2 February 2012: World Wetlands Day! 

This year's focus on responsible wetland tourism

Wetlands and their wildlife are a key part of the global tourism experience: from visiting the underground karst wetlands in Slovenia’s Skocjan caves, to experiencing the breath-taking sunsets at the Port Launay Ramsar Site in the Seychelles, the world’s Ramsar Sites and other wetlands have much to offer the adventurous tourist.

With half of international tourists traveling to wetlands of all types, but particularly in coastal areas, the tourism expenditure linked to wetlands can be quite significant. Globally, the economic activity generated by travel and tourism represents around 5% of GDP and an estimated 6-7% of the world’s jobs. But of course poorly managed tourism can have negative impacts on wetland resources and local livelihoods.

As Ramsar’s Secretary General, Anada Tiéga, stresses that this year’s theme is the “opportunity to focus on key stakeholders who can help to ensure that tourism in wetlands is sustainable and that any tourism development in and around wetlands in the future is carried out following Ramsar’s principles of wise use.”