It is held from 15 to 17 November in the Teide National Park (Tenerife) and aims to promote conservation and responsible tourism activities with nature.

Over the next few days, Tenerife will host the National Congress of National Parks and Sustainable Tourism under the slogan “Nature conservation and responsible tourism, a solution committed to natural and cultural heritage at the service of society”, which will be attended by more than one hundred representatives of the administration, companies, foundations and conservationists related to natural spaces and tourism.

This meeting, organised by the Ministries of Agriculture and Fisheries, Food and Environment (MAPAMA) and Energy, Tourism and Digital Agenda (MINETAD), together with the Cabildo de Tenerife, the City Council of La Orotava and the Government of the Canary Islands, aims to reflect on the concept of sustainable tourism and the approach that this sector should have in National Parks.

The nature of our country is one of the main factors that motivate the trips of national and international tourists: Trips associated with nature tourism account for an average of 20% of total tourism in Spain, with an average indirect economic impact of 8,600 million euros being estimated.

The inauguration of this Congress was attended by the President of the Government of the Canary Islands, Fernando Clavijo; the President of the Cabildo de Tenerife, Carlos Alonso; the Secretary of State for Tourism, Matilde Asián; the Mayor of La Orotava, Francisco Linares and the Director of the Autonomous National Parks Organization of MAPAMA, Basilio Rada. 

The director of the Autonomous National Parks Agency (OAPN), Basilio Rada, has appealed to “reflect on what we need tourism for”. In this sense, visitors-tourists must be involved in the conservation of the territory, make responsible use of it, integrate into its environment and its municipalities by knowing its culture, customs and traditions,   make use of the services they offer. “Combining conservation and tourism is our real challenge and this is how we understand sustainable tourism from National Parks,” adds Rada.

The National Parks and Sustainable Tourism Congress is part of the actions foreseen in the Operational Plan for 2017 of the Collaboration Agreement signed between MINETAD and MAPAMA for the promotion of the ecotourism product in the Network of National Parks and in the Spanish Network of Biosphere Reserves.

Basilio Rada, in his speech, stressed that “the joint actions between both Ministries will reinforce the sustainability of the tourism sector in spaces where the conservation of natural and cultural values prevails, where appreciation for nature and its conservation is promoted, while creating wealth and fixing population in rural areas”.

This Congress is also part of the events of 2017, the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development, as well as to commemorate the 10th Anniversary of the declaration of the Teide National Park as a World Heritage Site.