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NEWS

It is time for us to close this first chapter...

24/9/2021

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​The BioCultural Heritage Tourism project team is delighted to invite you to attend the final seminar of the Interreg France (Channel) England project "BCHT - BioCultural Heritage Tourism" on Wednesday 13 and Thursday 14 October 2021 in web-seminar format.
 
To register, please complete the form below:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSf3iXb46HMVXzmnma4I3IycxkhLS0AW7Wh6VncF9ORQDcaDCg/viewform?usp=sf_link

Looking forward to seeing you there! 
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final_seminar_agenda_-_en_version.pdf
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His Royal Highness, The Prince of Wales in North Devon

24/9/2021

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This summer, we were delighted and incredibly proud to receive His Royal Highness, The Prince of Wales in North Devon. During the visit at Tennacott Farm, The Prince attended the Biosphere Natural Capital Seminar and met with members of the BioCultural Heritage Tourism team and partners.
We gave a brief presentation of the project and explained what were are aiming to achieve here in North Devon. We also talked about how tourism can have an effect on wildlife. It was an great honour to receive The Prince of Wales. 

His Royal Highness, The Prince of Wales
(Photo credits: Carl Klinkenborg)
Tourism wildlife
(Photo credits: Carl Klinkenborg)
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Covid-19 and Tourism: Nature regeneration or negative visitor impacts? Reflections sparked by the Living Coast BioCultural Heritage Tourism (BCHT) conference, March 2021

31/3/2021

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Dr Carolyn Petersen, Centre for Rural Policy Research, University of Exeter (@CRPRExeter)

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Brighton beach, part of the Brighton and Lewes UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. Credit: Sarah Ryman.
As a resident of Devon emerging from lockdown I am looking forward with both delight and trepidation to the summer season when we can once again visit our favourite natural places further afield (despite having many beautiful green and blue spaces practically on our doorstep). So personally, I am particularly glad to be able to plan trips to North Devon UNESCO Biosphere Reserve (@NDevonBiosphere) again (even if this might mean arriving at the beach by 9am in order to get a space in the car park). But because of the heat maps of visitor pressure we have been creating as part of the BCHT project (@CRPRExeter) to inform tourism decision-making in the Biosphere, the apprehension is also to do with what another tourist season of ‘staycationing’ will bring in terms of visitor numbers and pressure to some of these sites.

So it was fantastic to hear the perspectives of environmental and tourism policy managers and business participants attending the BCHT Brighton and Lewes Downs UNESCO Biosphere Reserve conference on 16-17th March (@BioculturalT @LivingCoastUK @CRPRExeter). These included insights on visitor pressure, sustainable tourism and Covid-19 impacts in England and France.
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I found the differences in tourism impacts and visitor pressure in the destinations described really fascinating. For instance, in the two French UNESCO Biosphere Reserves, Marais Audomarois and Iles et Mers d’Iroise, during lockdown, visitor pressure was effectively removed and this has led to some sensitive wildlife populations dispersing into and recolonising other areas.

In contrast, at popular beaches in North Devon and Brighton (and along the south coast of England), participants highlighted the greater than usual tourism pressures especially in the summer 2020 period, with issues including overcrowding, traffic gridlock and litter (see press articles e.g. in the Guardian March 2021; and in the Argus; Dorset Online; Yahoo News in 2020).

I was also interested to hear about consequences of another pandemic phenomenon which has occurred in tandem off the coast of England (clearly visible from our nearest beach, Exmouth) and also of Brittany, France, with several large cruise ships being stationed there for months on end, due to restrictions on international travel and cancellation of cruises. Although reported to be more of an attraction in Devon (see e.g. Devon Live, 2021), conference participants from the Iles et Mers d’Iroise Biosphere Reserve, Brittany, described increased discomfort expressed by locals around the kind of tourism represented by these huge ships. This may be due to the fact that they are reported to bring few economic benefits to the islands, and the model of tourism they use seems to be at odds with the local culture of tourism based around the natural environments and local culture.

Restrictions on international travel and the emphasis on local trips has also resulted in a change in the type of visitors being reported in some areas, particularly in the Marais Audomarois Biosphere Reserve and in the Brighton and Lewes Downs UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. In both of these Biosphere Reserves many more local people have been visiting than from elsewhere.

Conference participants reflected on the fact that these changes have also resulted in a significant increase in local people’s interest in the natural environments in their area; and also in some places an acceleration of already emerging interest in the health and wellbeing benefits of spending time outdoors (see e.g. my recent research on the health and wellbeing benefits of visiting natural environments).

But it isn’t clear what the implications of these changes are. How will this carry over into the future? Will the extensive awareness-raising work planned by, for example National Parks in the UK (reported in the Guardian, March 2021), to inform visitors this year, result in fewer negative impacts and visitors showing more respect for sites? Will there again be a concentration in tourism hotspot sites (e.g. popular beaches) or will visitors spread out more widely this year? Will wildlife recolonisation of new habitats persist? Will local people continue to take more of an interest in their local natural environments, and if so, what positive impacts might come out of this? Will the trend towards an increased emphasis on the links between environment and health and wellbeing continue?
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I look forward to being able to enjoy our beautiful wild green and blue spaces at first hand this summer (providing lockdown continues to ease). But I will also be noting with interest how these factors play out and reflecting on how our work can inform future strategic planning for sustainable tourism in the four UNESCO Biosphere Reserves involved in the BCHT project.

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Virtual conference and study tour - The living Coast

26/2/2021

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We are delighted to announce that our third virtual conference and study tour hosted by The living Coast will take place on March 16th-18th, 2021. It will be a great opportunity to talk about strategic planning for sustainable tourism, developing networks and new tourism experiences linked to the local environment, culture and heritage. 
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​If you are interested, please feel free to drop us an email. 


Tourism conference
Conference and study tour - The living Coast
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Discover Braunton Coast and Countryside

12/1/2021

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We are pleased to announce that our partner, Braunton Countryside Centre, is organising some very interesting talks over the winter as part of BCHT about a lovely part of the North Devon Biosphere. 

​Find out more:
https://www.brauntoncountrysidecentre.org/activities/events-calendar/
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Discover Braunton Coast & Countryside
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BCHT seminar in Brittany

11/10/2019

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 The second BioCultural Heritage Tourism seminar took place from 30th September to 2nd October 2019 on the islands of Ushant and Molène, in the heart of the Islands and Iroise Sea Biosphere Reserve.

More than 60 participants were able to discover the Interreg BCHT project, its progress and participate in workshops. 

It was also an opportunity for tourism professionals to exchange and learn about this Biosphere Reserve designated by UNESCO on field trips in Ushant and Molène.




Credit Martin Batt​
UNESCO Biosphere Reserve
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Launch of the Environment house in Molène
Ushant, Phare de Nividic, Brittany, France
The Phare de Nividic, Ushant
Interreg seminar, Ouessant
BCHT Seminar
Ushant Island, Iroise, Brittany
Ushant Island
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BCHT Project is now on Twitter

11/4/2019

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We are pleased to announce the launch of our twitter account.  We will be sharing tweets about the progress of the project.  Please follow and retweet us @BioculturalT
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BCHT presence at EuroMAB Dublin 2019

6/4/2019

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BCHT teams were present at the EuroMAB conference 2019 from 1st to 5th April. It was the first opportunity to present the project to our sister Biospheres.
During some of the morning workshops we discussed climate change monitoring and adaptation, strengthening the status of Biosphere Reserves within EU Policy & Legislation, how Biospheres can contribute to, and be test sites for best practice in EU and International Policy, and to deliver common objectives particularly around social cohesion and regional development. Another topic was Biosphere lansdscapes as resources for human health and well-being and developing and promoting these ecosystem services  within Biospheres.
In the afternoon, we enjoyed a field trip to visit Bull Island where we took part in a seashell identification task, a regular event with tourists.
2019 EuroMAB Conference, Dublin
EuroMAB 2019 Dublin
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EuroMAB workshop, Dublin
Workshop
Field Trip to Bull Island
Field Trip to Bull Island, Dublin
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In the marsh, developing tourism without impacting the environment

6/2/2019

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Audomarois Marsh
Audomarois marsh
From  18 to 20 December 2018, the BCHT partners met in Saint-Omer. ​The opportunity for partners to present the project to Delta FM: 
https://www.deltafm.fr/info-locale/france/region/pas-de-calais/audomarois/dans-le-marais-developper-le-tourisme-sans-impacter-sur-lenvironnement/
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Kick-off Conference

14/11/2018

 
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The kick-off conference took place from 14 to 15 November 2018 at the Saunton Sands Hotel which is adjacent to the core area of the North Devon Biosphere.
kick_off_conference_agenda.pdf
File Size: 432 kb
File Type: pdf
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​About the Interreg France (Channel) England

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