Mourne Gullion Strangford Geopark Towards a Sustainable Destination
The Mourne Gullion Strangford UNESCO Global Geopark is committed to becoming a leading sustainable tourism destination where communities, businesses and visitors work together to protect our landscapes, heritage and environment while supporting local livelihoods and strengthening the visitor economy.
The Geopark Towards a Sustainable Destination project will establish and support the Mourne Gullion Strangford Geopark Sustainable Tourism Network— a collaborative network of tourism businesses and stakeholders working collectively to promote and deliver more sustainable tourism practices across the Geopark area.
Convened and supported by Newry, Mourne and Down District Council, the Network will bring together businesses, community organisations and tourism providers who share a commitment to responsible tourism that benefits local people, protects natural and cultural heritage, and contributes positively to the local economy.
The initiative builds upon learning and recommendations identified through the Sustainable Tourism Network Learning Journey to the Burren Ecotourism Network and the Burren and Cliffs of Moher UNESCO Global Geopark, which demonstrated the value of collaborative destination management, sustainability accreditation, business mentoring and environmental monitoring in developing internationally recognised sustainable tourism destinations.
The Sustainable Tourism Network
The Network will initially support a network of approximately 30 businesses and individuals operating across the Geopark area within the following sectors:
- Food and Drink
- Outdoor Activity and Adventure (including Well-being)
- Accommodation
- Culture and Heritage
- Transport
Participating businesses will work together to strengthen sustainable tourism practices, encourage collaboration, share knowledge and collectively promote the Mourne Gullion Strangford Geopark as a sustainable destination of international quality.
Project Objectives
The programme will seek to:
- Enhance sustainable tourism capacity among local businesses through a structured programme.
- Support businesses in adopting environmentally responsible practices and improving sustainability performance.
- Promote Mourne Gullion Strangford as a sustainable tourism destination rooted in landscape, heritage, community and stewardship.
- Facilitate knowledge exchange through study visits, peer learning and best practice sharing.
- Develop and implement a new destination-wide monitoring and measurement system to track environmental impacts including energy, water usage, waste reduction and carbon-related indicators.
- Strengthen collaboration and referral networks between businesses across the Geopark area.
- Encourage long-term behavioural change and continuous improvement in sustainable tourism delivery.
Training and Support Programme
At the heart of the project will be a programme designed to provide practical and achievable support to tourism businesses.
The programme, to be developed in year one of the project, may include:
- Sustainability workshops and mentoring
- Climate action and biodiversity awareness training
- Visitor stewardship and responsible tourism guidance
- Sustainable business operations and resource efficiency support
- Networking and collaboration events
- Best practice site visits and learning exchanges
- Action planning and sustainability goal setting
The approach will focus on practical, measurable and realistic actions that businesses can implement over time, recognising that embedding sustainability is a long-term journey requiring ongoing support and collaboration.
Monitoring and Measurement
A key element of the project will be the development of a new sustainability monitoring and reporting system for participating businesses.
The system will support businesses to measure and track, things such as:
- Energy consumption
- Water usage
- Waste reduction and recycling
- Sustainable sourcing
- Biodiversity and climate actions
- Community engagement activities
The monitoring framework will help demonstrate the collective environmental and economic impact of the Network while supporting businesses to identify opportunities for continuous improvement.
Learning from Best Practice
The project has been informed by international best practice examples including the Burren Ecotourism Network, widely recognised as one of Europe’s leading sustainable tourism destination models. Key learning highlighted the importance of collaboration, authenticity, community ownership, practical sustainability actions and strong leadership in achieving long-term success.
The Mourne Gullion Strangford approach will build upon these principles while developing a model tailored specifically to the needs, geography and communities of the Geopark destination.
Sustainable Development Goals
UNESCO Global Geoparks contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals helping to transform our world for the better.
This project contributes through these SDG:
