Blue Voices

In an effort to support the development of sustainable tourism in Indonesia, the WWF Indonesia Foundation makes it happen through the Signing Blue program. On 15 and 17 December 2021, Signing Blue carried out outreach activities aimed at expanding information regarding the Signing Blue program, especially in tourism destinations. This activity was divided into two sessions, where the first session was conducted offline and focused on the Labuan Bajo area which was carried out together with the West Manggarai Tourism and Culture Office by inviting the Labuan Bajo Flores Authority Executing Body, and was attended by Signing Blue members to express their views directly about sustainable tourism and several activities that have been carried out during Signing Blue membership. The second session was conducted for business actors located in Alor.

The socialization activity for the Signing Blue program in Labuan Bajo is in line with the vision of the Labuan Bajo Flores Authority Executing Body to make Labuan Bajo a World Class Sustainable Super Priority Tourism Destination. The WWF-Indonesia Foundation together with the Tourism and Culture Office of West Manggarai Regency carried out an outreach activity in conjunction with the Annual Meeting Signing Blue in Labuan Bajo, West Manggarai Regency at the Puri Sari Hotel. This activity involved 28 participants representing elements of the tourism pentahelix (Government, Academics, Business World Industry, Communities/Associations, and Media).

Activities are also in accordance with the mission and position of the Department of Tourism and Culture of West Manggarai Regency. "One mission of the West Manggarai Regency Tourism and Culture Office is the Journey to Sustainability or Journey to Sustainability, namely Developing Tourism in a Sustainable and Inclusive way as the Main Driver of the Economy," said Acting Plt. The Head of the West Manggarai Regency Tourism and Culture Office, Chrispinianus Mesima, when giving his presentation on the West Manggarai Regency Government Program in the Development of Labuan Bajo Super Priority Tourism Destinations. "Signing Blue can be included as one of the lighters that can remind the tourism industry to stay on the path of sustainable practices in tourism development." he added.

Exposure from Plt. The Head of the West Manggarai Regency Tourism and Culture Office is in line with the reason behind the Signing Blue initiation since 2013, namely to accommodate tourism actors and tourists to realize responsible marine tourism. By adopting the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) and in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) program, Signing Blue is a partner for tourism business actors, activists and services to ensure sustainable marine tourism practices are implemented consistently, and ultimately improve the quality of the environment, society , as well as strengthening the local economy.

Shana Fatina, as Main Director of the Labuan Bajo Flores Authority Tourism Agency (BPOLBF), was also present to give a presentation on the Labuan Bajo Super Priority Tourism Destination Development Program. He said, "Signing Blue can enter and assist on top issues of Labuan Bajo tourism development to achieve the vision of BPOLBF (Labuan Bajo as a World Class Sustainable Super Priority Tourism Destination), namely the integration of sustainable infrastructure, human resources & local contributions, and supply of commodities food supporting tourism”.

I Gede Dananjaya Bagaskara, from the Signing Blue Secretariat, explained that the background for the Signing Blue initiation by the WWF Indonesia Foundation was tourism activities which so far have contributed to massive economic growth, on the other hand it has also had an impact on the environment and socio-culture. Therefore, the concept of sustainable tourism has become a necessity because the tendency of people to choose eco-friendly tourism is quite high. Currently, Signing Blue has reached 130 members spread throughout Indonesia and 4 of them are in Labuan Bajo, West Manggarai Regency, namely Hotel Puri Sari, Divine Diving, Dive Komodo, and Flores Diving Centre.

Chairman of the West Manggarai Indonesian Tour Guide Association (HPI), Sebastian Pandang, gave a response to the Signing Blue. He hopes that the indicators in the Signing Blue can be brought and translated into local government regulations so that they can be sustainable. The target of Signing Blue members will also be better if it is expanded not only to focus on star hotels, but also must be able to target non-star hotels because these non-star hotels are no less competitive in their commitment to implementing sustainable tourism. This is a response to the Signing Blue from the Indonesian Hotel and Restaurant Association (PHRI) as well as a representative from the Flamingo Avia Hotel, Irene Tokan.

The same thing was done in Alor, where the socialization of the Signing Blue program in Alor was attended by more than 14 business actors consisting of accommodation, dive operators and trip operators. The activity began with an explanation of the Signing Blue program by the Signing Blue Secretariat, namely I Gede Dananjaya Bagaskara. Until now, there are 2 Signing Blue members in Alor, however, their commitment to creating sustainable tourism is very high. This can be seen from the results of the mentoring and evaluation carried out by the WWF Indonesia Foundation and Signing Blue, where the members showed increased commitment and action to meet the Signing Blue standards which consist of environmental, socio-cultural and economic aspects, as well as management effectiveness.

This activity also invited Mika as Field Manager from Mala Tours, Mika explained the program that had been carried out by Mala Tours to realize sustainable tourism in accordance with the results of assistance from the WWF Indonesia Foundation. Some of the activities that have been carried out by Mala Tours are initiating the formation of Alor Tourist Guides (ATG), assisting communication strategies for developing dugong conservation and tourist villages in Alor, as well as several other activities on the international stage such as being selected as a participant in the RISE Inc (Rich and Impactful Social Enterprise Incubator) and the ENPACT (Empowering Entrepreneur Initiative) program where this program is a collaboration with the German Government and the TUI Foundation. Great hopes from Mala Tours to move together with all business actors in Alor to realize sustainable tourism, and change the mindset of tourists that sustainable tourism is affordable.

The results of this socialization received positive responses from prospective Signing Blue members, where based on the results of the questionnaires that had been distributed to participants, all business services had a high interest in improving their business services into sustainable tourism to realize sustainable tourism in Alor. After the socialization of the Signing Blue Program, it is hoped that more actors, activists and tourism business services will join in implementing sustainable tourism practices so that efforts to realize sustainable tourism can be achieved.

For more information about the Signing Blue program and activities that have been carried out by members in realizing sustainable marine tourism in Indonesia, see the Signing Blue website www.signingblue.com