Posted on July, 03 2002

São Paulo, Brazil - Environmentalists, tourism businessmen, and experts from all over the country met in São Paulo on 28–29 June to officially found the Brazilian Sustainable Tourism Council (CBTS is the acronym in Portuguese). The mission of the new organization is to promote sustainable tourism in Brazil by establishing an independent certification system, with social and environmental quality standards which are appropriate to Brazil. The launching of CBTS took place at the Meliá Jardim Europa Hotel in São Paulo, during the third Sustainable Tourism Certification Workshop. The Brazilian Sustainable Tourism Council is the result of a process started in 1999 by a coalition of NGOs, the tourism trade, and experts in the field. WWF-Brazil, together with SOS Mata Atlantica, have led this movement since 2000. Since then two preparatory workshops were organized, as well as public hearings during national trade meetings and tourism seminars. An e-mail discussion group on sustainable tourism is also being coordinated by WWF-Brazil. The discussion and drafting of the sustainability standards for tourism in Brazil are the first steps towards establishing a certification system by CBTS. The chief goal of certification of sustainable tourism is the identification and characterization of tourism's activity components and products of the tourism trade which are environmentally adequate, economically viable, and socially just. After careful evaluation, certifiers will vouch for such qualities by issuing a label. Such certification plays a valuable role in the identification of sustainable tourism activities and encourages greater responsibility and competitiveness in the tourism trade. The seal, a marketing label, will be issued only to business that reach a certain efficiency and performance standard, thus allowing consumers to identify the suppliers of responsible service. Tourism certification generates environmental, economic, and social benefits. From the environmental point of view, it contributes to biodiversity conservation, helps to maintain the environmental quality of tourism attractions, and helps to protect endangered species. It also makes it economically viable for protected areas to be used for tourism, adding value for marketing and generating competitive advantages for the enterprize, besides facilitating the access to new markets, in particular international ones. Socially, it legalizes the tourism trade, ensures good working conditions, and promotes respect for the rights of workers, indigenous people, and local communities. "Tourism is one of the most promising economic sources in the planet. It contributes to the social, economic, and cultural development of a country", says Sérgio Salazar Salvati, WWF-Brazil's Tourism & Environmenta Programme Coordinator. "However, if practiced only with an economic focus, and without planning based on the local biological, physical, economic, and social characteristics, tourism can generate ecological and social unbalance". For further information: Jorge Fecuri Comunications Officer, WWF-Brazil Tel: +5561 364-7485 E-mail: jorge@wwf.org.br