Stakeholders celebrate 10 years Wadden Sea World Heritage at ITB 2019
The Wadden Sea celebrates the 10-year anniversary of its inscription on the World Heritage List and presents its anniversary programme at this year's ITB Tourism Fair in Berlin. In cooperation with the UNESCO World Heritage and Sustainable Tourism Programme and within the framework of the Interreg project “Prowad Link”, the Wadden Sea World Heritage organizes two stands at the world's largest tourism fair, the ITB. Under the motto “People. Protecting. Places.”, the stand offers a rich and varied programme at the Berlin fair grounds, hall 4.1, booth 230/216 from 6 to 10 March 2019. The programme includes activities for both tourism professionals and individual visitors, professional workshops and showcasing of best practice examples of sustainable tourism and cross-border cooperation.
“This year, we are not just celebrating our 10th anniversary, but rather the partnerships developed under the Wadden Sea World Heritage brand,” says Rüdiger Strempel, Executive Secretary of the Common Wadden Sea Secretariat (CWSS). “Our ITB concept is a result of this cross-sectoral collaboration intended to provide a platform for new collaborations towards sustainable development while protecting and conserving our World Heritage site.”
The Wadden Sea is presented at two stands. At the main booth the World Heritage site, together with UNESCO World Heritage and Sustainable Tourism Programme, offers as a platform for expert discussions on World Heritage and Sustainable Tourism. At the booth opposite, a stakeholder stand in the framework of the new Interreg VB project “Prowad Link” invites visitors to network and get to know Wadden Sea World Heritage related commercial services and products.
The Wadden Sea World Heritage and its co-exhibitors (UNESCO World Heritage and Sustainable Tourism Programme, UNESCO World Heritage Journeys Project and PFD Publication with its World Heritage Review Magazine) have created a programme corresponding to the daily themes of this year’s ITB. On Wednesday, 6 March, Peter DeBrine, UNESCO World Heritage and Sustainable Tourism Programme, will kick-off the 14th Pow Wow for tourism professionals at the Adventure stage of hall 4.1. His speech will be followed by various sessions on education and world heritage interpretation, which will take place at the Wadden Sea booth and in the framework of the “ITB Future Day / Young Professionals”.
On the “ITB Sustainable Development Day”, 7 March, the “Prowad Link” project and partnerships in sustainable development will be set in focus. On Friday, 8 March, in the framework of the Wadden Sea World Heritage’s anniversary, the stand organisers will take a look at the past 10 years and celebrate with partnering “birthday children”, the World Natural Heritage Sites of the Dolomites (10 years) and the Messel Pit (25 years) to celebrate.
During the visitors' days at the weekend, the stands turn into an adventure market for all senses. The Wadden Sea invites young and old with knowledge and discovery games, tastings of typical Wadden Sea products, virtual mudflat visits and an oyster crash course.
