Representatives from tourism sector entities met last Wednesday in a Webinar to debate about the future of sustainable tourism. The meeting was held on the channel created for the MARAEY project, the main touristic-real estate hub in Brazil. Acting as moderator was the General Secretary of the Responsible Tourism Institute (RTI) and CEO of Biosphere Spain, Patricio Azcárate, with the participation of Emilio Izquierdo Merlo, CEO of IDB Brasil (the company responsible for MARAEY), Glenn Mandziuk, President and CEO of Thompson Okanagan Tourism Region (TOTA), and Ricardo Mader, Director of JLL Hotels & Hospitality Group.

Mr. Azcárate opened the debate speaking about the importance of tourist destinations being aligned with sustainability, which is the aim of the Biosphere certification stamp granted by the Responsible Tourism Institute (RTI), the organization that was born in 2017 during International Sustainable Tourism year, after conferences sponsored by UNESCO and the World Tourism Organization. In order to obtain it, it is necessary to work on a series of goals divided in three main areas: environment and climate change, economy, culture and social welfare.

During the debate Mr. Izquierdo Merlo highlighted the significance of being part of the Biosphere community. MARAEY is the first private project in the world to receive this certification in the ‘Tourist Destination’ category. With the stamp, the project reinforces its commitment to following the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the more recent guidelines of the Climate Agreement in Paris.

“Our mission with MARAEY is to create not only the most incredible tourist destination in Brazil, but also the most outstanding residential destination. I know that this is an ambitious statement, but we think that we have the strength and the opportunities needed to achieve that goal. The development, close to Rio de Janeiro and the main airports, is located in the municipality of Maricá, with important economic resources, services and natural beauty. MARAEY includes three complementary hotels and an international university of hospitality management; plus, it is located in a privileged place for residences that meet the utmost quality, design and energy efficiency standards, with vast leisure areas and the best services in health, education, shopping, sport and leisure”, explained the executive.

Mr. Mandziuk talked about the TOTA experience in British Columbia, in Western Canada, with an analysis of the progress made in this region that received Gold Biosphere certification in 2017. He showed how they had built responsible and sustainable tourism on values such as economic growth, dialogue with stakeholders and local communities, joining technology with sustainable tourism and adding value to the local DNA.

“It is essential to engage with and insert local communities. The TOTA region has 33 native communities in three different nations. We approached them to know how they would like to participate in tourism, what were their wishes and necessities. It was a process of listening, not a process of speaking. In order to create a meaningful relationship with those communities, collaborative work was required to develop economic opportunities and the progress of local tourism, based on respect and cultural authenticity”, said Mr. Mandziuk.

In his presentation, he also supported the construction of a development that brings progress for everybody, while respecting the history and tradition of the native communities. He also said that a tourist destination for everybody should involve inclusion and accessibility projects. “When we started the process and talked to the communities, 80% of the income generated by tourism came during the first 45 days of the year. This was in 2012. Something would happen in that period and companies would have to close. We all work with the same purpose, in a huge area, and share common relevant values, both for the local community and for entrepreneurs and visitors. In 2018, we managed to extend that period to 110 days, and now we are determined to achieve 200”, states the executive.

To talk about the future, Emilio Izquierdo showed that MARAEY, developed in a coastal area of 844 hectares with 8.5 kilometers of beaches, will be a totally innovative project that will include Maricá and Rio State in the list of the most important tourist destinations in the world. MARAEY aims to become a worldwide benchmark for sustainability, with a sound environmental, economic and sociocultural balance, incorporating tourism, residential properties, services and the creation of the second largest Reserva Particular do Patrimonio Natural (RPPN) of restinga in Rio State. The project will have a land occupation of barely 6.6%, less than half that permitted in the plans.

“The RPPN will be a natural paradise with permanent protection, open to the public, receiving sustained funding from the project, hotel incomes, companies located in MARAEY and residents in the complex. Sustainable tourism will be fostered by assigning 0.7% of total income from the hotels to environmental, sociocultural and educational sustainability projects”, said the CEO of IDB Brasil. In the construction of an integral sustainable destination, Mr. Izquierdo highlighted the importance of public-private collaboration in the development of the MARAEY Project with the support of the Instituto Estatal de Medio Ambiente (INEA), the Maricá municipality, environmental departments from five universities (UFRJ, UFF, UFRRJ, UFES and FURG), NGOs, architects, engineers and specialists.

The area director of Hotels and Hospitality of JLL Hotels & Hospitality Group, Ricardo Mader, closed the meeting by underlining the importance that sustainability has gained in hospitality in recent years. He said that the increase of travelers has overcrowded big tourist cities – mainly in summer– and because of this there is a significant audience looking for new destinations. MARAEY can provide this as a preferential destination and a highly sustainable project that will become a worldwide benchmark.

“Many people today are looking for destinations affording closer contact with the environment, places with less density, with untold experiences. According to the World Travel and Tourism Council, Brazil is the leading country on the list of searches regarding nature, and it is not leveraging that opportunity. Within Latin America, we are the sixth most-searched country in the world. I am proud that MARAEY is following that trend of nature-centered tourism”, he concluded.