Tourism experiences that have sustainable certification have dominated the winners at the State and Territory Tourism Awards held around Australia over the past month. 

“Forty of the winners announced in ceremonies across the country are Eco, Respecting Our Country (ROC), or Climate Action certified tourism operators,” Ecotourism Australia CEO, Ms Kym Cheatham stated.

“This demonstrates that certified tourism operators are the highest standard quality tourism experiences in Australia.”
 
Tourism businesses who undertake certification make a commitment to sustainable practices and the provision of a quality experience for the traveller.
 
“These organisation’s commitment to environmental best practice, business ethics and social and cultural responsibilities ensure a quality product and ultimately, deliver on Australia’s reputation as a tourist destination.” Ms Cheatham said.

“The Australian tourism industry and most importantly the tourism experience is richer for the efforts of these organisations.”
 
Certification has long been used as a tool for improvement and as a guideline to determine how a business meets current best practice standards.

It has also resulted in Australia gaining global recognition as a leading ecotourism destination, however recent reports show the industry is beginning to fall behind other countries in areas such as innovation.
 
Jungle Surfing Canopy Tours and Daintree Discovery Centre, who each received honours in the in the recent Queensland Tourism awards, carry certifications including Advanced Ecotourism, Climate Action Leader, and Green Travel Leader.

“Our team are passionate about our unique environment and we all recognise that our livelihood and the future protection of the Daintree depends on conservation and sustainability” said Jungle Surfing Canopy Tours managing director Sheena Walshaw. 

“Travellers today are looking for assurance that their great experiences don’t come at the environment’s expense, and so they should. The ECO Certification Program provides that assurance, and we’re really proud to have achieved the Advanced level certification. 

"It’s not an easy process, but it’s great to know - and for our customers to know - that we’re doing the right thing for the future of the planet. I think there’s a correlation between awards and certifications because some of us clearly choose that strategy to market our products.

Ms Walshaw said the support of the State, regional, and local tourism bodies was invaluable to their business.

"I couldn’t begin to put a dollar value on the coverage we get as part of the regional branding campaigns." she said. 

Other certified Queensland tourism products to take out awards include Fantasea Cruises, Fraser Island Discoveries, and Skyrail Rainforest Cableway.

More about certification...

ECO Certification

Ecotourism Australia introduced the world first ECO certification program in 1996 and now has more than 1000 tourism products certified through their programs. To be ECO certified 50% of the tourism experience must be nature focused.
 
Respecting Our Culture (ROC) Certification

Developed by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to provide recognition of cultural protocols and authenticity. Indigenous cultural experiences offer a competitive advantage to the Australian tourism industry.

In a competitive industry environment, tourism businesses that operate at national industry standards have the greatest potential to benefit from opportunities available. A business with ROC accreditation will be recognised in the industry as having sustainable business and environmental practices.
 
Climate Action Certification

Dedicated to ranking efforts to reduce carbon emissions.  It is designed for all sectors of the tourism industry, regardless of size and level of carbon reduction already undertaken. 

It includes accommodation, attractions, tours, transport, restaurants, travel agents, tourism commissions and industry bodies.  An industry survey by Roy Morgan Research ranked climate change as the number one concern for the tourism industry.  Forecasters and consumer research also suggest environmental concern is the most influential consumer trend for a generation.
 
Green Travel Leader

These companies are trail blazers in responsible travel having being ECO certified for 10 years or more. Long before most people were thinking about green issues, these businesses saw the importance of the environment to tourism and wanted to ensure they behaved in a responsible ethical and sustainable way.
 
Eco Lodges of Australia

Australia is globally recognised for outstanding ecotourism experiences. Eco Lodges of Australia offers the ECO conscious traveller responsible, ethical and sustainable ECO experiences in Australia’s most amazing natural locations. A tourism experience must carry Advanced ECO certification to become an Eco Lodge of Australia.