The Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta region is renowned for its natural beauty and biodiversity. In Nature Tourism, products and services focus on sustainability and centre around a natural attraction such as a forest, waterfall, or lake. This kind of tourism tends to attract visitors who are environmentally conscious; they value the natural attributes of the region and are vocal about sharing relevant information with others. The project aims at promoting nature tourism initiatives, emphasising science tourism as a strategy for conserving biodiversity and reducing deforestation in Colombia.
Project implementation encompasses two components:
1. Designing a tourism product based on nature tourism in Santa Marta and its surroundings
First, the offered tourist attractions will be analysed along with the demand and client characteristics. In addition, the environmental conditions will be examined. After the analysis, strategies for developing tourism activities will be designed. These will generate economic alternatives income for the population and contribute to the prevention of deforestation. This assessment will be followed by the design of strategies for developing science tourism activities in the prioritised area, ensuring no deforestation in the territory, protecting critical ecosystems, and generating economic alternatives for the population.
2. Implementing differentiated and high-value tourism products
Local actors benefit from capacity building and will be made aware of the potential of nature tourism. They will be supported to manage the territory as a sustainable tourist destination.
Swisscontact is liaising with local and national actors to implement this project and monitor its effect in reducing deforestation, protecting the ecosystems, and generating income opportunities for the local communities.