University of Otago, Thursday 30 November 2006
The future of New Zealand’s clean, green tourism brand is up for debate at two upcoming international conferences being held at the University of Otago.
Next week, the University’s Department of Tourism, based in the School of Business, will host the Atlas Asia Pacific ‘Tourism after Oil’ and the Tourism and Hospitality Research ‘Beyond Nature’ conferences.
The conferences, held consecutively, will feature national and international experts in nature tourism, international trade, environmental management and destination branding who will present various views on the need for a long-term perspective on tourism in the Asia-Pacific region.
Tourism Associate Professor James Higham says New Zealand has long been promoted and, arguably, studied in terms of its natural dimensions.
“The ‘100% Pure’ campaign and an emphasis on ‘clean and green’ branding has had great benefits in attracting visitors to New Zealand, but how sustainable is the focus on nature in the long term?
