Destination Management for Regenerative Tourism - Part 2

GOOD Awaits

This episode is the second in a two part mini series, with this episode focusing on two regions who share the community engagement processes they’re going through to develop their destination management plans.

As destinations globally are starting to think about a regenerative approach to destination management, we’re honoured to share the journey that Aotearoa New Zealand’s 31 Regional Tourism Organisations (RTOs) initiated during the pause of the pandemic. At the request of the NZ government, and with the support of government funding, New Zealand’s RTOs have engaged in destination management planning and many have begun the journey towards a regenerative approach to tourism.

We speak first with Tim Barke, General Manager at Lake Wanaka Tourism. Tim describes the opportunity tourism has now to ‘get it right’ for future generations and also for the industry to remain viable in the future. Tim encourages everyone to get involved in their community, and he’s leading by example, volunteering for multiple organisations across his community, demonstrating his commitment, both personally and professionally, to his place.

We also speak with Tania Burt, General Manager at Northland Inc who describes the importance of taking engagement on the road into communities for a highly localised process that results in more authentic, place-specific feedback from residents. Tania also speaks of how Northland’s destination management plan is a living document, part of a living process, that requires regular reviews and iterations in order to be fully committed to both people and living ecosystems. Tania is deeply involved in her place and stresses the importance that we all work towards net good, “because it’s what the world needs of us right now.”

Join the conversation

Join our LinkedIn network of likeminded professionals exploring what a regenerative future for tourism can look like. We'd love to see you there and hear your thoughts on this episode.

Thanks to:

Tim Barke - General Manager at Lake Wanaka Tourism

Tania Burt - General Manager at Northland Inc

Show notes and links

Lake Wanaka Tourism

Lake Wanaka Regenerative Tourism by 2030

Taitokerau Northland Destination Management Plan

Wao Summit

Glossary:

(Our guests will often use words from Te Reo Māori, New Zealand's indigenous language, in their interviews. We welcome and celebrate this, and for listeners outside of New Zealand for whom these may be unfamiliar, we offer an interpretation here to aid your understanding. For more detail, you can reference https://maoridictionary.co.nz/. We also offer explanations of acronyms and other industry terminology used in hope of making GOOD Awaits more accessible.)

Aotearoa - New Zealand

Taonga - treasure, socially or cultural valuable objects, resources, phenomenon, ideas and techniques

Taoka - treasure, anything prized

Mana - prestige, authority, control, power, influence, status, spiritual power, charisma - mana is a supernatural force in a person, place or object.

Mauri - life force, vital essence

Kaupapa - purpose, policy or values

Ngāi Tahu - tribal group of the South Island, sometimes called Kāi Tahu

Whakapapa – genealogy, lineage

Te Ao Māori - The Māori world

Tangata Whenua - “people of the land”, Māori people local to a particular area

Mana Whenua - Māori people who have historic and territorial rights over the land

Iwi - tribe, people

Hapu - kinship group, clan, subtribe

Mahi - work

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Want to explore what regenerative tourism could look like in practice? Join our GOOD Awaits Aotearoa New Zealand Experience in March 2023.

Find out more here: https://www.good-travel.org/good-trips/good-awaits-new-zealand

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Credits

GOOD Awaits is hosted by Debbie Clarke and Josie Major. Audio Production and music is by Clarrie Macklin.

Contact us:

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Special Thanks to NZ National Commission for UNESCO for supporting this 2nd season of our podcast.