Sub Project 2 - Antigua and Barbuda
Ecotourism training courses and co-management of eco-sites on Antigua and Barbuda
Formation à l'ecotourism et co-gestion des sites à Antigue et à la Barbude
The Environmental Awareness Group (EAG) is one of the oldest and most active community based NGOs in the Eastern Caribbean, interacting vigorously with both public and private sectors to promote environmental education and training.
Despite its reputation as a classic Caribbean "sun, sea and sand" holiday destination, Antigua and Barbuda have some 10 areas of natural and scenic interest scattered along the shores and inland, which are currently being sought out by tourists. To cater for this interest there are now 9 tour operators on the island promoting eco-tours' to these sites, attracting around 60,000 visitors a year. Unfortunately all ten sites have, in a sense, become victims of their own beauty and are starting to show signs of serious degradation. This is not only caused by the sheer number of tourists now visiting the sites but also by the lack of awareness of the tour operators themselves on how to use the sites responsibly and in an environmentally sensitive way.
The project aims to raise awareness and educate tour operators, government officials and other local site users about the need to manage these eco sites sustainably.
A series of training courses will be given on natural history, site and visitor management, monitoring, and marketing strategies for the promotion of sustainable eco tourism, so that a sense of stewardship will be built up amongst the tour guides, leading to the establishment of a collaborative management agreement for the different eco sites.
