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VT Chosen as Finalist for 2007 International Tourism Award

MONTPELIER, Vt. — Governor Jim Douglas announced today that the State of Vermont has been selected as one of 12 finalists for the prestigious 2007 Tourism for Tomorrow Awards for its work promoting and supporting downtown revitalization.

The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) in London, which announced the 2007 Tourism for Tomorrow Awards finalists on Wednesday, chose Vermont’s downtowns, and the Vermont Downtown Program, as finalists in the Destination Award category.

“This nomination is recognition of Vermont’s commitment to redeveloping downtowns and villages as centers of social and commercial activity,” Governor Douglas said. “I am very pleased that our work revitalizing our community centers can help our valuable tourism industry as well.”

This award is given to a destination that comprises a network of tourism businesses and organizations — a country, city, state or region — that has shown dedication and succeeded in maintaining a policy of sustainable management incorporating social, cultural, environmental and economic aspects as well as multi-stakeholder engagement.

The other two Destination Award finalists are the Great Barrier Reef in Australia and the Greenbox ecotourism program in Ireland.

Vermont visitors and residents have shown a growing appreciation for the unique local businesses, historic architecture, rich cultural and social activities, and strong sense of community found in the state’s downtowns. With the help of the Vermont Downtown Program, aggressive revitalization efforts are now in place in all of the state’s major downtowns.

Building on each community’s history and historic buildings, these local efforts have demonstrated how revitalization of their communities builds the local economy and cultural institutions, while supporting growth in a way that minimize environmental impacts. The attractiveness of Vermont’s downtowns and villages is widely recognized as a key part of the state’s allure to visitors from around the globe.

The Vermont Downtown Program was established in 1994 to provide technical assistance and training to communities and help cities and towns develop skills and strategies for their downtown revitalization efforts.

The program is an affiliate of the National Main Street Center, a division of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, which has worked in more than 1,900 communities nationwide revitalizing and redeveloping “Main Streets.”

The Tourism for Tomorrow Awards, now in its third year under the auspices of WTTC, reward best practices in responsible tourism development across the world.

An international committee of experts selected the Tourism for Tomorrow Awards finalists from over 130 applications from more than 40 countries representing travel and tourism on all seven continents. Winners will receive their award during a special ceremony at the 7th Global Travel & Tourism Summit on May 11, 2007 in Lisbon, Portugal.

For more information, visit www.tourismfortomorrow.com or www.vermontvacation.com.