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The Summits tourism or a new form dialogue and action

Alain CLERC - President of the Mont-Blanc Léman Observatory (OML), Archamps, France

 

  

It is not up to the event organisers to congratulate themselves on how this 2nd Summit is going. We are nonetheless thrilled with this dynamic working party from which new ideas are emerging.

Indeed, we haven't ended the debate. Far-reaching discussions on economic growth and sustainable tourism cannot be concluded in just three days and so of course many questions remain unresolved. Clearly it is not the aim of the Tourism Summits to reach a final conclusion for each question.

Discussions during the round table sessions have shown us that tourism is still an activity that reacts to specific criteria that in turn varies according to the cultures, level of development and individual experiences of the countries concerned, and this fact has already been highlighted by the recent presentation by Professor William Gartner from the University of Minnesota. Globalisation, to which many of our speakers have made reference, will not create a common denominator for differences that make up the richness of our world.

The "corporate business" approach, or the economies of scale so often talked about nowadays, is clearly not the solution to all our questions.

The world in which we live is becoming ever more complex, perhaps one would say chaotic, with some development concepts that are difficult to grasp. With this in mind it becomes essential to stimulate discussion and compare experiences, as evidence has shown that no one person alone is capable of providing the answers to the questions with which we are bombarded.

Therefore we must "stimulate discussion" between everyone involved. Even if we don't share the same outlook as all our partners, it is still well worth making note of their positions. From now on we must remain open to new initiatives taken in other tourist destinations.

In this context I would like to congratulate the initiative taken by Mrs Comparini who is organising a basis for reflection on tourism at the beginning of the year 2020 that will take place in Lyon next year. As the Mayor of Chamonix, Monsieur Michel Charlet, has already pointed out, the Tourism Summits are naturally very pleased to be associated with this move forward.

We must also remain sensitive to how our thinking habits are changing. It was barely a century ago that ecology was making a large number of our citizens shudder, whereas nowadays we can't talk about tourism without making some reference to the environment. Similarly, whereas deregulation appeared some years ago to be the panacea to all our problems, the importance of the role played by the state in tourist policy has just been highlighted with great relevance during the session chaired by Prof. Adejuwon.

This brief summary of how attitudes have changed explains why all partners concerned with sustainable tourism need to get together around the same table; exchanging ideas and comparing experiences provides the basis for any development. The approach that we are detailing here is all the more necessary bearing in mind that there is a distinct lack of Research and Development (R&D) in the field of tourism.

The Tourism summits fulfil this challenge of getting partners from all sectors - private, public, associations and academia - and from all horizons, together in one place in a convivial atmosphere. The project to create a network of pathways for ramblers, cyclists and skaters that was outlined to us yesterday afternoon could certainly spread to other countries. Similarly, some of the measures applied successfully in Aspen, Colorado, as Mrs Rachel Richards, Mayor of Aspen, has just described, could inspire new initiatives, especially in the Alps. The same goes for the " visiting Australia " campaign that Mr David McCarthy has just described to us.

In this connection we are delighted to note that the 2nd Tourism Summit is this year welcoming representatives from all five continents.

To ensure that we don't restrict ourselves to overly academic approaches, it is important that we base our exchanges on real experiences tried and tested "in the field". Sustainable tourism development is therefore a repetitive approach that can only reach a satisfactory conclusion provided that it is constantly fed and enhanced, which can only be achieved by facing facts.

Nor do the Tourism Summits have a fixed formula. From the outset we wanted to be flexible and open to work in progress, to technological advances and to the expectations of operators and of the public.

As outlined during the opening in Geneva by Monsieur Paul Dubrule, co-founder of the Accor group, one of the largest travel groups in the world : the Summit responds to a clear need for dialogue and innovative action.

From the outset this opportunity for exchange, this platform for challenging with action, this laboratory for ideas, was conceived with an international dimension in mind.

This year we have initiated an opening with Geneva international in close liaison with the Geneva authorities and the Geneva tourist office, and in the coming years we hope to strengthen this partnership with other areas, towns and regions. Aside from the cities of Turin and Grenoble and the Vallées d'Ax represented here, this partnership should create openings with countries in Africa, Asia and South America that are similarly concerned by the consequences of influxes of new tourism.

The concept on which we are currently working also takes into account opportunities offered by new information and communication technology. From next year, our discussions will be enhanced by exchanges of views via the computerised network, and we are also looking into the possibility of more actively including companies in our discussions. In this latter case we are planning to run "poster sessions" for specific subjects.

Furthermore, we are currently working on creating a charter that would form the basis of a series of unique measures taken at the Summit, notably a price discount at the Tourism Summits for innovative measures falling within the scope of sustainable tourism. The network introduced here yesterday morning by Christophe Devouassoux has stimulated a lot of interest on the part of many participants these past couple of days, and we hope that it will henceforth form a permanent exchange platform for all our partners.

The conference cycle that we have envisaged will lead us to tackle the social and societal aspects of sustainable tourism next year and Mr Peter Keller is going to explain this to you. It will also provide the opportunity for exchanges with partners who have not yet been involved in our discussions, and in particular I'm thinking here about union representatives.

Well, Ladies and Gentlemen, now you have some things to ponder that hopefully testify to our commitment and to the contribution that we want to make to the demands of a more relevant, more balanced and more humane sustainable tourism.

Thank you for putting your faith in us.

Until next year, on the 5, 6, 7 December 2001 !