• IYE background
  
• UNEP activities for IYE
  
• Outcomes and follow-up projects
  
• IYE documents and publications
  

UNEP Activities

Activities supporting the IYE 2002 and the World Ecotourism Summit in Quebec in May 2002 were conducted as part of UNEP's Tourism Programme mission to ensure that the sustainable use and management of the natural, cultural and man-made environment is an integral part of all tourism development. The 2002 events were carried out through partnerships with the World Tourism Organization (WTO/OMT), The International Ecotourism Society (TIES), Ecological Tourism in Europe (ETE), and others.

UNEP activities included

Coordination of activities for the IYE within UNEP and among other inter-governmental organizations, linking the IYE with the International Year of the Mountains, the Carpathian Ecoregion Initiative, the Sport and Environment Initiative, the Great Apes Survival Project (GRASP), coral tourism related activities (UNEP-WCMC Global Atlas of Coral Reefs), the Regional Seas Programme and the Global Programme of Action.

Organization of preparatory events involving over 3,000 experts to facilitate contributions to the World Ecotourism Summit:

• Europe: St. Johann, Austria 12-15 September 2001 (with WTO/OMT),
  
• NGO and grassroots organizations: New Delhi, India, 24-26 September 2001 (with ETE),
  
• Central America: Belize City, Belize, 26-28 November 2001 (with TIES),
  
• Smal Island Developing States and other small islands: Mahe, Seychelles, 8 -10 December 2001 (with WTO/OMT),
  
• South Asia: Gangtok, India, 17-25 January 2002 (with TIES),
  
• South America: Cuzco, Peru 5-7 February 2002 (with TIES),
  
• Southeast Asia: Chiang Mai, Thailand, 4-7 March 2002 (with TIES),
  
• East Africa: Nairobi, Kenya, 22-24 March 2002 (with TIES),
  
• Arctic Circle: Hemavan, Sweden, 25-28 April 2002 (with TIES),
  
• Web-based Conference, managed by Planeta.com, to allow interested parties not able to attend the preparatory conferences to feed into the IYE process (with WTO/OMT)
  
• World Ecotourism Summit, 19-22 May 2002, Quebec City, Canada, the major landmark of the IYE 2002 (with WTO/OMT, Tourisme Quebec, Canadian Tourism Commission)
  
• Australia, Cairns, Queensland, 21-25 October 2002 (with Ecotourism Australia - the closing event for UNEP's activities).

Summaries of the preparatory events can be found on the WES CD-ROM and in the WES Final Report.

Supporting NGOs, including traditional host communities and indigenous peoples participation at the World Ecotourism Summit, 19-22 May 2002, Quebec City, Canada.

Publications

• UNEP Manual for the IYE, containing orientation for interested parties to collaborate with the Year.
  
  
• A handbook: Ecotourism: Principles, Practices & Policies for Sustainability, containing basic background data and references for governments and practitioners, jointly produced with TIES.
  
  
• A double issue of UNEP's Industry and Environment magazine with case studies on ecotourism presenting successful ecotourism experience from all parts of the world.
  
  
• A joint publication with IUCN and WTO/OMT on protected area visitor management: Sustainable Tourism in Protected Areas: Guidelines for Planning and Management
  
  
• A CD-ROM, distributed at the World Ecotourism Summit, with preparatory conference reports, keynote addresses and 72 presentations from delegates.
  
  
• Final Report of the World Ecotourism Summit, published with WTO, the Canadian Tourism Commission and Tourisme Quebec. Includes regional reports, thematic working group reports, and the Quebec Declaration on Ecotourism.