chant, they were ordered to leave by security guards. Having made their voices heard, they are now planning the next steps of the campaign to ensure officials make climate action a top priority this legislative session.

“The clock is ticking,” Connon said. “We, as a society and as a whole, have to respond to the climate crisis.”

North America, SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

‘World’s First Solar Highway’ Opens in China for Testing

.. SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT ..

An article by Lorraine Chow from Ecowatch

Jinan, the capital city of China’s Shandong province, opened on Thursday a kilometer-long stretch of solar expressway for testing, joining France and the Netherlands that have tapped into the nascent technology.


Frame from video

China’s new solar road consists of an insulating layer on the bottom, photovoltaic panels in the middle, and transparent concrete on top.

The solar panels cover 5,875 square meters and can generate 1 million kilowatt-hours of power in a year, or enough to meet the energy demands of about 800 homes, Qilu Transportation Development Group, the project developer, claimed.

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Question for this article:

Are we making progress in renewable energy?

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If the technology proves effective, the electricity generated by the panels could power everything from street lights to signboards, and even a snow-melting system on the road. Excess energy can get sent to state grid.

“The project will save the space for building solar farms and shorten the transmission distance,” said Xu Chunfu, the group’s chairman.

But this special road—which China has hailed as the “world’s first photovoltaic highway“—is designed to do a lot more than just harness the sun’s rays for electricity and allow cars to get from A to B.

The site also serves as a clean energy lab to test other technologies, including wireless charging for electric vehicles and providing internet connection.

As intriguing as the project sounds, solar roads have been dismissed by critics as too expensive for practical use. China’s road costs about $458 per square meter, which is much more expensive than, say, traditional asphalt.

Still, this project showcases China’s multibillion dollar plow into renewable energy. By 2020, the country is aiming to build 54.5GW of large-scale solar projects.

“With the development of solar power in China, the cost can be further reduced,” Xu said.

East Asia, SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

NASA Study: First Direct Proof of Ozone Hole Recovery Due to Chemicals Ban

. . SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT . .

An article by Samson Reiny, NASA’s Earth Science News Team

For the first time, scientists have shown through direct satellite observations of the ozone hole that levels of ozone-destroying chlorine are declining, resulting in less ozone depletion.

Measurements show that the decline in chlorine, resulting from an international ban on chlorine-containing manmade chemicals called chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), has resulted in about 20 percent less ozone depletion during the Antarctic winter than there was in 2005 — the first year that measurements of chlorine and ozone during the Antarctic winter were made by NASA’s Aura satellite. 


Frame from video by atmospheric scientist Susan Strahan discussing the ozone study

“We see very clearly that chlorine from CFCs is going down in the ozone hole, and that less ozone depletion is occurring because of it,” said lead author Susan Strahan, an atmospheric scientist from NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.

CFCs are long-lived chemical compounds that eventually rise into the stratosphere, where they are broken apart by the Sun’s ultraviolet radiation, releasing chlorine atoms that go on to destroy ozone molecules. Stratospheric ozone protects life on the planet by absorbing potentially harmful ultraviolet radiation that can cause skin cancer and cataracts, suppress immune systems and damage plant life.

Two years after the discovery of the Antarctic ozone hole in 1985, nations of the world signed the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer, which regulated ozone-depleting compounds. Later amendments to the Montreal Protocol completely phased out production of CFCs.

Past studies have used statistical analyses of changes in the ozone hole’s size to argue that ozone depletion is decreasing. This study is the first to use measurements of the chemical composition inside the ozone hole to confirm that not only is ozone depletion decreasing, but that the decrease is caused by the decline in CFCs.

The study was published Jan. 4 in the journal Geophysical Research Letters.

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Question for this article:

If we can connect up the planet through Internet, can’t we agree to preserve the planet?

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The Antarctic ozone hole forms during September in the Southern Hemisphere’s winter as the returning sun’s rays catalyze ozone destruction cycles involving chlorine and bromine that come primarily from CFCs. To determine how ozone and other chemicals have changed year to year, scientists used data from the Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS) aboard the Aura satellite, which has been making measurements continuously around the globe since mid-2004. While many satellite instruments require sunlight to measure atmospheric trace gases, MLS measures microwave emissions and, as a result, can measure trace gases over Antarctica during the key time of year: the dark southern winter, when the stratospheric weather is quiet and temperatures are low and stable.

The change in ozone levels above Antarctica from the beginning to the end of southern winter —  early July to mid-September — was computed daily from MLS measurements every year from 2005 to 2016. “During this period, Antarctic temperatures are always very low, so the rate of ozone destruction depends mostly on how much chlorine there is,” Strahan said. “This is when we want to measure ozone loss.”

They found that ozone loss is decreasing, but they needed to know whether a decrease in CFCs was responsible. When ozone destruction is ongoing, chlorine is found in many molecular forms, most of which are not measured. But after chlorine has destroyed nearly all the available ozone, it reacts instead with methane to form hydrochloric acid, a gas measured by MLS. “By around mid-October, all the chlorine compounds are conveniently converted into one gas, so by measuring hydrochloric acid we have a good measurement of the total chlorine,” Strahan said.
 
Nitrous oxide is a long-lived gas that behaves just like CFCs in much of the stratosphere. The CFCs are declining at the surface but nitrous oxide is not.  If CFCs in the stratosphere are decreasing, then over time, less chlorine should be measured for a given value of nitrous oxide. By comparing MLS measurements of hydrochloric acid and nitrous oxide each year, they determined that the total chlorine levels were declining on average by about 0.8 percent annually.

The 20 percent decrease in ozone depletion during the winter months from 2005 to 2016 as determined from MLS ozone measurements was expected. “This is very close to what our model predicts we should see for this amount of chlorine decline,” Strahan said. “This gives us confidence that the decrease in ozone depletion through mid-September shown by MLS data is due to declining levels of chlorine coming from CFCs. But we’re not yet seeing a clear decrease in the size of the ozone hole because that’s controlled mainly by temperature after mid-September, which varies a lot from year to year.”

Looking forward, the Antarctic ozone hole should continue to recover gradually as CFCs leave the atmosphere, but complete recovery will take decades. “CFCs have lifetimes from 50 to 100 years, so they linger in the atmosphere for a very long time,” said Anne Douglass, a fellow atmospheric scientist at Goddard and the study’s co-author. “As far as the ozone hole being gone, we’re looking at 2060 or 2080. And even then there might still be a small hole.”

To read the study, visit: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/2017GL074830/abstract
  

global, SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

Global Solutions Lab: Eliminating Urban Poverty

. . SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT . .

An announcement from Medard Gabel, Director, Global Solutions Lab

The 15th Annual Global Solutions Lab is June 17–25, 2017, at the United Nations in New York and Chestnut Hill College in Philadelphia, PA. Participants from around the world will be briefed by, interact with, and question UN experts (from UN Habitat, UN Development Program, UN Environmental Program, UNESCO, UNICEF, WHO, FAO and other UN agencies) and then, working collaboratively in small teams, develop designs, programs and strategies that deal with one of the critical problems facing our world’s urban environments. The participants present their work to a group of UN, corporate and foundation leaders at the end of the program. After this, their work is published in a book.

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Question for this article:

Can UN agencies help eradicate poverty in the world?

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This year’s theme is Eliminating Urban Poverty by 2030. The focus will be on the problems facing the cities of the world— where over 55% of the world’s population currently live (and where 70% are expected to live by 2050). How do we turn sinks into sources? How can we transform urban sinks for food, energy, and water into sources for these valuable resources? How do we do this while simultaneously meeting the needs for housing, education, health care, employment and recreation?

The Global Solutions Lab is a structured learning experience that fosters creativity, disruptive innovations, global perspectives and local solutions. It is intense, fast-paced, and for many, transformative.

If you know any students or others who might be interested in this type of event, have them get in touch with us. They can do this at the Lab’s website, or by emailing us at mg@depaceminterris.org. Further information is also in the link to this PDF flyer.

North America, SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

Top five solar energy inventions from Africa

.. SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT ..

An article from Deutsche Welle

In 2017, eco@africa featured a host of eco heroes bringing solar power to their communities through innovative business ideas and inventions. Here are our top five solar solutions from Africa.


Nigeria’s solar clock king, Emmanuel Obayagbona
(Note: Each of the examples in the original article includes a photo and a brief video)

5. Cameroon’s green car wash

The residents of Douala in western Cameroon often face water shortages but they still like to have clean cars. The problem is an average car wash in the country uses up to 50 liters of water per vehicle. Entrepreneur Sylvain Honnang came up with an idea that saves water and doesn’t pollute the air. His solar-powered mobile car wash uses just six liters of water per car. His employees also use non-toxic, organic cleaning products.  “It’s not just a machine but a whole concept and teaching people about saving water,” said Honnang, who founded the company Howash to promote the service. 

4. Nigeria’s solar clock king

Most people in southeast Nigeria are connected to the public electricity grid. But power outages are common, leaving communities in darkness at night. The situation inspired electrical engineer Emmanuel Obayagbona to make a solar-powered clock that also doubles as a lamp and a cell-phone charger when the grid fails. It takes about three hours for Obayagbona to make a clock but he hopes to mass produce his invention soon. 

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Question for this article:

Are we making progress in renewable energy?

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3. Bringing solar knowledge to Cameroon

Bolivie Wakam studied renewable energy at an Italian university and wanted to spread this knowledge in his home country of Cameroon. He started training young people in his community to install and use solar panels. Wakam has also installed solar-powered street lights and a water purification plant run on the sun’s rays. The activist wants to see the majority of Africans — particularly those in rural areas with no access to electricity — kitted out with solar panels. “Renewable energy sources can be used over again and people don’t have to pay for electricity because it’s free,” said Wakam, who founded the NGO Africa Tech Solar to promote green energy across the continent.

2. Solar-powered haircuts

In Lagos, Nigeria, many businesses rely on dirty and noisy generators as a back-up when the state’s power supply cuts out. Segun Adaju, the CEO of Consistent Energy Limited, travels around the city promoting solar panels as an alternative for small and medium-sized enterprises. The solar panels last 20 years and can be paid for in increments. Many of the city’s numerous barbershops have made the switch already.

Mobile solar kiosks bring jobs and power

Some 70 percent of Rwanda’s 11.5 million inhabitants have a cell phone but only 22 percent have regular access to electricity. That’s why mobile solar kiosks, which Rwandans can use to charge their devices for a small fee, are starting to take off.  The kiosks are the brainchild of Henri Nyakarundi of Africa Renewable Energy. So far, 40 have sprung up across the country. They are run by independent vendors who pay a proportion of their earnings to the inventor. For Nyakarundi promoting solar energy is important but so is creating jobs for those who have few opportunities to work. He hopes to spread the micro-franchise to neighboring Uganda in 2018. 

(Thank you to Janet Hudgins, the CPNN reporter for this article.)

Africa, SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

Moonshots are not a question of age: millennial Boyan Slat inventor of The Ocean Cleanup

. . SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT . .

An article by Eleonora Bidiville for The Universal Sea

Are you wondering if superheroes exist? 23 years old Boyan Slat, a Dutch inventor and entrepreneur is the living proof.

Boyan Slat is the founder and the CEO of The Ocean Cleanup, a non-profit organisation of professionals  founded in 2013, who invented a new technology to solve a massive societal issue: getting rid of plastic in the oceans.


If the pilot project is a success, Slat plans to launch a bigger system to tackle the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. (Photo: The Ocean Cleanup)

One would think that there is no other possibility than to manually, on boats, gather and pick up the plastic from the water with nets. A quite inefficient and time-consuming solution, leading to vast amounts of carbon emission. However, Slat seems to have found the answer to the problem.

The advanced operation, which is still in evolution, works as a floating barrier taking advantage of the ocean currents, hence working autonomously. The technology follows the ocean’s movements, just like plastics, and thanks to floaters with a solid screen underneath, concentrates the plastic debris and leads them to a collection system. “The system is then slowed down by a drift anchor suspended at an approximate depth of 600 meters, making the system move slower than the plastic and therefore catching it.”

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Question for this article:

If we can connect up the planet through Internet, can’t we agree to preserve the planet?

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The Ocean Cleanup is planning to build a fleet of these floating barriers and leave them in the oceans. The company has estimated to be able to remove 50% of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch in a time-lapse of 5 years. An impressive number when we consider that there is already a plastic island three times the surface of France in the ocean!

The obvious following question is: What are we supposed to do with all this gathered plastic now? Boyan Slat and his team also thought about that. The accumulated waste is then brought back to the shore to be recycled and eventually sold to B2C companies. In addition, the money gained from this transaction is used to fund the project’s expansion and be able to clean the other four oceans gyres. The project has already been successfully tested several times in the North Sea in 2016 – 2017 and is set to be finally deployed into the Great Pacific Gyres in May 2018.

The Universal Sea – Pure or Plastic?! promotes such revolutionary organisations. Our goal is to reach out to the great public through artists’ abilities  who sensitise individuals on an emotional base and through the contribution of entrepreneurs, who bring the business component as a base for long-term effects. We want to bring into action a community ready to positively change the world.


The Universal Sea counts on your support to make the world improve!  Register and start sharing your projects, events or initiatives. Thanks to our constantly growing community, we want to offer the possibility to people to join your project against plastic dumping and help you to bring it to the next level.

The Universal Sea, your choice, your action!

(Thank you to Janet Hudgins, the CPNN reporter for this article.)

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UNESCO and UNWTO Sign Muscat Declaration on Tourism and Culture: Fostering Sustainable Development

. . SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT . .

An article from UNESCO

Culture, in all of its wondrous expressions, inspires more than 1.2 billion tourists to pack a bag and cross international borders each year. It is an important means to promote inter-cultural dialogue, create employment opportunities, curb rural migration, and nurture a sense of pride among host communities. Yet unmanaged, it can also harm the very heritage cultural tourism relies on.


Photo copyright Ministry of Heritage and Culture of Oman

Recognizing that a sustainable, approach with buy-in from all partners, is crucial to cultural tourism, peacebuilding and heritage protection, on 12 December, the Muscat Declaration on Tourism and Culture: Fostering Sustainable Development was signed by representatives of UNESCO, the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), delegations, private sector, local communities and NGOs.

This concluded the two-day World Conference on Tourism and Culture co-organized by UNESCO and the UNWTO and hosted by the Sultanate of Oman. Through the Declaration, some 30 Ministers and Vice Ministers of Tourism and Culture, and 800 participants from 70 countries, reaffirmed their commitment to strengthen the synergies between tourism and culture, and to advance the contribution of cultural tourism to the 2030 Agenda on Sustainable Development.

“Cultural tourism is growing, in popularity, in importance and in diversity embracing innovation and change. Yet, with growth comes increased responsibility, responsibility to protect our cultural and natural assets, the very foundation of our societies and our civilizations” said UNWTO Secretary-General, Taleb Rifai.

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(Click here for the french version of this article.)

Question related to this article:

How can tourism promote a culture of peace?

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Francesco Bandarin, UNESCO Assistant Director-General for Culture, emphasized that we need to create a positive dynamic between culture and tourism “that promotes sustainability while benefiting local communities. This dynamic must contribute to safe and sustainable cities, decent work, reduced inequalities, the environment, promoting gender equality and peaceful and inclusive societies.”

Ministers from Cambodia, Libya, Somalia, Iraq and Vietnam discussed the role of cultural tourism as a factor of peace and prosperity, and shared views on the capacity of tourism to support the recovery of their countries.

The Declaration calls for cultural tourism policies that not only empower local communities, but also employ new, innovative tourism models that advance sustainable development, host-guest interaction, and cultural exchange. It promotes integrating sustainable cultural tourism and the protection of heritage in national, regional and international security frameworks. The Declaration also references UNESCO’s 1972 Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage and 2005 Convention for the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions in relation to these objectives.

Ahmed Bin Nasser Al Mahrizi, Minister of Tourism of the Sultanate of Oman, highlighted the importance of exchanging experiences and ideas to achieving sustainable tourism development. Participants shared best practices on issues such as community engagement, visitors’ management, and use of resources from tourism in conservation in such diverse locations as the Ngorongoro Conservation Area in Tanzania, the Ras Al Khaimah in the United Arab Emirates or the Palace of Versailles in France. Entrepreneurship, SME’s and the protection of traditional knowledge were viewed as compatible with developing sustainable tourism, with examples from India in the hotel sector and in other regions developing local food initiatives. Other examples included World Bank projects revitalizing cultural heritage for sustainable tourism development, and Seabourn Cruise Line’s partnership with UNESCO to raise awareness of World Heritage with their guests.

Following the first UNWTO/UNESCO World Conference on Tourism and Culture in Cambodia in 2015, this second Conference was part of the official events of the 2017 International Year of Sustainable Tourism, so declared by the United Nations. Istanbul (Turkey) and Kyoto (Japan) will host the 2018 and 2019, editions respectively.

global, SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT, United Nations,