Visit Inverness Loch Ness launches its climate action plan for the area
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The Tourism Business Improvement District (TBID) Visit Inverness Loch Ness (VILN) has launched a climate action plan for the destination.
With the current Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) advice stating the need to cut global carbon emissions to 55 per cent below 2017 levels by 2050 to keep the planet warming within 1.5 degrees, VILN has set out targets and guidance for those living and visiting the destination.
Created with help from VisitScotland and the Travel Foundation, the climate action plan for 2022/23 will help the destination monitor, evaluate, and improve its environmental impact.
Commenting on the launch of the climate action plan, Bryony Beck, destination development manager at VILN, said: “We are fortunate enough to promote one of the best known and stunning natural landscapes in the world as a tourism destination.
“We have a responsibility to do this responsibly and sustainably and we are delighted to set out exactly how we will achieve that with our Climate Action Plan for 2022/23.
“Through working collaboratively with stakeholders across our destination, VILN will ensure what it does going forward is in the best interests of our people, our visitors, and most importantly our environment.”
The plan also shows how the destination will meet the five pathways of the Glasgow Declaration and showcases which of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals are being met and which ones are being targeted
The launch was marked with a visit from stakeholders from across the destination at Dores Beach on June 6th, including local MSP Kate Forbes who hailed the plan as the “heart of Nessie”.
Kate Forbes MSP added: “I was pleased to attend the launch of the Visit Inverness Loch Ness Climate Action Plan at Dores beach.
“Tourism businesses recognise the importance of sustainable economic growth and also transitioning to net zero.
“Working collaboratively with stakeholders, Visit Inverness Loch Ness wants to ensure that it represent the interests of the local community, its visitors, and most importantly, the local environment – because that’s partly what draws in the visitors in the first place.
“The plan outlines clearly its climate targets and how it will achieve them.”
