Sustainability is the luxury in travel demand

Sri Lanka must adopt clean practices to ensure they attract tourists that demand sustainable travel destinations.

In this respect Sri Lanka needs a zero policy on plastics use; ensure tourists can travel to all the key attractions without any problem or disturbance; use of renewable energy sources; and shift to electric vehicles in transport including those used specifically for tourists as well, International Advisor to the President on Climate Change Erik Solheim said last week.

He was speaking on the topic of "The Global Perspective on Sustainable Tourism and Sri Lanka's Role" at the webinar organised by the Sri Lanka Nordic Business Council of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce on the theme ‘Sri Lanka, a Responsible and Sustainable Tourist Destination’.

Mr. Solheim pointed out that in a bid to keep Sri Lanka clean a no plastic policy needs to be adopted.

Countries like Indonesia and India have already mobilised their armies to clean the cities and ensure they maintain cleanliness, he said.

This is possible in Sri Lanka where the youth can be motivated to clean up the beaches, he noted adding that they need to send these right signals to everyone.

The city of Indore in India has won accolades for becoming the cleanest city in India where the garbage collected is not sent out but reused as fuel.

In a further shift to clean cities, the move to electric vehicles can reduce air pollution and such vehicles should be practices even among the tour operators and hoteliers.

Founder of Zero Plastic Movement in Sri Lanka Nish De Silva spoke of the reusable bag and avoiding using PET bottles in a bid to make the destination carbon neutral. He pointed out that reducing the use of plastics needs to be encouraged.

Moreover, improving the air quality is vital and in ensuring sustainable and responsible tourism they work with the communities as well.

Clean Ocean Force Founder Jerome Fernando spoke of the efforts taken towards ocean conservation and beach restoration. In doing so the most challenging force is the plastics that enter the oceans through inland waterways.

"We carry out daily clean ups of the waterways empowering the local communities," he noted.

Cinnamon Hotels Head of EcoTourism Chitral Jayatilake noted that through Nature Trails they engage in conservation on different platforms like establishing steel pens to help cattle farmers deal with leopard attacks; engaged with communities to overcome the human elephant conflict during the pandemic years.

Another conservation established is by growing a mini rainforest with 18,000 native plants by engaging communities. Whale watching has improved with the collaboration of communities in Trincomalee.

Jetwing Hotels Marketing and Development Director Hashan Cooray spoke of the challenges faced by hotels in general and the need to practice responsible initiative and ensuring that visitors touring the country also carry out these same practices.

Commenting on the need for sustainable tourism as a marketing tactic, he noted that if the numbers were actually worked out it would have not been taken up in the first place.