» Responsible Tourism: South Africa Leads the Way This Tourism Week: Newsletter on-line commentary and discussion about tourism in South Africa

Ron Mader, founder and editor of planeta.com, believes that South Africa is leading the way when it comes to responsible tourism. Find out why in this short interview:

5 users commented in " Responsible Tourism: South Africa Leads the Way "

Vicky Nel said,

in May 19th, 2011 at 5:15 pm

Have been attending the Indaba for many years and YES – although South African tourism tells us about the thousands of visitors and Minister van Schalkwyk about the 15.1% increased tourism business in SA, we have not seen any of it. The Indaba this year was dead quiet. We moved from the Western Cape Pavillion (tent) to the ICC to get more “feet” on our stand. Definately did not happen – just spent a whole lot more for the stand. I fully agree that not enough is done to promote acitivities in our areas. Garden Route & Klein Karoo stand was massive with very little information about the area. I did not see any litrature on why a tourist should visit the Wilderness area although we have a National Park on our door step, amazing beaches, mountains, lakes, etc etc offering an array of activities. They did however make a fuss about historical George … now really, who wants to go to South Africa to visit George ….

Nalin - SAP-RAPIDE said,

in May 21st, 2011 at 12:22 pm

In my view Ron Maders statement needs to be placed in perspective. Whether SA is taking the lead in responsible tourism will depend on against whom the comparison is made. I have often come across SA tour companies are being involved in community and environmental projects. This is no doubt excellent. Compared to its neighbours one should not forget that SA has a good infrastructure to support this move. More important, although SA is generally classed as third world country, once should not forget that it also possess a great First World component which also contributes a lot. Hence if compared against its neighbours in Africa this statement will hold true and well done SA. Once cannot wait for a government with two left hands to act!

On the other hand, with regards developed countries, for example Switzerland , Germany etc., one will not (or rarely) hear mention of responsible tourism. For obvious reasons being that communities are developed and long have checks been in place as to environmental protection, wherever tour resorts are. Vehicles are generally across the board fitted with catalysators and run with unleaded fuel. Just to mention some examples. Hence responsibility of this sort is applicable to ALL businesses on a national level of these countries. Non-compliance carries heavy fines. Hence the dynamics is just different.

However, what may interest the reader is that these countries nevertheless undertake numerous community projects and provide development aid across the world for the under privileged. This also includes South Africa to a large extent. Off course, this is what one would expect from wealthier countries. To mention one example of such project is the DRITTE WELT LADEN ERLANGEN e.V.

Ron Mader said,

in May 23rd, 2011 at 2:57 pm

Thanks, everyone.

Let me brainstorm a bit and respond to the comments. I think the case can easily be made that puts South Africa ahead of the pack. Literature and materials directed toward visitors proudly explain the journey toward responsible tourism. The major trade event – Indaba – included a workshop and pavilion dedicated to this topic.
http://planeta.wikispaces.com/rtcities

Show me other events that showcase responsible travel. They are few and far between.

Personally, I do not buy the notion that developed countries are not obliged to explain what responsible tourism looks like to the traveler and local. As a visitor to Europe, I’m still going to seek out the options that are in my POV the most responsible, the most down to earth, the most inspiring. If the tourism portals do not provide these tips or links to local service providers, they are slow to respond to the call for responsible travel.

I’m not saying we should wait for government to lead, rather that we should be demanding that it engage with multiple stakeholders (or at the very least, not to be blocking the efforts of local SMEs).

Furthermore, we should be asking the countries with ‘development’ programs and aid agencies for greater transparency and engagement with multiple stakeholders. There are some fine foundations in Germany, for example, but finding out what they are funding in the realm of ‘responsible tourism’ remains difficult. Directors don’t understand how to make effective use of Web 2.0 and the consequence is that the information remains guarded in silos. My wish – we need to find better ways to connect.

So I’d like to propose the following actions: 1) Let’s consider a date in the coming weeks for a ‘South Africa Week’ to reflect on the recent tourism conference and networking. 2) In 2-4 months let’s consider a date for another ‘Responsible Tourism Week’ — http://planeta.wikispaces.com/rtweek2011 — and challenge other countries to show us what they are doing and how they are collaborating.

Jacques said,

in May 26th, 2011 at 7:17 pm

All valid comments! But may we not forget that Responsible Tourism has three pillars –
Economic Development…then Social interaction /development and then only the environment; in that order. If you need a full dose of RT …..the why and how to………. visit http://www.responsiblecapetown.co.za

Indaba 2012: Reboot needed : The Gremlin – Daily online newspaper for the Garden Route said,

in June 1st, 2012 at 10:13 am

[...] with Ron Mader (Planeta.com), whom I met at Indaba 2011 – he was the keynote speaker at the Responsible Tourism in Cities Conference - and just last night we spent nearly two hours brainstorming a project. Thing is, he’s in [...]