Wildlife Tourism Conference, September/October 2015
“Wildlife Tourism: a Force for Biodiversity Conservation and Local Economies?”
29th September to 2nd October 2015, Victoria (exact venue TBC but most likely Geelong, west of Melbourne)
Koala in You Yangs, Victoria. Photo: Echidna Walkabout
So far the program includes:
- Saturday to Tuesday 26-29th September – pre-workshop field trips
- Tuesday 29th September – late afternoon or evening opening reception
- Wednesday to Friday 30th Sep to 2nd Oct – morning presentations and afternoon roundtable discussions
- Saturday and Sunday 3-4th October – post-workshop field trips
Tentative Wednesday to Friday program:
Wednesday: international aspects
- How do other countries value, present and manage wildlife tourism?
- Which countries have associations similar to Wildlife Tourism Australia, and what are their roles?
- What is new in wildlife tourism in our our nearest neighbours (New Zealand, New Guinea, Southeast Asia, Antarctica, and could there be more cross-promotion of wildlife travel between our countries, and promotion of our general regin to the rest of the world?
Thursday: contributions of tourism to conservation
- What is already working well, both in Australia and elsewhere?
- What is the potential for increased contribution by wildlife tourism and the tourism industry in general to conservation of wildlife and habitats (which can include monetary contributions, habitat restoration, public education, conservation breeding, citizen science etc.)
Friday: the value of wildlife tourism to local economies
- What do we already know of the contributions of wildlife tourism to local and regional economies?
- What kinds of wildlife tourism can encourage tourists to visit less-traveled regions, spend an extra night , or make repeat visits?
- What obstacles are faced by small businesses and NGOs trying to stay afloat while offering wildlife experiences and interpretation to visitors?
Remember the above is tentative, and could be subject to change in coming months
