Participants of the seminar. Photo: RGS press service
The best practices of sustainable tourism development were discussed at a seminar at the MITT Tourism and the Hospitality Industry International Exhibition. The number of tourist trips within Russia in 2024 turned out to be a record — more than 91 million, this figure increased by 11% compared to the same period in 2023. In addition, about 1.5 million foreign travelers visited the country last year. The active development of tourism attracts investment and human resources, but it also carries environmental and social risks.
This was stated by the head of the International Analytical Center for Sustainable Tourism Development of RUDN University, Chairman of the Committee for Sustainable Tourism of the CIS Business Center Khristofor Konstantinidi.
«The explosive growth of tourist traffic in the summer season — up to 40% — creates tension and conflicts with the local population, as it was, for example, with the North Caucasus, when the vast majority of tourists were not familiar with the local culture, and tour operators did not prepare the guests of the region for this, ” said Khristofor Konstantinidi. "Environmental risks are also increasing proportionally: with the amount of infrastructure being created, which is currently in operation, and these are entire tourist clusters, new resorts and individual hotels, the assessment of the maximum anthropogenic load and recreational capacity is not carried out. And all this can lead to serious irreversible consequences for our regions. It is important to think about the redistribution of tourist flows within the country. There are regions that literally suffocate from tourists in two or three summer months of the year, while others are ready to accept them, but can’t attract tourists at the moment, can’t promote themselves, and lack resources for marketing.
The Russian Geographical Society is engaged in projects to introduce mechanisms for the sustainable development of tourism. This includes the preparation of cases for methodological recommendations for businesses, regional ministries, and authorities, and the work of the voluntary certification system «Recommended by the RGS», which examines routes and facilities for compliance with the principles of sustainable tourism. There are also the RGS’s own developments, which become attractions on the tourist map of Russia as well.
«The key to our sustainability is the strength of 89 regional branches in each of the Russian regions and 245 local branches of the Society,» said Natalya Belyakova, Director of the Expeditionary and Tourism Development Department. «The work of the RGS in the logic of tourism is a wide range of projects, from environmental actions and monument discoveries to the creation of eco-trails in specially protected natural areas. Sustainability is strong with the partners we have in all regions. With their support, we can create new joint tours and exhibition facilities, as well as certify and support existing ambitious projects, especially in the niche of popular science tourism. The invaluable experience of the RGS in this format is to connect scientific institutions and big science with conscious travelers, and we are ready to share this experience to develop new sustainable tourism products.»
The winners of the “Scientific and Industrial Tourism” category. Photo: RGS press service
During the business program of the MITT exhibition, an award ceremony for the winners and runners-up of the 3rd international competition «The tourist code of my country, city, village, district is pro-tourism» was also held. The event, aimed at attracting talented young participants for the development of domestic and foreign tourism, gathered 2,500 contestants from 89 regions of Russia and foreign countries. The RGS acted as a partner of the event and the holder of the «Scientific and Industrial Tourism» category, which accepted projects for the study of scientific attractions: museums, laboratories, industrial enterprises, and thematic events.
Four works became winners in the category. The third place was shared by Savely Shutov with the project «Treasures of the Lipovsky Quarries» and Kirill Kotelnikov, who presented the Serov-Severouralsk tourist route. The second place was taken by a group of participants: Vasilisa Sidorenko, Marina Zbrodova, Timur Platika with the project of landscape design of the tactile path «Energy of Childhood». The first place was taken by Ekaterina Chervyakova and her «Secret Laboratory 'B’». All the winners were represented in the age group from 10 to 13 years old. The competition was organized by the Institute for the Development of Local Communities.