The Kick-off Workshop on “Mainstreaming Climate Change Adaption in the Tourism Sector” took place on 18-19 October 2017, in Bangkok, Thailand, organized by GIZ, Office of the Natural Resources and Environmental Policy and Planning (ONEP), and the Department of Tourism, Ministry of Tourism and Sports, Thailand.

Mr. Durband participated in the panel discussion on “Tourism and climate impacts: New realities of tourism in an era of climate change” where he spoke on “Sustainable Tourism Standards and Climate Change Adaptation”.

The workshop was attended by the Department of Tourism, Ministry of Tourism and Sports, ONEP, Academia, Civil society, and other relevant agencies.

Objectives of the workshop were:

  • Awareness raising on tourism and CCA
  • Bring tourism stakeholders together to create an institutional and knowledge platform/network
  • Exercise to find out on the expectations of private sector actors from policymakers and
    planners (and vice-versa)
  • Understand existing institutional structures on CCA and how to build upon it (or establish them definition of roles and mandates)
  • Develop a narrative and (business) incentives for engaging the tourism private sector
  • Show the economic benefits that the private sector gain when moving towards climate resilient tourism