Cross-sectoral collaboration in building climate resilience in the tourism sector is essential, as tourism data needs depend on data from other vital industries.
Pacific Tourism Organisation (SPTO) Manager Sustainable Tourism, Christina Gale, shared these sentiments following the Local2030 Islands Network in Honolulu, Hawaii, hosted by Hawaii Green Growth and the Global Islands Partnership Alliance (GLISPA).
Ms Gale mentioned that the Local2030 Islands Network meeting objectives and discussions aligned well with the Pacific Sustainable Tourism Policy Framework (PSTPF). This was the first combined session for climate and tourism practitioners to discuss areas of common interest under the SDG framework.
“Experts on Climate data for resilience shared how they identified the linkages between data, climate change, policy, and sustainable tourism. Tourism is not considered a sector when it comes to climate data, rather other sectors such as water, energy, health, education, and others are. This was a new learning that reinforces the importance of cross-sectoral collaboration in building climate resilience in the tourism sector,” Ms Gale said.
SPTO CEO Chris Cocker acknowledged the importance of climate resilience data collation for the tourism sector. And that the workshop provided a platform of opportunities for SPTO to network and engage with other tourism practitioners, academia, partners, and technical experts.
“A successful recovery for Pacific Tourism coming out of the pandemic requires collaborated efforts from climate resilience data and all sectors, especially the tourism sector, working together. For SPTO, the implementation Pacific Sustainable Tourism Policy Framework (PSTPF) through the endorsement of the Statement of Commitment by our Pacific leaders provides an opportunity to advance further our sustainable tourism efforts, where our countries can share and learn from each other’s sustainable tourism journeys,” said Mr. Cocker.
