To mark its 20th anniversary this year, the Adventure Travel Trade Association (ATTA), under the leadership of CEO Shannon Stowell, has now formalised and launched its Sustainability Resource Centre.
“ATTA is committed to guiding businesses toward responsible practices, and over time has produced an abundance of content surrounding sustainability. Now, upon entering a milestone year, ATTA has designed a platform where members and non-members can access a variety of resources on sustainability, including research reports, webinars, toolkits, and courses,” ATTA said in a press release.
Beyond being a repository of information, the Sustainability Resource Centre serves as a dynamic platform for the adventure travel community to explore and gain knowledge in sustainability. It emphasises three guiding principles:
- Educating the community on urgent sustainability matters.
- Equipping individuals and organisations to take action.
- Empowering travellers to contribute to meaningful sustainable practices.
In addition to centralising ATTA’s past and future resources, the centre is also the manifestation of a broader project, ‘Sustainability Walk the Talk Programme’, through which ATTA plans to reshape its sustainability approach and become the torchbearer for the community.
The Sustainability Resource Centre is organised by four main sections of ATTA-produced content: Research, Webinars, Toolkits and Guidelines, and Courses, followed by initiatives, opportunities for collaboration, and resources provided by its partners in sustainability.
Where to begin
“Those new to or in the early stages of prioritising sustainability may want to begin by downloading the sustainability checklists, available free to all ATTA members logged into their Community, Professional, and Business accounts,” ATTA continued.
These tools can be used to identify whether a business is already following sustainable practices or not, and offer helpful ideas, examples, and possible actions to take.
For example, the ‘Sustainability Code of Best Practice’ created by ATTA and Travelife, is a downloadable document that includes a comprehensive and easy-to-follow checklist of practices for a wide range of adventure-related activities and businesses.
“You’ll find everything from best practices when visiting heritage sites to how to ensure that watersports are conducted appropriately,” ATTA concluded.
