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This guide defines what sustainability means in tourism, what are the effective approaches for developing strategies and policies for more sustainable tourism and the tools that would make the policies work on the ground.

Avoid products that you only use once and then throw away.Reduce the amount of waste you generate. Most plastics take years to break down. Reuse paper and plastic containers.Use cloth bags or baskets instead of plastic bags. Recycle bottles, cans and paper where you Compost your organic waste.In most Pacific countries, more than 50% of the waste thrown away is organic.Return green waste to your garden to make good fertiliser for your plants and food.

Executive Summary People all over the world depend on forests and woodlands for a broad range of tangible goods,as well as the often less perceived services such as soil stabilisation and ground water regulation they provide. Refugees and returnees are no exception to this. Many past and current refugee communities are known for their close respect for nature and understanding of natural resource management. Others are less aware,possibly because their lifestyle may have depended on seasonal movements so they never felt much direct association with nurturing a particular tree or forest. Yet, when populations are forced to live in crowded and possible unfamiliar situations – not of their own making or choice – they are often left with no option but to depend on natural resources as a means of survival. At such times, the environment is often placed under some degree of threat.

The nature of the plant breeding process calling for a broad range of plants genetic resources as inputs into any one successful product. Indeed a new plant variety can often be the product of generations of breeding farmers and breeders, which may stretch across many countries. First they are important as an immediate resource i.e for the particular characteristics they may provide, in terms of pest resistance drought tolerance, plant architecture taste or colour.

The Council of Regional Organisations of the Pacific (CROP) partners, namely: Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat (PIFS), Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC), South Pacific Applied Geoscience Commission (SOPAC), and the University of the South Pacific (USP) were also represented. In addition, observers from a range of regional, international and non-governmental organisations were present.

The European Union needs no introduction. Over half a century, it has brought political stability and economic prosperity to its citizens. It has created a frontier-free single market and a single currency, the euro. It has reunited a fractured continent. The European Union is a major economic and commercial power and the world’s biggest donor of development aid to poorer countries. Its member-ship has grown from six to 27 nations, bringing the EU’s population to nearly half a billion.

This document outlines the new programme-based approach that has been adopted for the SPREP Secretariat. This new approach to regional delivery is both more innovative and strategic than the project-based approach previously practiced. It provides clear, measurable indicators of the progress and impact of the Secretariat’s work in the region. This is an important element of the Secretariat’s efforts to encourage long-term collaboration with existing and new partners.

This Annual Report notes the major achievements of SPREP in supporting Pacific island countries and territories to address issues relating to: biodiversity and ecosystem management, waste management and pollution and environmental monitoring and governance