Year 2005

Project Type Pilot Project, project with multiplying effect (2000-2006)

Status completed

Country EE-Estonia

Marketing Text More and more holidaymakers are seeking adventure in the wilderness, and maintaining a balance between visitors and nature reserves has become an important issue. According to the World Tourism Organisation, nature tourism generates approximately 7% of all international travel expenditure, and is growing at an estimated 5% per annum. The importance of this is recognised by the U.N., who declared 2002 the year of ECOTOURISM. On the other hand, there are not sufficiently educated and skilled staffs in already working ecotourism enterprises and not sufficiently educated guides in rural tourism, especially in ecotourism.

Summary During the project period (2005-2007)the programme of ecotourism worked out with 14 partners from Estonia, Finland, Poland and Italy.There are 9 modules described and teaching/learning materials incl.

Description The main objective of this project is to develop special programmes for education and training in the area of ecotourism in accordance with the principles of lifelong learning. The programmes are meant for

1. Students who choose tourism as their vocational training program and want to specialize in ecotourism. As ecotourism is a new direction in tourism, in many regions across Europe there are not sufficient programmes about ecotourism in the initial vocational education and training system

2. People who already work in the tourism sector, e.g. entrepreneurs, guides, etc. who want to broaden their knowledge or expand into rural and/or ecotourism. This programme will also help build the bridge between tourism couriers (through guides) and ecotourism entrepreneurs

3. People who live in rural communities, in areas that have ecotourism potential, in areas where tourism offers the possibility of new local development (new work places, employment). The people living in these areas often have a considerable “silent knowledge”, i.e. knowledge and understanding of their own individual areas; the program will help them to learn how to introduce their knowledge of the surrounding nature to the tourists.

Themes     Lifelong learning
    Vocational guidance
    Ecology
    Labor market
    Sustainability
    Others
    Enterprise, SME

Sectors     Education
    Accommodation and Food Service Activities
    Other Service Activities
    Arts, Entertainment and Recreation

Product Types DVD
program or curricula
teaching material

Product information Structure of the curriculum:
I Organization of studies
II Tourism impact on environment
III Safety and Wilderness skills
IV Ecotourism marketing
V Foreign language
VI Guiding and tour leading
VII Cultural and natural heritage
VIII Ecotourism management
IX Ecotourism internship/placement

Projecthomepage www.ecoll.ee