GREEN DESTINATIONS STORY AWARDS | NIUE WINS ISLANDS AND SEASIDE CATEGORY
The 2021 Green Destinations Story Awards took place last Friday, 12 March. The globally recognised award ceremony showcased the most inspirational stories of resilient tourism practices from the 2020 Top 100 Competition – sponsored by ITB and GLP Films.
Applicant ECO Destinations Lord Howe Island, Townsville and Niue Island (South Pacific) were selected as nominees for the Green Destinations Story Awards category ‘Islands and Seaside’. Niue was selected as one of the three finalists within the category and was announced the winner in Friday evening. Ecotourism Australia congratulate Niue on this international achievement.
Niue’s story centred around their journey to becoming a ‘Dark Sky Nation’, ensuring a sustainable future for their skies through both projection of the important aerial wildlife species, preservation of cultural astrological stories for future generations and an opportunity for innovative employment through night sky tourism. You can read Niue’s story here.
Ecotourism Australia’s Chief Executive Rod Hillman said he was thrilled that one of Ecotourism Australia’s applicant ECO Destinations had won this prestigious award.
“Becoming a successful ECO Destination is about sharing stories and experiences, Niue’s success shines light on the opportunity that exists for destinations beginning their ECO Destination journey”, he said.
Only destinations that are part of the 2020 Top 100 list were eligible for nomination to the Green Destinations Story Awards, in one of the following categories:
- Communities and Culture
- ITB Earth
- Nature and Ecotourism
- Islands and Seaside
- Covid and Tourism
- Green Destinations: People’s Choice
In selection for this award, Green Destinations assessed criteria such as: how innovative the approaches are; how effective they are to solve real problems in tourism sustainability; and to what extent they can be applied elsewhere.
Congratulations again to Niue Island who won the ‘Islands and Seaside’ category. As international borders re-open, visitors have the unique opportunity to share in the world’s first and best Dark Sky experience.
To find out more about the 2021 Green Destinations Story Awards and its winners, click here.
To find out more about Ecotourism Australia’s ECO Destination program, click here.
For questions and comments, please contact:
Alyssa Sanders, Programs Manager, Ecotourism Australia
Ecotourism Australia (EA) is a not for profit, membership-based organisation inspiring environmentally sustainable and culturally responsible tourism. Internationally recognised through the Global Sustainable Tourism Council, EA designs and delivers certification programs for tourism products and destinations, assuring travellers that these are backed by a strong commitment to sustainability and quality. For more information visit www.ecotourism.org.au.
Green Destinations Foundation is a non-profit organisation for sustainable destination development and recognition, based in the Netherlands.
[all images supplied by Niue Tourism]