The project

The Blue Tourism Initiative is a global multi-stakeholder innovation program focused on the environmental management, governance, and planning of coastal and maritime tourism in three marine regions: the Mediterranean, the Western Indian Ocean, and the Caribbean. The project supports the participatory development of sustainable blue tourism initiatives through policy actions and a multi-stakeholder approach to inform the scalability of sustainable blue tourism in other regions. The Blue Tourism Initiative was launched in June 2022, and it is a 4,3 million euro project that will last 4 years - from 2022 to 2026.

Objectives of the Blue Tourism Initiative

• Assessing the current global and regional situation of blue tourism by focusing on the three targeted marine regions, and on challenges and opportunities to recommend policy directions for sustainable blue tourism development

• Supporting and monitoring the implementation of sustainable blue tourism initiatives in selected pilot sites in the Mediterranean, Western Indian Ocean, and the Caribbean.

• Informing and supporting the Integration of sustainable blue tourism management and governance at the regional policy level, sharing best practices, and raising awareness among local, national, and regional stakeholders.

The Blue Tourism Initiative is co-led by the Institute for Sustainable Development and International Relations (IDDRI) and the Spanish Think and Do Tank eco-union. It is co-funded by the French Facility for Global Environmental (FFEM), UNEP and GIZ, and implemented with three partners responsible for the project’s activities in each region: The Centre for Mediterranean Cooperation of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN Med) in the Mediterranean; Coastal Oceans Research and Development in the Indian Ocean (CORDIO East Africa) in the Western Indian Ocean; and the Caribbean Natural Resources Institute (CANARI) in the Caribbean.

Geographical scope