About GWTO Academy
To know and enjoy about wine destinations’ cultural and natural heritages.
GWTO Academy, with its own structure and management, is the operative unit into the GWTO chart which goal is to provide the other GWTO’s operational areas and the wine tourism sector, comprehensive tools and professionalization through research and training programs on wine tourism knowledge management, aligned with the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
GWTO Academy Definition
Centre of wine tourism knowledge and its management, organized under a board of international academic authorities ‘Fellows’ (rectors, deans, doctors, professors and Masters’ coordinators) specialists in research in eno, agri and gastro tourism fields.
Vision
The development of an inclusive and sustainable governance model into the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) framework of universal respect, sustainability, the revising of socioeconomic inequities, health and education. (vision)
Objective
A comprehensive sociocultural commitment to the sector’s development establishing thoughtful leadership by creating a collective academic voice, in research for the creation of Governance model, and to professionalize the sector through a comprehensive Training Plan in wine tourism, providing advice to GWTO members and to the entire international community. (areas)
Annex: Declaration on the future of wine tourism
Members of international tourism administrations, regional and national organizations, the private sector and stakeholders, groups of related interest in civil society, as well as experts and entrepreneurs in wine tourism, met in Madrid on January 18th 2018, on the occasion of the International Conference on the Future of Wine Tourism organized by the Spanish Wine Tourism Institute, held in the framework of the FITUR International Tourism Trade Fair.
Recalling that:
- Wine Tourism can achieve a strategic dimension as a knowledge and culture experience, and as an approach to values deeply rooted in the history and evolution of communities.
- Wine Tourism provides an opportunity for the inclusive and sustainable development of regional assets in heritage both in the cultural, social and environmental fields as well as with regard to the economic objectives concerning income and employment generation.
Considering that:
- Knowledge Management as a key instrument in every process of strategic positioning and decision making.
- Research, training and innovation in Wine Tourism are three strategic axes.
- Tourist destinations are of enormous importance as a strategic framework within which all tourist and Wine Tourism activities are framed.
- Destination Management Organizations (DMOs) are the main entities for action in Wine Tourism, as is already the case for tourism in general: Strategic positioning tasks, the creation of enotourist products, carrying out promotion, quality management, ensuring the sustainability of the natural, cultural and economic environment, knowledge management and the coordination among players should be mainly developed within the destination scope and at administrative levels.
Calls for:
- The creation of synergies in Wine Tourism policy, through the collaborative management of worldwide Wine Tourism. All the links of the value chain -Wine Tourism and tourism related- should be included, while integrating the efforts of all agents concerned.
- The implementation of actions in Knowledge Management to promote: (i) research and analysis; (ii) dissemination of knowledge through education programs and high quality training; and (iii) application of knowledge by creating regulatory frameworks and standards (voluntary or compulsory) and innovation as a dynamic, cross-applicable element.
- Developing and enhancing Wine Tourism governance which advocates for coopetition amongst the stakeholders (cooperation and competitiveness within the sector in an optimal combination).
- Making a commitment to design, develop and implement Wine Tourism activities which follow innovative guidelines and contribute to shape a competitive, high-quality Wine Tourism supply. This should underpin the strategic positioning of the Wine Tourism place-branding both in domestic and global markets.
