C138/09
The Ningaloo Tourism Futures Forums
In Carnarvon on Thursday May 22
1.00pm-3.00pm
Lotteries House Carnarvon
In Coral Bay on Thursday 22 May
7.00pm-9.00 pm in the FESA Shed
Funded by the CSIRO’s Flagship Collaboration Fund and the
Sustainable Tourism Cooperative Research Centre
Future sustainable tourism scenarios for Ningaloo developed by Curtin University of Technology researchers will be explored at the Ningaloo Tourism Futures Forums on Thursday 22 May in Carnarvon and Coral Bay.
The Carnarvon Forum will be held from 1.00pm-3.00pm in Lotteries House and the Coral Bay Forum will be held from 7.00pm-9.00pm in the FESA Shed.
The Forums are the outcome of a series of Ningaloo Tourism Futures Workshops in 2007 that gathered information from local tourism operators, local authorities such as the Shires of Carnarvon and Exmouth, and representatives from public agencies and local industries.
The Ningaloo Tourism Futures Workshops were held last year as part of the Ningaloo Tourism Destination Modelling Project led by Curtin’s Professor David Wood and his researchers Dr Tod Jones and Dr Michael Hughes.
Professor Wood said the prototype Ningaloo Tourism Destination Model will be unveiled and demonstrated at the Forums.
“The Ningaloo Tourism Destination Model is a unique and innovative tool for use in determining the social, economic and environmental impacts of tourism along the Ningaloo coast,” Professor Wood said.
“The Model works by producing a representation of tourists’ experiences and impacts and how these may change under different development and management scenarios,” he said.
“The Model will inform tourism planning along the Ningaloo coast and it will be freely provided to the region when it is completed.
“The Forums in Carnarvon and Coral Bay will also provide an opportunity to discuss future data collection and an overview of the data we have collected so far – including an eye opening snapshot of tourism in the region in 2007,” Professor Wood said.
A similar forum is being held in Exmouth on May 23.
The Ningaloo Tourism Destination Model is a project of the CSIRO Wealth from Oceans Flagship’s Ningaloo Collaboration Cluster and is funded by CSIRO’s Flagship Collaboration Fund and the Sustainable Tourism Cooperative Research Centre (CRC). This is the second year of the three year project that will develop a scenario planning tool.
This Project is one of five key models under the Ningaloo Collaboration Cluster which combines the research capabilities of six universities including Curtin University of Technology, Murdoch University, The University of Western Australia, Edith Cowan University, the University of Queensland, and the Australian National University, CSIRO’s Wealth from Oceans National Research Flagship and the Sustainable Tourism CRC. It brings together scientists and experts who are looking at how people interact with the Ningaloo Reef and coming up with a carefully managed development plan for the iconic region and its ecosystem. The partners are investing more than $12 million in this collaboration over four years.
For more information on the Ningaloo Tourism Futures Forums contact Curtin’s Dr Tod Jones at T.Jones@curtin.edu.au, 08 9266 4709 or 0439 828 952.
