Aqaba qualified to enter a program aimed at placing the Jordanian port city among the global Green Destinations Top 100 stories in implementing sustainable tourism standards, through two success stories presented by Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority (ASEZA) within this program. The first success story was titled: “Integrating and Rehabilitating Local Communities in Tourism Sector,” and the second focused on biodiversity and nature protection, (Aqaba Bird Observatory), according to an ASEZA statement. Additionally, Aqaba qualified to join 100 tourist destinations that achieve sustainable tourism standards in this program, the statement said. During the annual Green Destinations 2023 Conference in Tallinn, Estonia, Aqaba Bird Observatory won Green Destinations Top 100 Stories award within standards aimed to protect biodiversity and nature. Head of ASEZA tourism product development head division, Thelma Radwan, participated as a keynote speaker in a dialogue session, entitled “Tourism Destination Management,” to clarify ASEZA’s role in sustainability of Aqaba Bird Observatory, in cooperation with the Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature (RSCN) as a key tourism product in the city of Aqaba. The observatory, she noted, is the first artificial perch aimed to enabling adaptation activities to the climate challenges that threaten environment and biodiversity. Radwan added that this vision was achieved by implementing a project to reuse water to protect birds and create a specialized environmental tourism product for bird-watching tourism, which is a key type of eco-tourism that is growing globally.
Source: Jordan News Agency