With the participation of local authorities, international experts and representatives from 20 countries, the Green Destinations 2024 (GD 2024) conference was officially inaugurated this Wednesday in the event hall of the Dreams hotel and casino in Punta Arenas. The event, which will last for two days, seeks to highlight sustainable tourism initiatives and encourage the exchange of global experiences in the field.
The activity began at 9:00 a.m. with a presentation by the Governor of the Magallanes Region, Jorge Flies, who highlighted the various initiatives that have positioned the region as a benchmark in responsible tourism. Later, the national director of Sernatur, Cristóbal Benítez, addressed the impact of climate change on the Chilean tourism sector, highlighting the need to adopt more sustainable practices.
The opening session was closed by the president of Green Destinations, Albert Salman, who explained the work of the organization at a global level and reflected on the positive and negative effects of tourism in the world.
“I think it is a very important moment to be here with so many tourism experts from 20 countries, with a topic that is relevant to the whole world and is so visible and developing so quickly in Chile and this region. I am very happy to accept Sernatur's proposal and come here to hold the conference,” said Salman about the GD 2024 conference.
The conference includes 15 presentations and workshops where experiences in sustainable destination management will be shared, both from Chile and from other regions of the world.
In this regard, Benítez commented: “I am very satisfied with the attendance at this event. We have people from 20 countries in person, and in particular from Chile we have representatives from almost all the trade unions in the region. This allows us to show the world the good practices and projects that we are developing in sustainable tourism, as well as to share experiences from other parts of the world.”
Benítez also highlighted the active work that the country is leading in order to sustainably develop Chile's destinations. "This is very much in line with what we are working on at a national level and, particularly, in the Magallanes Region, with respect to how we position sustainable tourism in the long term. Today we are working with the National Strategy for Sustainable Tourism with a view to 2035, to address all the axes that contribute to a better development of tourism activity in our country," explained the national authority of Sernatur.
The event will be broadcast in real time through Facebook platforms and the official YouTube channels of Sernatur and Green Destinations.
Green Destinations 2024 promises to be a key platform to promote international cooperation and highlight the potential of Magallanes and Chilean Antarctica as a model of conscious and environmentally friendly tourism.
Source: Sernatur.