National Geographic recently rated the Faroe Islands the Number #1 Island Ecotourism destination. http://www.nationalgeographic.com/traveler/
features/islandsrated0711/islands.html

For those of you not familiar with the Faroe Islands, the islands are an autonomous region of Denmark located about halfway between Iceland and Denmark. There are 18 islands and less than 50,000 people in the whole country which is probably one of the reasons why they still have a very unique culture. The main industries are fishing (in decline), sheep herding (on an incline from what I could see of the sheep perched on the steep hillsides) and tourism (the reason I was there recently)

I was invited to speak at the Faroes first ecotourism conference and I was impressed by the reaction of the Faroese to the award. Rather than sitting back and gathering accolades, the government and tourism professionals are talking about the implications of winning. They recognize the need for new legislation and planning to maintain their culture and physical environment. It was wonderful to see such a proactive approach to developing their tourism industry in a sustainable fashion. For a review of the conference check out the blog of Faroe Man at http://faroe-island.blogspot.com/2007/11/
review-eco-tourism-in-faroe-islands.html

To see my video of the Faroe Islands visit YouTube at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NoUyTnRcIxU

 

Carol Patterson