Sustainable Tourism Law

SUSTAINABLE TOURISM: THE COSTA RICA CASE 675 good practices to the tourism sector and to citizens in general, as we are all hosts of the tourists who visit us; for the renewal of the norms and processes and for the creation of updated capacities. As can be seen, this conceptual evolution generates a rethinking within our tourism institution: Sustainable development isn’t limited to having a consolidated Certification structure such as the CST, but it consists in the development of different areas that can be reinforced in an integral and consolidated way, a true sustainable tourism development, which will effectively promote Costa Rica internationally as a sustainable tourism destination. IV. NATIONAL PLAN FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT The National Development Plan of the Government of Costa Rica (PND) was built with a strategic sense, under a sectorial scheme, with the purpose of improving the coordination of the different institutions that make up the public sector, and to build a unified and integrated vision of the actions of the sectors, to improve their effectiveness and efficiency and ensure a better allocation of public resources. The Plan contains strategic actions ordered in accordance with the priorities defined by each minister in charge of the sector and it incorporates the actions contemplated in the UN’s “Millennium Development Goals”. It is structured in five policies: social, production, environmental, foreign relations and institutional reform, which are grouped in 16 sub-sectors: Environment, Science and Technology, Foreign Trade, Government Coordination, Culture, Education, Finance, Infrastructure and Transportation, Foreign Policy, Production, Health, Citizen Security, Social, Financial Supervision, Labour and Tourism. In addition to this national effort, in 2007 we approved the Peace with Nature Initiative (IPN). It is an initiative officially launched with the strong political commitment to fight against processes of environmental degradation. The proposal entails that Costa Rica must prepare work agendas, both internally and externally. Both agendas have as a transversal axis the achievement of environmental sustainability for the maintenance and recovery of the ecosystems that support life on Earth. The Initiative proposes internal actions in Costa Rica, such as: • Actions for Costa Rica to become a carbon neutral country by 2021. • Preparation and implementation of Environmental Management Plans in all government bodies.