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Let's think green |
by Anu Juurma-Saks & Viivika Orula
Pärnu, the best known Estonian resort, is more than just a summer capital of Estonia. It is also a place for conferences. It is well known that the best ideas are born when people devoted to finding them are removed from their usual environment. As a conference city, Pärnu has clear advantages over some metropolises. The distances between different locations related to the conference are short. Excellent connections with the rest of the world and moderate relaxation at the end of the symposium or conference make meetings simple and enjoyable.
Pärnu is a member of the WHO European Healthy Cities Network and wants to be a city promoting healthy lifestyles and ensuring good health for its residents and visitors. Last year Pärnu Convention Bureau started a project Green Meetings. Partners in this project are Congress Vaasa and Botnia Tourist from Vaasa, Finland, and NGO Loomekeskus from Estonia. Pärnu and Vaasa have been twinned for more than 50 years.
The common goal of this project is to become greener convention destinations. Green values help to differ in tight competition of meeting industry and support the sustainable development of Vaasa and Pärnu regions. Pärnu and Vaasa regions will be changed into greener and more sustainable destinations for meetings.
The first meeting of project partners took place in Helsinki in September 2009. The partners agreed that this project is just the beginning of cooperation. It was the first step towards green meetings topic to enhance environmental awareness among meeting industry entrepreneurs.
Two training courses were planned during the project. One of them was already held in Vaasa during the Tourism Parliament in February 2010. The next one will be organised in Pärnu in September 2010. Together with the experts, a background document with principles of green meetings will be worked out.
This project is supported by Nordic Council of Ministers. The European Ecotourism Conference on "Balancing Sustainability and Profitability" will be held on 26-30 September 2010 in Pärnu.
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