Objectives and activities

PROJECT OBJECTIVES

Raising local people’s awareness of the problem of pollution with non-degradable waste in three ecotourism destinations that will generate a movement among local people and authorities to solve the issue over a period of two years.

Generating a movement with the help of tourists and ecotourism destinations to reclaim a green, ecotourism-oriented Romania from the Romania of waste. Organising an advocacy campaign focusing on the Ministry of Economy, Ministry of Environment and the Parliament for the recognition of waste pollution as a national priority and the implementation of concrete measures in the first two years of the newly elected government and parliament.

Raising the profile of the Association of Ecotourism in Romania (AER) by improving the capacity of communicating to the public about the activities carried out and by having a consistent online presence over a period of two years

PROJECT ACTIVITIES

  • information and communication sessions;
  • mapping the areas with waste in each destination;
  • identifying the causes of the presence of waste in the destinations by conducting interviews with local people, local authorities and other stakeholders;
  • creating three local awareness-raising campaigns to increase the understanding of the impact of waste on nature, on human health and on the degree of tourist attractiveness of the area, with an emphasis on civic engagement;
  • initiating a cleaning campaign in each destination by involving the local people and the local businesses;
  • developing a set of measures in partnership with local authorities to stop and prevent pollution with non-degradable waste;
  • creating opportunities for and tools of communication as well as a national awareness-raising campaign for the public around the issue identified and taking a stand by signing a petition to put pressure on the authorities;
  • involvement of professional tourism associations in advocacy activities;
  • advocacy actions with national authorities for the recognition of waste pollution as a national issue and the implementation of concrete measures for non-degradable waste;
  • organizational development.

EXPECTED RESULTS

  • mapping the areas with waste in each destination;
  • conducting interviews with local people and local decision-makers to identify the causes of waste;
  • raising local people’s awareness of the problem of waste by carrying out three communication campaigns in the three destinations;
  • initiating cleaning campaigns in each destination by involving the local people and the local businesses;
  • creating three sets of measures, one for each ecotourism destination, assumed by the local authorities;
  • conducting a national awareness-raising campaign about waste;
  • launching a national petition that aims to reach at least 5,000 signatures to put pressure on national authorities to treat the issue of waste as a national issue;
  • a list of at least 15 signatures in support of the national campaign around the issue of waste from professional tourism associations and destination management organizations;
  • a national conference on the issue of waste in tourism destinations with at least 100 participants;
  • meetings with representatives of the Ministry of Tourism and other national authorities to present the issue of waste;
  • the issue of waste in tourism destinations will reach the agenda of the Government and the specialized committees in the Parliament;
  • better communication of the activity of the Association of Ecotourism in Romania (AER) by presenting updated information on the two websites (press releases, annual reports, information about projects and funders, publications, information about ecotourism destinations, other information about the activity of AER, blog posts).
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