Sustainable Tourism Stewardship Council initiative (STSC)

Keywords	voluntary contributions, voluntary instruments
URL	http://www.rainforest-alliance.org/tourism.cfm?id=council

Certification programs need to demonstrate to tourism operations that getting certified has positive impacts on their businesses, they need to report to governmental and non-governmental agencies about the on-the-ground impacts of certification, and they need to be credible so that tourists feel confident that the certified businesses patronize are indeed protecting ecosystems and the well-being of local people.

The Sustainable Tourism Stewardship Council (STSC) is a proposed global accreditation body for sustainable tourism and ecotourism certification programs.