Which one of the following four options is NOT part of the GSTC’s mission? (Select one)

a. To ensure all tourism organizations become accredited by the GSTC according to the GSTC Criteria.

I.2 Which of the following best describe the four (4) key areas of the GSTC’s objectives? (Select four)

a. Certification – directly certifying sustainable tourism businesses and destinations.

b. Accreditation – verifying standards and practices applied by certification programs.

d. Guiding destination implementation of sustainable tourism development.

e. Creating universal principles for sustainable tourism.

I.3 Imagine you’re presenting to a group of government and industry representatives for whom the concept of sustainable tourism is new. Apply the four pillars reflected in the GSTC Criteria, as well as the UNWTO’s definition of sustainable tourism, to describe in your own words the four key principles of sustainable tourism that should be followed in order to ensure the long-term sustainability of the tourism industry.

Principle 1: The first principle is to come up with sustainable management of destination

Principle 2: The social as well as economic benefits should be increased for host communities and negative impacts should be minimized

Principle 3: Providing more benefits to cultural heritage, communities and visitors and minimizing the negative impacts

Principle 4: Coming up with more benefits to overall environment, and minimizing the negative impact on environment

SECTION II. GSTC INTEGRITY PROGRAM: SUSTAINABLE TOURISM ACCREDITATION

II.1 Which of the following is NOT an example of certification bodies that certify tourism businesses? (Select one)

c. Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC)

II.2 What does it mean when a sustainable tourism standard achieves the “GSTC-Recognized” status? (Select all that apply)

a. That the standard works exclusively with sustainable products and service that have been through the GSTC’s vetting process.

c. That the standard has been reviewed by GSTC Accreditation Panel and deemed equivalent to the GSTC

d. That the certification body using the standard is following processes and procedures that meet the GSTC requirements.

II.3 Which of the following is a correct statement regarding the “GSTC Accredited” status? (Select one)

d. Accreditation bodies that comply with the highest social and environmental standards on the market can issue the “GSTC Accredited” mark to hotels, tour operators and destinations.

II.4 How is certification relevant to a tourism business (e.g. hotel, tour operator)? Describe, in your own words, one example of how achieving certification by a GSTC-Accredited certification body can benefit a tourism business.

The certification is important for any tourism business because it gives an authentic status to the business that it is complying with all the goals of Global Sustainable Tourism. For instance, a logo or mark of the GSTC, which means if there is a customer, who wants to contribute for its environment and community, and he/she sees GSTC logo on a hotel brand, he/she will chose that particular hotel to stay, because he/she believes that the hotel is playing its part for the environment and community. It gives a very good name to a business in the tourism and hotel industry.

SECTION III. GSTC INDUSTRY CRITERIA FOR HOTELS AND TOUR OPERATORS

III.1 Which of the following statements about the GSTC Industry Criteria (“GSTC-Industry”) are correct? (Select three).

b. The GSTC advises governments to follow GSTC-Industry exactly and require by law in order to promote maximum use of the Criteria.

c. GSTC-Industry can be used to guide sustainability practices of various types of tourism entities, where practical application is feasible.

e. GSTC-Industry should be used with the understanding that micro businesses may not achieve comprehensive application of all criteria.

III.2 Which of the following is NOT an accurate statement regarding Sustainability Management System as referenced in the GSTC-Industry Criteria? (Select one)

c. Implementing a Sustainability Management Systems can be unrealistic to many organizations, and is not relevant to businesses unless they are pursuing an eco-certification.

III.3 In what ways can a tourism business implement best practices in destination engagement - as referenced in GSTC-Industry Criteria Section A (sustainable management)? Describe, in your own words, example(s) of concrete actions a tourism business can implement with regard to destination engagement.

The GSTC industry criteria has talked about destination engagement, which explains that any tourism business should be involved in practices, which are in line with sustainable tourism management and planning for a destination, which is having such opportunities. For instance, if a destination has been identified, and tourism business can make its presence by starting their business and also helping the community to grow. There can be a destination, which has the capability to become a tourist destination, but there are no facilities available there, and destination is not visited by tourists due to lack of roads or facilities. Then a hotel can help the local community to build a road, and open their hotel there, which would enhance the tourism activity in that particular destination.

III.4 Describe, in your own words, one concrete example of how a tour operator or a hotel can put into practice the Fair Trade Principles (e.g. fair prices, fair labor conditions, direct trade, democratic and transparent organizations, community development and environmental sustainability).

A tourism business can manage its business as per the Fair Trade Principles, by adopting any or majority of its elements. Let’s take community development and environmental sustainability as an example. If a hotel is having presence at a tourist place, and it is earning good revenues, then they must share this progress with local community. For instance, they can offer some percentage of jobs in their hotel to the people from local community. Moreover, if it is know that local nearby community lacks the facility of clean water, and then hotel can build a filtration plant to provide clean water. They can also start planting tree and plants in the community to make its environment better for living.

III.5 GSTC-Industry Criterion C.1 requires that: “visits to indigenous communities and culturally or historically sensitive sites” should be responsibly managed “in order to minimize adverse impacts and maximize local benefits and visitor fulfillment.”

Briefly describe an example of how such visits can pose adverse impacts, and explain how a tourism business can avoid such situations.

The hotels and tour operators should realize that when visits are made to historically sensitive sites and indigenous communities, they can make so many adverse impacts. For instance, pollution is the first key impact, which can have adverse impact on the site or community. The more number of visitors may pollute the area, and they may throw garbage everywhere around, which makes a bad impact on the site. Moreover, a hotel may discharge its waste or any nearby factory producing goods for tourist may discharge pollution, smoke or any chemicals, which can affect the local community as well as environment.

III.6 Which of the following descriptions is an appropriate definition of the term “conservation management” as used in the GSTC Industry Criteria? (Select one)

a. A planned intervention in order to maintain a species or habitat in a favorable condition.

SECTION IV. GSTC CRITERIA FOR DESTINATIONS

IV.1 How can a destination a destination organization use the GSTC Destination Criteria? (Select all that apply)

a. As a basis for creating a destination-level sustainability standard.

d. To become a member of the GSTC.

IV.2 Which of the following are key aspects of a sustainable destination management strategy? (Select all that apply)

a. A destination should develop a tourism strategy appropriate to its scale.

e. The destination management strategy must cover not just environmental, but also social, cultural and economic issues.

IV.3 Describe, in your own words, at least two of the key roles played by a destination management organization, as referenced in GSTC-D Criterion A.2.

There are various major roles played by a destination management organization as per GSTC-D Criterion A.2. The first role is to play its part in achieving sustainable tourism by involving the private as well as public sector. The second key role for a destination management organization is to certify as well as assist sustainable tourism businesses so that they can also become part of this positive activity.

IV.4 Describe one effective approach that a destination can take to managing visitor flows to attractions in order to ensure that those sites are not damaged or made less desirable.

It is crucial for destination to avoid overcrowding by managing the flow of visitors, otherwise a destination may become less desirable, or it can be damaged by the over flow of people. There can be various methods to deal with the problem. For instance, the flow of people can be managed by designating different entries so that one entry is not flooded with people. Moreover, the price for tickets can be decreased for those timings, when number of visitors tend to remain low so that people also prefer to visit in those timings as well. Moreover, people should be provided information regarding the busiest times so that people may know that they may face delays in those timings, and come their later.

V. IMPLEMENTING THE GSTC CRITERIA

V.1 Provide concrete example(s) of how a tourism business may implement one of the actions and practices recommended by D2 (Reducing Pollution) of the GSTC Industry Criteria.

A hotel working at any tourist destination can play its part in reducing the level of pollution. For instance, they can work on the D2.1 criteria suggesting points for Greenhouse gas emissions. The hotel must call experts to its site and ask them to calculate the amount of Greenhouse gas emissions due to their hotel. Once they know the exact amount, then they ask experts for methods, to minimize this amount. The recommended methods of experts should be taken seriously and implemented throughout the organization. The hotel can also work on the criteria “D2.6 Minimize pollution”, by making sure that waste of the hotel is not discharged to clean water of nearby river. Moreover, they manage noise and light pollution by using less noisy equipment, and using lights which are eco-friendly.

V.2 Provide one (1) example of how public and private sectors could partner together to implement one of the actions and practices recommended under the Section B (Economic Benefits to the Host Community) of the GSTC Destination Criteria.

In section B, there are total nine points, which are recommended to fulfill the purpose of this criterion. For instance, according to B-1, a private hotel operating in the area can coordinate with local public sector department, where they help the public sector in different programs like improving sanitation of the area and build new toilets. They can also help to improve school buildings to provide better education facilities to local community. They can also work as per section B-2 as well by providing employment to local people. The local community is given some percentage for employment. So, these are some of the steps that private and public sector can take together.

V.3 List three (3) ways in which you – having learned about the GSTC Criteria – can now apply the GSTC Industry Criteria and/or the Destination Criteria in your own work.

If I am involved with any tourism business, then I will like to participate for the community and environment in three ways. First, I would involve in using sustainable and eco-friendly products and equipments so that environment does not have to face any adverse impacts. Second, I would like to help local communities in their development. For instance, I would partner with any private or public organization to develop a skills training center so that local youth can learn new skills. Third, I would help the environment by minimizing the level of pollution in every possible manner.