Carnival Corporation & plc, the world’s largest leisure travel company, congratulated its partner, The Nature Conservancy, for receiving the Tourism for Tomorrow Innovation Award at the World Tourism and Travel Council (WTTC)’s annual Global Summit in Bangkok, Thailand.
The awards recognize best practices in sustainable tourism. The Innovation Award celebrates initiatives using new techniques to overcome challenges faced by the travel and tourism sector in implementing sustainability practices.
Scientists with The Nature Conservancy’s Mapping Ocean Wealth project are making use of the latest crowd sourcing and data mapping techniques to quantify — for the first time – the total and local economic value of the world’s coral reefs to tourism. The project includes an online atlas that provides maps, marine life databases and other resources.
To quote Dr. Robert Brumbaugh, director of ocean planning and protection for The Nature Conservancy, “It is clear that the tourism industry depends on coral reefs, but now, more than ever, these fragile and beautiful organisms are depending on the tourism industry. Armed with geographic-specific information, available through the Mapping Ocean Wealth project that has been made possible through our supportive partners like Carnival Corporation, governments can take steps to promote the expansion of tourism in harmony with the environment, and businesses can make smart investments that take into account both business goals and protecting our natural systems.”
Besides mapping efforts globally, Carnival Corporation’s support of The Nature Conservancy has provided decision makers with new and comprehensive data about coral reef conditions throughout the Caribbean.
