Yesterday it was announced by UNESCO that 27 new sites have been added to the World Heritage list. The news was released after the 32nd session of the World Heritage Committee in Quebec City, Canada. A few of the new sites are the Fujian Tulou in China, the Berlin Modernism Housing Estates in Germany and the Kuk Early Agricultural Site in Papua New Guinea. These sites bring the total of World Heritage sites to 878 sites in 145 countries. Although some of the sites are not accessible to tourists, I think it is a very important list as it will ensure that these treasures will be saved for future generations. However, the list doesn’t cover every country in the world, but I’m sure that those countries not included have important landmarks that need protecting.
Posts Tagged ‘UN’
27 new World Heritage sites
July 9th, 2008Youth travel important to tourism market
May 22nd, 2008The UN World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) has just released it’s research into the effect that young travelers have on the international tourism industry. Unsurprisingly, the UNWTO has found that youth travel counts for almost a fifth of international tourist arrivals. It is also one of the fastest-growing sectors. The research has been carried out over the last five years, and concluded that traveling has an important impact on young people. Up to 80% of the young people questioned said that traveling had made them more respectful of other peoples cultures. Although I believe that youth travel is an important part of growing up, it is also extremely expensive to fund. As shown in the UNTWOs research, the cost of youth travel has increased by 40% in five years. In 2007 the average young person spent €1,915 (£1,536) per trip. This means that only those young people who are fortunate enough to have been given or saved a lot of money are able to take advantage of this learning experience, which I think is a shame!
Concerning tourism, Mexico is attracting more and more people: From Guadalajara to the Popocatépetl, SunofMexico.com invites you to discover Mexico through its culture, history, traditions and tequila. Hundred of pictures, dozens of videos and tons of information in order to prepare a trip or to become unbeatable about the country of the cactus.
What is the impact of tourism on global warming?
September 29th, 2007Between October 1st and 3rd, the World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) together with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), the World Economic Forum (WEF) and the Swiss Government will be holding the Second International Conference on Climate Change and Tourism in Davos, Switzerland to address “the global challenge of climate change and action by the tourism sector in both adaptation of destinations and mitigation of its own impacts”. As the travel and tourism industry totaled 846 million international arrivals and 4 billion domestic trips in 2006, it is important that the people in charge are responsible and aware of the damage they are causing to the environment. Although the travel and tourism industry does contribute a lot of greenhouse gas emissions, it is also highly susceptible to the effects of climate change. These two contrasting problems are central to the issue of climate change with the carbon dioxide emissions of the travel and tourism sector accounting for between 4 and 6% of total emissions, yet “changing climate patterns might alter major tourism flows”. It is a thorny issue to tackle but at least there are people who are trying to make some change!
