The Opening Ceremony is officiated by H.E. Datuk Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz, Minister of Tourism and Culture.
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CALL/SMS (6)013-2063768
Welcome!
38 of Asia Pacific's eminent Ministers/Deputy Minister's of Tourism, CEOS, Professors and Ambassadors to the
prestigious 6th World Ecotourism Conference &
1st Malaysia Ecotourism Summit
★ WORLD ECOTOURISM CONFERENCE:
The annual World Ecotourism Conference held in collaboration with the World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) is the world's most important ecotourism conference with transformative impact on the tourism industry in developing countries; committed to the protection of nature and environment, betterment of ecotourism and uplifting the well-being of local communities. Since 2009, the prestigious World Ecotourism Conference has been held in Lao PDR, Malaysia, Cambodia, South Korea and Philippines The World Ecotourism Conference is produced by DISCOVERYMICE, an Affiliate Member of UNWTO and currently the Regional Vice President (Asia and the Pacific) of the UNWTO Affiliates Executive Council.
★ GUNUNG MULU NATIONAL PARK (UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE SITE):
Gunung Mulu National Park is an area of exceptional natural beauty, with striking primary forest, karst terrain, mountains, waterfalls and the largest caves on earth. Gunung Mulu National Park, situated in the Malaysian State of Sarawak on the island of Borneo, is outstanding both for its high biodiversity and for its karst features. The park is dominated by Gunung Mulu, a 2,376 m-high sandstone pinnacle and the property is the most studied tropical karst area in the world.
At least 295 km of explored caves provide a spectacular sight and are home to millions of cave swiftlets and bats. The Sarawak Chamber, 600 m by 415 m and 80 m high, is the largest known cave chamber in the world.Deer Cave at 120 to 150 m in diameter is the largest cave passage in the world known at the present time and the Clearwater Cave System holds the world record as the longest cave in Asia at 110 km of mapped and explored passages.
★ WORLD TOURISM ORGANISATION (UNWTO)
The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) is the United Nations agency responsible for the promotion of responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism. As the leading international organization in the field of tourism, UNWTO promotes tourism as a driver of economic growth, inclusive development and environmental sustainability and offers leadership and support to the sector in advancing knowledge and tourism policies worldwide. UNWTO encourages the implementation of the Global Code of Ethics for Tourism, to maximize tourism’s socio-economic contribution while minimizing its possible negative impacts, and is committed to promoting tourism as an instrument in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), geared towards reducing poverty and fostering sustainable development wordlwide. UNWTO generates market knowledge, promotes competitive and sustainable tourism policies and instruments, fosters tourism education and training, and works to make tourism an effective tool for development through technical assistance projects in over 100 countries around the world. UNWTO’s membership includes 157 countries, 6 Associate Members and over 450 Affiliate Members representing the private sector, educational institutions, tourism associations and local tourism authorities.
Ecotourism in Leadership
The World Ecotourism Conference is one of the most influential conferences in the world that transforms Governmental political and development policies in tourism and protection of natural resources. The Conference also fosters a global initiative to develop leadership among proponents and practitioners of ecotourism around the world and across time and location. We welcome and encourage emerging leaders who have quietly and tirelessly contributed for the betterment of ecotourism to take the speaker’s podium at the 6th World Ecotourism Conference at Mulu, Sarawak.
“The key to successful leadership today is influence not authority”
Kenneth Blanchard
SESSION 1: Sustainability: Reinforcing Cultural Identities, Empowering Rural Communities
Ecotourism is regarded as a rural transformation tool especially in developing countries, to revitalise rural resources and uplift the well-being of rural communities.
Ecotourism is the door to inclusion. Can the livihoods of the indigenous people and local communities in and around World Natural Heritage Sites be improved, promoting their intangible cultural identity and their co-existence with the iconic natural resources around them.
This session explores the World Heritage Sites which recognises the important correlation between humanity and nature, and the initiatives that contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals
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SESSION 2: Competitiveness: Case Studies of Tangible Creativity and Intangible Opportunities
How do destinations successfully develop and promote their World Natural Heritage Sites?
Many destinations have transformed once unexplored sites to World Heritage Sites but how do they reach out to attract tourists and tourism revenue that play as significant role in local economic development? What are the best practices today?
Experts from World Heritage Sites around the world will share the challenges as well as the success stories of such achievements. From tangible creativity using various technological and marketing tools, intangible opportunities were tapped to enhance tourist satisfaction and drive viral demand.
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SESSION 3: Mainstreaming Ecotourism: Creating Economies of Scale & Economies of Scope
Economies of scale in ecotourism enterprises is the cost advantage on a development or services as a result of increased tourist consumption.
In many cases, economies of scale in World Natural Heritage Sites could not be attained due to limited accessibility or restricted capacity for tourists. What are the opportunities for multiple or indirect revenue streams?
Can ecotourism enterprises attain a cost advantage from economies of scope or an extended value chain from the same resources? The session will discuss the developments in World Natural Heritage Sites and learn how these developments strive to attain financial sustainability.
more1Malaysia
Ecotourism Summit
SPECIAL SESSION ON 29 JANUARY 2016:
ECOTOURISM MICRO CLUSTERS AND THEMATIC CORRIDORS: OPPORTUNITIES FOR SUSTAINABLE GROWTH
The National Ecotourism Plan 2015 - 2025 is formulated to replace the 1996 Plan. The new Plan focuses on three main areas to boost the competitiveness of the ecotourism industry in Malaysia, namely) ecotourism investments, ii) innovative concession models for Protected Areas; and iii) better synergy between community-based ecotourism and conservation. In addition the game changing cluster approach is adopted with the economic rationale of optimising horizontal and diagonal clustering to create critical mass and facilitate the sharing of infrastructure, manpower and integrated marketing. The ensuing thematic clusters and corridors created from this approach will help product differentiation, packaging and targeted marketing. The National Ecotourism Plan 2015-2025 will be launched by the Ministry of Tourism and Culture (MOTAC) at the Malaysia Ecotourism Summit 2016.DON'T MISS THE 6th WORLD ECOTOURISM CONFERENCE
GUNUNG MULU NATIONAL
PARK, SARAWAK. MALAYSIA
UNESCO World Heritage Site
The 6th World Ecotourism Conference held in collaboration with national and international ecotourism bodies aims to promote ecotourism best practices in developing countries and embracing the UN Sustainable Development Goals in its outcome objectives. The Conference will be convened from 28 to 30 January 2016 at Gunung Mulu National Park, a UNESCO World Natural Heritage Site.
The World Conference includes technical tours to amazing showcaves, an exciting outdoor cum learning experience that should not be missed..
This is an excellent life-time opportunity to visit Mulu National Park; to experience one of the greatest wonders of nature in no other than Borneo, Sarawak.
more information and registration