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Through experiences in other destinations in Galicia as well as in Extremadura, Benidorm or Lanzarote, the professionals of the sector became aware of the weight of sustainability as an essential transversal factor for a sector of the future

The conference “Principles of sustainability for a new tourism” was held in A Illa de Arousa promoted by the Cluster Tourism of Galicia in collaboration with the Deputación de Pontevedra

With the objective of strengthening the lines of work of the tourist sector directed to the promotion of the sustainability like transversal axis in the development of the Galician tourist sector and to know tools and experiences of success in the implantation of practices of sustainable tourism, the Illa de Arousa welcomed this morning the formative day of free character “Principles of sustainability for a new Tourism”, organized by the Cluster of Tourism of Galicia in collaboration with the Deputation of Pontevedra. The experience of Paradors or lighthouses as hotel uses, the conservation of natural resources, environmental awareness or the development of actions included in the Agenda 2030 on sustainability were some of the aspects addressed at the conference, where participants could learn about success stories in destinations such as Extremadura, Lanzarote or Benidorm.

The director of Tourism of Galicia, Nava Castro and the president of the Deputation of Pontevedra, Carmela Silva, accompanied by the president of the Clúster Tursimo de Galicia, Cesáreo Pardal and the mayor of A Illa de Arousa, Carlos Iglesias, were in charge of opening the conferences, in which a hundred of professionals and students of the Galician tourist sector participated.

Sustainability, a transversal axis
“We are committed to the development of tourism products in line with the principles of sustainability, born of the conviction that the tourism resources we are lucky enough to enjoy in Galicia are unique, and we have a duty to preserve them for future generations”, stressed the President of the CTG, Cesáreo Pardal, in his speech, who placed special emphasis on making this principle of sustainability the cross-cutting theme of all the actions to promote, develop and implement quality, modern and differentiated tourism products. A principle that was also highlighted by the Director of Tourism of Galicia, Nava Castro: “sustainability is one of the pillars of the Tourism Strategy dd Galicia 2020, aimed at developing low-impact tourism products that allow us to conserve our resources”.

On the other hand, the president of the Deputation of Pontevedra, Carmela Silva, also emphasized that “we defend a sustainable model, not overcrowded and linked to the high economic capacity to favor our development. Sustainability is linked to human intelligence, and it is the best thing we have in Pontevedra, our people,” she said.

Without sustainable tourism, there will be no tourism
The day included a total of four presentations and a round table, dedicated to learning about successful experiences in other destinations. The head of the sustainable tourism area, Ricardo Blanco, of the State Secretariat for Tourism, dedicated his speech to highlighting the tools, product clubs and initiatives that the State makes available to entities, public administrations and companies for the implementation of sustainable tourism, which refers not to a product but to the way it is managed. “We help to correctly configure a tourism product that can be marketed under the Spain brand outside our borders, always with a view to the principles of sustainable development set out in Agenda 2030. Because if we do not make sustainable tourism, there will be no tourism”.

The network of Paradors as an example of recovery and enhancement of heritage, generating wealth and fixing the population in rural areas or the use of lighthouses as differentiated tourist accommodation through the example of the lighthouses managed by the port authority of Vilagarcía or the case of the Fisterre Traffic Light completed the speeches in a day that ended with a panel discussion on sustainable tourism experiences moderated by the expert in tourism and destination management, Pablo Cameselle.

Thus, the discussion table addressed the management of natural resources with the example of the Intelligent Tourist Destination of Benidorm, sustainability against depopulation, which was led by the president of the Tourism Cluster of Extremadura, Jesus Viñuales, and the challenges of maintaining the balance between promotion and sustainability of a destination as sensitive as Lanzarote, which was addressed by the CEO of Tourism of Lanzarote, Hector Fernandez.