2018 Seoul GSTC Sustainable Tourism Training

The first GSTC Sustainable Tourism Training session in Seoul was co-organized by PlayForest and Millennium Destinations, and took place on June 30 and July 1, 2018 at the training center of the Cultural Corps  of Korean Buddhism. 

The two GSTC co-trainers, Dr. Mihee KANG, GSTC GSTC Director for Asia-Pacific and Chairperson of PlayForest, and Catherine GERMIER-HAMEL, Founder & CEO of Millennium Destinations, introduced sustainable tourism rationale and principles, GSTC and its different programmes, as well as the whole sets of GSTC criteria for the tourism businesses and for destinations.

Catherine GERMIER-HAMEL took this opportunity to introduce her own definition of sustainable as "An approach of tourism (whether it is considered as a human activity or an economic sector) which seeks to conciliate the needs and experiences of all involved tourism stakeholders, including the visitors, the industry, and the host communities, while optimizing their immediate and future effects – direct, indirect, and induced - on the local economies, societies, cultures, and environments. In the end, sustainable tourism may be defined as 'a strategic vision (or visionary strategy), a business model, and a lifestyle'".

The audience included professionals from various backgrounds and industries, such as representatives of certification bodies, academia, travel agencies, tourism startups, etc.

Three guest speakers shared their experiences, practices and insights on sustainable tourism, including Mr. SUK Hwangbo, General Manager of Ibis Budget in Seoul (Accor Ambassador) in charge of the Accor's Planet21 Program in Korea, Mr. NA Hyowoo, CEO of Good Travel, and Mr. KIM Yong Tae, Assistant manager at the Marketing Team of the Cultural Corps  of Korean Buddhism. 

More informatioon about GSTC Training Programme here. 

Photo by KANG Mihee