Progress in Responsible Tourism November 4th 2015 The Awards are not an accreditation scheme, as the same businesses do not win year after year. It is very difficult to win again so do not assume that because a business or organisation won some years ago they are not still world leaders. Large and small, mainstream and niche win the Awards. The judges say of the Awards: “We have a vision of an industry where all kinds of tourism, from niche to mainstream, are organised in a way that preserves, respects and benefits destinations and local people. Our Awards are a step towards this; celebrating tourism experiences that inspire and surprise travellers and the industry with what it is possible to achieve through responsible tourism. Responsible Tourism is about using tourism to make better places for people to live in and better places for people to visit, because great places to live in, with their natural and cultural heritage, are great places to visit.� 2 Box 2: The Judges' Criteria
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How does our judging panel ensure consistency and identify the most enduring and shining examples of responsible tourism in practice each year? 1. Evidence-based: The panel are looking for evidence of real change, businesses which can convincingly demonstrate positive impacts, or reduced negative impacts, quantified wherever possible. 2. Replicability: The Awards aim to inspire change, we seek to identify examples of best practice which can be replicated across the sector and around the world. 3. Innovation: The judges are looking for innovative practices that make a real difference, the Awards highlight new good practices, which the judges believe, can, and should, become common practice. 4. Influence: We look for businesses and organisations that are not only doing good work themselves, but are using their influence to ensure their peers and suppliers to do the same. 5. Sustainability & longevity: The judges seek to Award those businesses that understand that taking responsibly for tourism is a long journey, that it encompasses the economic, social and environmental impacts of their activities and who have a clear vision for the long-term success of the work, with future targets and plans in place. The judges can only consider those businesses that are nominated and pass the longlisting process and the success of any business will depend upon the strength of the competition in any particular year. It is a considerable achievement to make the longlist. It takes considerable amount of effort and time to present the business’s achievements and to provide the evidence and referees - the judges carefully read all the material presented, take up references and make their own enquires, These are tough awards to win.
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http://www.responsibletravel.com/awards/about/judging-criteria.htm
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http://www.responsibletravel.com/awards/about/judging-criteria.htm