New Report Reveals How Tourism Can Better Serve Communities

Travel

.essb_links.essb_size_m .essb_link_svg_icon svg{height:18px;width:auto}.essb_links.essb_size_m .essb_icon{width:36px !important;height:36px !important}.essb_links.essb_size_m .essb_icon:before{font-size:18px !important;top:9px !important;left:9px !important}.essb_links.essb_size_m li a .essb_network_name{font-size:13px !important;font-weight:400 !important;line-height:12px !important}Forty actions that can help policymakers, Destination Management Organisations (DMOs), and National Tourism Organisations (NTOs) distribute tourism’s benefits more equitably across local communities are outlined in a new report released on Tuesday.
The report, “Creating Equitable Destinations: How to Manage and Distribute Tourism’s Value to Better Serve Communities”, is a collaboration between the Travel Foundation and several institutions, including Breda University of Applied Sciences and the European Tourism Futures Institute.
50%-80% of tourist spend “leaks” from destinations

In light of this summer’s protests in popular tourism destinations, the report examines how tourism often fails to benefit local communities and can exacerbate inequalities. It notes that tourism revenue is frequently concentrated in the hands of a few, with 50 percent to 80 percent of tourist spending “leaking” from the destination, providing little or no benefit locally.
Key recommendations:
– Prioritize local needs: Destination management should focus on local community needs, identifying which groups benefit from tourism and which bear its burdens.– Address equity issues: Simply increasing tourism or attracting high-spending visitors does not guarantee equity and may worsen existing disparities.– Broader community value: Destination managers should recognize tourism’s potential to contribute to broader community goals, such as urban regeneration and public infrastructure development.
Photo source: Travel Foundation
According to the report. tourism has significant potential to drive societal change, and DMOs are increasingly acknowledging their role in supporting community objectives.
The report features 25 case studies demonstrating how tourism has positively impacted local entrepreneurship and community well-being.
Among the 40 mechanisms proposed are:
– Taxes and revenue-sharing initiatives– Business incubation and training programs– Community enterprises and volunteering programs– Product development integrating local culture and environmental protection
“This report is essentially a roadmap for a more equity-driven management approach,” said Bernadett Papp, the report’s lead author, adding that it emphasizes identifying community goals, reviewing evidence-based mechanisms, and considering practical guidance for implementation.”
“Implementing these mechanisms will require destination managers to strengthen partnerships with local agencies and embrace a participatory approach with community groups. Policymakers and DMOs should also pay particular attention to balancing foreign investment and economic leakage, resident access to tourism-related opportunities and services, and retaining control of local resources such as land and housing.”
The report concludes that a more equitable tourism system can only come by strengthening the hand of destination governance, underpinned by a mandate to serve the whole community.
Photo source: Travel Foundation
The report is available for free here, and a launch webinar will be held on Wednesday, October 23.
The Travel Foundation is a leading global NGO and charity that works in partnership with governments, businesses, and communities to develop and manage tourism in a way that maximizes the benefits for communities and the environment. Founded in 2003, it has worked in over 30 countries around the world.

Wampanoag author children’s book at center of Texas library book controversy

Arts & Culture, Books

A children’s book about the Wampanoag tribe, written by Aquinnah author Linda Coombs, was ordered returned to the nonfiction section of an East Texas library system on Tuesday, a week after a citizens committee deemed it a work of fiction.In Montgomery County, north of Houston, “Colonization and the Wampanoag Story,” which Coombs wrote in 2023, was challenged by an anonymous library cardholder for unknown reasons in a process the Texas county formed this year to review and make decisions on books some might consider controversial. Last week, through the process, Coombs’ book, which details the history and brutalization of the Wampanoag people that first inhabited New England from pre-contact through start of European colonization to modern day, was moved to the fiction section.On Tuesday, the Montgomery County Commissioners Court ordered Coombs’ book moved back to the nonfiction section of its library system.“It needs to go back,” Commissioner James Noack said at the meeting Tuesday morning. “There should be no confusion — something is either true or not true, and the committee does not have the right to decide if something is not true.”“We would all agree with that,” Montgomery County Judge Mark Keough said.In an interview Tuesday, Coombs said she was used to the story of indigenous peoples being challenged.“I had never experienced anything like this before but [it] isn’t anything new to me,” said Coombs, who lives in the Mashpee Wampanoag community. “Because people just don’t want to deal with the actual history of what happened to native people in order for this country to happen.”Coombs is a tribal historian who has worked across Massachusetts museums for more than 30 years. Penguin Random House published her book in September 2023 as part of its “Race to the Truth” series, a five-book collection of middle-grade chapter books about North American history written by the people they are about.In September in Montgomery County, an unknown library cardholder “challenged” Coombs’ book, for reasons that have not been made public.In March, a five-person county review committee was appointed to privately review children‘s books in Montgomery County, which removed librarians from the process. They had total oversight over books challenged until commissioners took action on Tuesday, which put the committee on hold and nullified its actions since Oct. 1.Coombs’ book describes Wampanoag history, including how they tended to agriculture, prepared for changing seasons and traditions, but also how the “Age of Exploration” often written about brought the “the Great Dying” period of disease that killed tens of thousands of Indigenous people in the Bay State.The decisions come amidst a trend of book challenges and reviews across conservative states. Data compiled by the American Library Association found that in the 94 attempts to restrict book access in Texas in 2023, 2397 total titles, not unique, were challenged.Coombs explained her frustration with the idea that colonization and the events that extinguished the Indigenous population in North America is a “controversial” subject.“It happened and that‘s it,” she said. “When you want to whitewash it, get in there and change the meaning and what happened, that‘s when it becomes controversial.”Izzy Bryars can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her @izzybryars.

Florida Everglades restoration is progressing, but scientists say it needs improvement

Science and Health

The long-running effort to restore the Florida Everglades has seen progress at a “remarkable pace” in the past two years, according to a new report.But more could be done to bolster those efforts, said the report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, which reviews Everglades restoration progress every two years at the request of the federal government’s builders, the Army Corps of Engineers.Their recommendations include incorporating the varied ramifications of climate change into restoration plans, and doing a better job of partnering with the Seminole and Miccosukee indigenous tribes, which have lived in the Everglades for centuries.Working closely with tribes would better protect cultural heritage tied to the land, and give biologists a deeper understanding of the ecosystem over time — tribal knowledge of how the Everglades works that has been passed down over centuries.According to the report, Everglades restoration is about both ecosystems and indigenous cultures.Here’s a look at some of the new report’s findings and recommendations.Climate change and the EvergladesThe report addresses what’s known as the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP), a federal-state program that encompasses 68 projects aimed at restoring and preserving the Everglades ecosystem.The plan was signed into law in 2000, when engineers designed the infrastructure projects needed to pull off all the improvements. The goal is to restore the Everglades seasonal water flow as closely as possible to what it was 150 years ago, and thus restore a crippled ecosystem.The recent report delves into how climate change is affecting Everglades restoration.As of 2024, all climate projections for South Florida indicate higher temperatures, which could drive both drier and wetter weather, the report said. That means both warmer weather, and unpredictable rain levels.A warmer atmosphere can hold more moisture, and extreme rain events in South Florida — such as the 24 inches of rain that fell in one day in Fort Lauderdale in April 2023 — show how vulnerable the region’s 20th century infrastructure is to the climate in the 21st century.Much of the restoration plan is essentially supersized plumbing to move water from Lake Okeechobee, clean it and send it south into the Everglades and eventually Florida Bay.The effort also curtails sending polluted Lake Okeechobee water to estuaries on the east and west coast of the state, where it harms inshore waters, tourism and local businesses.The scientists behind the report are concerned about restoration objectives, given the possible effects of a warmer climate.Homes in Weston are seen adjacent to the Everglades. (Joe Cavaretta/South Florida Sun Sentinel, Aerial support provided by LightHawk)According to the report, sea levels have risen an average of 2.4 mm per year in South Florida over the last century, and the rate has been accelerating.Since 2006, the sea level has been rising at a rate of between 6 mm and 9 mm per year, for a total over rise over the last 100 years of 9.4 inches.The result is saltwater intrusion, which has been exacerbated by decades of reduced freshwater flow down from Lake Okeechobee. Freshwater flow has been cut by 70%, allowing salt water to creep in.Over the past century, freshwater wetlands bordering salt water have receded inland by 2 miles and a low-productivity “white zone” has shifted inland by nearly a mile.The restoration plan’s goal of increasing freshwater flow can reduce the rate of saltwater intrusion caused by sea-level rise, said the report.The report also outlined what climate change could do to the already handicapped ecosystem.A warmer Everglades can result in:— Altered alligator and crocodile sex ratios, which are determined by temperatures in the nest.— Breeding changes in fish and amphibians.— Heat stress in native fish, reducing populations of fish, and animals that eat them.— More virulent diseases, and thus greater mortality, both for aquatic and terrestrial animals.— Stress on fish and plants due to less dissolved oxygen in the water.— Disrupted bird migrations.As a result, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine recommended that planners:— Develop a set of climate-change scenarios to use consistently across all components of planning and restoration. The range of scenarios should be used to assess system vulnerability as temperatures and precipitation changes, and sea levels rise.— Integrate ecological and physical modeling as well as up-to-date data from a wide array of science sources.— Regularly revise the operational plan for the entire system based on how the climate is changing and any extreme weather events. The aim is to ensure anticipation of and planning for a wide range of conditions.Some of the progress that has been made in recent years includes the completion of three miles of bridges along the Tamiami Trial, which had acted as a dam to natural flow. The bridges allow more fresh water to flow into Shark River Slough and reach Florida Bay. A recently constructed seepage barrier between the Everglades and suburban Miami means more water can flow south as well.On top of that, the Army Corps of Engineers recently broke ground on what many call the crown jewel of the whole $23 billion enterprise, a reservoir to the south of Lake Okeechobee designed to store water, clean it in marsh areas, and send it south where it’s needed.Indigenous knowledgeThe Seminole and Miccosukee indigenous tribes have lived in the Everglades for centuries, and have a “deep and unique relationship” with the lands, waters, animals and rhythms of the Everglades, the report said.“Indigenous knowledge spans much longer timeframes than western scientific studies and can therefore enhance understanding of historical ecological conditions and modern deviations from baseline conditions.”The report emphasized that the tribes’ knowledge of the ecosystem’s past and present, passed down through generations over hundreds of years, could be valuable to decision-making.To improve the situation, the report outlined a protocol to improve connections with the tribes and include them in real decision-making.The report also suggested incorporating indigenous knowledge into restoration planning and management.For example, the Everglades lost at least 70% of its tree island land cover since 1940 as the land has been cut up into sections that either dry out or flood.One of the restoration plan’s goals is to create a more natural water flow that brings the islands back.A teardrop shaped tree island in the Everglades. The slight change in topography can support a wide range of plant and animal life crucial for Everglades restoration. . (Joe Cavaretta/South Florida Sun Sentinel, Aerial support provided by LightHawk)In its pristine state, the Everglades was covered in a patchwork of sawgrass and tree islands — slightly raised areas where diverse plants and trees could grow.These teardrop-shaped islands provided habitat for a rich array of wildlife, and tribes lived on them, farmed and hunted on them and conducted cultural ceremonies on them.The islands also provided “critical refuge and protection against disease, slavery, massacre, and expulsion by European colonizers and the U.S. government,” the report said.But by 1960, the last family still living on the tree islands left due to “uninhabitable conditions.”The tribes know a lot about the islands, and how they functioned for eons. The report said that their “unparalleled understanding of the ecosystem” could drive decision-making in a way that benefits tribes and environment.The report argues that more indigenous knowledge needs to be blended with science to truly restore the Everglades.“Careful consideration of tribal connections to the land and their knowledge of the ecosystem will help achieve a more holistic biocultural restoration of the Everglades.”Right now, there’s no agreed-upon way among scientists to measure the performance of tree islands.The report suggests restarting a tree-island analysis effort, and including the hundreds of years’ worth of indigenous knowledge in the process.The report also said agencies should work with the tribes to consider not just ecosystem improvement, but also cultural impacts as part of performance “so that biocultural restoration can be achieved.”“Tree island performance measures should inform water operations not only to get the water right,” the report said, “but also to support the livelihoods, cultures, and identities of the people who have called the Everglades home for centuries.”Bill Kearney covers the environment, the outdoors and tropical weather. He can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Instagram @billkearney or on X @billkearney6. Originally Published: October 23, 2024 at 6:49 a.m.

MIPCOM: John Turturro, Melissa Leo Films Lead Mediapro’s Slate of English-Language Content

Arts & Culture, Film & TV

Spanish studio Mediapro has unveiled its slate of English-language content in the U.S. and Canada at MIPCOM Cannes on Wednesday, including a new film written and directed by and starring John Turturro.

Head of Mediapro Studio in the U.S. and Canada J.C. Acosta spoke with 24 producer Evan Katz, head of unscripted at Mediapro Pam Healey, CEO Laura Fernandez Espeso, TV producer Ran Tellem and Oscar-winning writer-director Juan-José Campanella.

Espeso began: “Our strategic approach in the U.S. aligns perfectly with our initiatives in other key territories, emphasizing the creativity of the talent, but also relevance and reach and, of course, diversity, which is a priority in our company.” It was over to Acosta, who spoke optimistically and passionately about “writing a new chapter in the U.S. and Canada, doubling down on English language content,” after Mediapro North America was unveiled six months ago.

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Their fully-fledged English-language content strategy is beginning to shape up with a video message from John Turturro revealing his adaptation of Susan Sheehan’s Pulitzer prize-winning book Is There No Place on Earth for Me? Turturro will write, direct, and star in the project.

Turturro said: “It’s a story about a brilliant woman who suffers with schizophrenia and her family, the journey that they go through, traveling through the labyrinth of the mental health system. I’ve always resisted doing one of these kinds of films because I’ve had personal experience in growing up with a brother who also suffered with schizophrenia.” He continued, “Once I read the book, I was really enthused that someone had captured all its complexities and humor and lust and manipulations and hopes and dreams.”

Oscar winner Melissa Leo (The Fighter) will lead Mother Wolf, about a retired grandmother, on the verge of a trip of a lifetime, who suddenly becomes caretaker of her brood of grandchildren. Suzi Yoonessi (Unloveable, Daphne & Velma) directs. Matt Walsh (Veep) and Arian Moyaed (Succession) will also star. “We stand on the shoulders of Mediapro’s film history. One of the things that Mediapro loves is an iconic female lead.”

From Daniel Burman comes Witness 36, about a woman who helps create new identities for people in witness protection, falling in love with one of the men she helped. Emmy-winning producer Evan Katz, signed on as showrunner and known for his hit series 24, said: “The premise is fantastic. It’s rare that it does not feel like a version of something you’ve seen before — a woman falling in love with her own creation has these thematic echoes [such as] Freud and Frankenstein. The show has really big stakes, but the story itself is very personal, which is exactly what I look for and what I think leads to success.”

An original half-hour episodic series by Ran Tellem (Homeland, The Head) is I Love the Prime Minister about a 33-year-old woman searching for a relationship in the world of modern dating — but she also happens to be the Prime Minister. Matt Hastings, a co-executive producer on The Handmaid’s Tale is also attached.

Tellam said: “TV is focused on YA, young adults. I think we should open up a new genre, a new age group, which is adults who are young, just like our character. She’s 33, she has everything she needs to be a prime minister. She’s powerful, she’s smart, she’s tenacious, she’s focused. She has achieved everything, but not really everything, because being young means you’re also yearning for something else, a relationship, a partner, a love.”

Campanella, who won the Academy Award for best foreign film for The Secret in Their Eyes spoke about the series adaptation of his Argentine film Son of the Bride also nominated for an Oscar. Campanella will write and direct the project: “I’ve been seeing lately that movies and television have veered to the exotic, to the outlandish, to the dystopian in a way,” Campanella siad. “And some great comedies that are very genre-bending and or transgressive, the kind of human comedy that I like to do, and I’d like to watch, is very scarce.”

Unscripted chief Healey also unveiled projects lined up under her remit. The long-running Spanish gameshow format of Catch Me If You Can will be brought to U.S. buyers. The show has more than 10,000 episodes in Spain and The Floor‘s Anthony Carbone will adapt the format for the U.S. as executive producer and showrunner.

A true crime documentary called Hollywood Homicide: Robert Blake will look at the life of the actor who, once famed for his roles in In Cold Blood and Baretta, was accused of the 2001 murder of his wife Bonny Lee Bakley. The story is explored through the lens of his son, Noah, “who’s always wondering what really happened,” Healey said.