Biosphere Region Know-how in the Tourism Sector

When you work in the tourism sector and hear about Átl'ḵa7tsem / Howe Sound UNESCO Biosphere Region from your employer or a customer, how do you go about being part of the conversation without just looking at them blankly? Answer—you take the new Biosphere 101 online course.

There is a growing recognition of the biosphere region among organizations and businesses, yet still a lack of awareness among people about what it actually is and how it impacts them or the sector they work in. There are also many employers who have yet to learn about the 2021 designation by UNESCO. In looking for ways to raise awareness of the biosphere region and help people define their relationship with this special place, we embarked on a project to develop an online training resource for the tourism/outdoor recreation/hospitality sector.

We chose this sector as we want to reach the people who are out on the land and water, or who are speaking to those that are. Biodiversity loss and climate change are two of the biggest threats facing humanity today and it is on us all to play our part in reversing the damage. The fragile environmental recovery of Howe Sound in recent decades, after almost a century of industrial degradation, shows what is possible when people work together and allow nature to revitalize a region. As we continue that journey of recovery, we invite everyone to join and be part of that story to continue reconciliation with the land. To do that, we want to reach the people who spend time out in nature.

Online Course

In spring 2025, we will be launching our first Biosphere 101 online course. It’s been in development for the last year. We worked with Diane from Red Rock Creative (Diane also being part of the core HSBRIS team) and she in turn connected with individuals from around the region to learn what they would like to see in a course like this. We were thrilled to learn of the appetite for this course. Most of those we surveyed said they felt everyone in an organization should do this course.

We have therefore developed the course with a range of ages and skills in mind, from young front-line staff to senior mangers, business owners and retirees who may volunteer with an organization.

We see the course a bit like product knowledge. The course talks through the where, what, when, why and who of the biosphere region. It also explores the environmental journey of Howe Sound, the ecosystem benefits we get from nature, the impacts (both good and bad) of regional tourism, and shares ideas of ways in which locals, visitors and businesses/organizations can get more involved in environmentally-themed programming, citizen science opportunities or sustainable tourism business practices. We have also provided a bit of a cheat sheet for answering questions on the biosphere region as well as a range of additional resources.

We’d like to extend our thanks to the following people who helped guide the direction of the course and/or are providing feedback to get the course to launch – Mark Enright, Sandman Squamish; Roy Jantzen, Capilano University School of Tourism Management; Jody Lorenz, Tourism Bowen Island Association; Rebecca McCleery, Canadian Coastal Sailing; Steve Mather, Bowen Island Sea Kayaking; Dave Swan, Tourism Squamish; and Annie Wise, Sunshine Coast Tourism.

Launch

We anticipate launching the course in April/May, in time for summer season. We are still finalizing details including how best to enable financial accessibility for employers while providing a revenue stream for HSBRIS that will enable us to maintain and promote the course and produce additional resources. If you are interested in learning more, please contact us at admin@howesoundbri.org.