The “Monitoring Centre for Sustainable Tourism Observatories” was
inaugurated on the Aegean Islands, the main archipelago of Greece. This
first Sustainable Tourism Observatory in Europe under the auspices of
UNWTO will monitor the environmental, social and economic impacts of
tourism in the archipelago and serve as a model to expand the concept to
a national level.
Established by the University of the Aegean in collaboration with
UNWTO and with the support of the Ministry of Tourism of Greece, the
Centre will monitor and implement sustainable tourism practices in close
cooperation with the tourism public and private sector in the area of
the Aegean.
“Greece is endowed with a rich cultural and natural heritage; it is
evident that the relationship between tourism and the environment is a
central concern for our national strategy”, said the Minister of Tourism
of Greece, Olga Kefalogianni. Set in the framework of Greece’s special
action program in collaboration with key environmental partners, such as
the Academy of Athens, “any initiative contributing to this purpose
finds the active support of the Ministry of Tourism”, she added.
UNWTO Secretary-General, Taleb Rifai stressed that “the establishment
of the Aegean Observatory will provide critical information to better
manage the advancement of sustainability in one of the prime
destinations of the Mediterranean”; adding that “only by better
understanding the interaction between tourism and its surrounding, can
we improve existing sustainable tourism initiatives and ensure that
tourism continues to work for the local population and the destination
as a whole”.
The Observatory of the Aegean Islands joins the five existing
sustainable tourism observatories established in China under the
auspices of UNWTO.
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