Progress towards sustainable tourism has become imperative in the European Union. The tourism industry has grown to massive proportions in the last decade and so has its environmental impact. Since tourism is after all an economic activity, a better management of tourism is not only necessary to mitigate its negative effects on the environment, but also to minimise the potential conflict with other economic activities. Tourism also promotes intercultural relations and mutual understanding and is widely recognized as a mjor opportunity for enhancing the territorial cohesion within Europe. Sustainable tourism can support and drive the territorial cohesion towards a harmonious and balanced development of Europe. It has a high potential to enhance cohesion among regions because it fosters the promotion of identity of each region and the sharing of the diverse European natural and cultural heritages, traditions and languages.

Progress towards sustainable tourism has become imperative in the European Union. The tourism industry has grown to massive proportions in the last decade and so has its environmental impact. Since tourism is after all an economic activity, a better management of tourism is not only necessary to mitigate its negative effects on the environment, but also to minimise the potential conflict with other economic activities. Tourism also promotes intercultural relations and mutual understanding and is widely recognized as a mjor opportunity for enhancing the territorial cohesion within Europe. Sustainable tourism can support and drive the territorial cohesion towards a harmonious and balanced development of Europe. It has a high potential to enhance cohesion among regions because it fosters the promotion of identity of each region and the sharing of the diverse European natural and cultural heritages, traditions and languages.

The economic and sociocultural significance of tourism today cannot be overstated. With the rapid growth of travel and tourism, more and more research is being undertaken in this field, with particular attention paid to the concept of sustainability. This book broadens the reach of such studies by providing comprehensive and rigorous examinations of many issues and concepts related to sustainable tourism, with particular attention paid to Slovenia. It considers the area broadly, and presents in-depth discussions on many relevant and important tourism issues, covering topics from the sustainable use of cultural heritage in tourism and the development of sustainable jobs and professionalism in the tourism sector to the aspects of systemic management and logistic planning for tourist destinations, as well as the contributions that local governments make towards sustainable development and use of local resources. The collection provides a unique and balanced view of both theoretical issues and practical cases and is a valuable reading for students, researchers and professionals in the field of tourism and sustainability.

This report aims to identify actions which might achieve more sustainable and environment-friendly tourism development. It contains an overview of the situations in Europe but the bulk of the publication lists the replies from individual countries to a questionnaire. The topics covered were: the positive and negative impacts of tourism, plans and policies to achieve sustainable development, the organisation of tourism, tourism development, successful measure that had been taken to attain sustainable development and environmental training.

Rural Europe is a highly developed tourism region, representing advanced tourism experience and supposed modern approaches to this industry. That said, it remains highly sensitive and fragile in terms of environmental, social, economic and cultural impacts. This volume focuses on rural Europe as a fascinating example of how tourism development impacts on the communities and the environment of rural regions and offers insights into how long term sustainability could be achieved in this specific region and correspondingly in other rural parts of the world. Sustainable Tourism in Rural Europe contains contributions from leading international scholars that review and analyse the concept and practice of sustainable tourism in this region through a multidisciplinary approach that embodies the view that sustainable tourism warrants a holistic approach in terms of its impacts and development potential. Divided into three sections: Key Themes and Issues; The State and Development; The Local Community and Development, this book addresses contentious and vital issues through theory, detailed research and case studies, offering real world approaches to sustainable development, showing problems including local politics which challenge abstract models. It introduces cutting edge research dealing with contemporary developments throughout Europe and consequential lessons/implications for other rural parts of the world. This volume will be of interest to students, researchers and academics in the areas of Tourism, Geography and Environmental Studies.

Sustainable Tourism is vital reading for anyone seeking to understand the complexities associated with sustainable tourism development, and how government and industry have responded to the challenges the concept poses. The major areas addressed in this edited volume are: * perspectives and issues associated with the concept of sustainable tourism development * accreditation, education and interpretation, including specific examples such as Green Globe 21, the European Blue Flag Campaign and the WWF's PAN Parks Programme * sustainable tourism case studies of tourist destination regions, natural areas and tourism enterprises drawn from Africa, Australia, the South Pacific, North America, South-east Asia and the Caribbean An impressive international editorial team has combined to present in this text not only a variety of perspectives on sustainable tourism development, but also significant insights into barriers, challenges and current industry and government responses to it in various parts of the globe. 'Sustainable Tourism' will be a welcome addition to the libraries of tourism industry professionals, individuals involved in the management of natural areas; tourism policy makers; tourism academics; and students with an interest in the future sustainability of tourism and the industry that supports it.