Community-based Ecotourism Consultant 
William Tuffin
 Bill Tuffin

Tourism can be a positive experience for everyone
Dedicated to quality sustainable tourism solutions for communities.

The Future of Tourism

Increasingly today's tourists are demanding a style of tourism which is socially and environmental responsible. They want to have meaningful and personal interaction with locals. Most importantly they want to know that the destination has benefitted from their presence economically, socially and environmentally. With global warming in the news, they want to feel confident that their travels have not contributed to climate change.
 

The Consultant

Bill Tuffin Community-based Tourism Consultant

 My unique skill is an ability to bridge the worlds of development aid and business, of the Westerner and the Asian and the city dweller and the farmer. I have years of hands-on experience with rural communities helping them to solve not only tourism related issues but primary health care and drug addiction issues. I have experience in developing an ecolodge from conception, construction to an award winning international recognized Ecolodge. In my work with a local tour operator and  tour guides, I was able to develop successful mutually beneficial relationships between the guides, the tour operator and the communities. My approach to business places a priority on socially and environmentally responsible business practices.

Marketing Director of The Boat Landing Guest House until February 2007, for over 8 years.  I worked with staff and owners to be the first Eco-lodge be achieve Green Globe benchmarking two years in a row and to receive a high commendation for Best Hotel at the Responsible Travel Awards.

Marketing & Community-based Ecotourism Advisor  for Green Discovery Laos for 2 years. As a representative of the company, I worked to development community-based tourism programs in 12 villages in Luang Namtha, Laos. In addition, I advised the company on internet marketing, website & brochure design, wrote trip descriptions for their website and brochure, represented the company at trade shows and developed personalized package itineraries for FIT clients and tour operators.

As a Community-based Ecotourism Development Consultant for GIZ, I worked with Akha villages to develop community-based tourism program called The Akha Experience. The program was developed in partnership with a private tour operator, Exotissimo, who acts as the sales marketing agent for the 8 villages

With WWF/Thailand I conducted a feasibility assessment for ecotourism in wetlands areas of Thailand's Northeast. This included a study of the demand for ecotourism products in the Thai domestic tourism market.

Working WWF/Cambodia as and Ecotourism Marketing Consultant, my task was to identify investors and develop ecotourism guidelines and agreements for adventure and wildlife viewing tours in the Mondulkiri Protected Forest. In addition I advised on community-based ecotourism activities in Dei Ey.

As advisor on responsible tour operations contracted by the UNWTO as a part of the Mekong Discovery Trail Project to assist a local NGO, CRDT, develop a road map for their newly established social enterprise tour operation, CRDTours.

Currently I am working with the Chamcar Bei Community in Cambodia's Kep Province to develop a community-based tourism project centered around their community forest.