Arosa Tourismus

Arosa is an Alpine resort in the Schanfigg Valley in Switzerland, and receives thousands of tourists every year during both the winter and summer seasons along with many other destinations in the Alps. However, Arosa is working on sustainability initiatives which will set it apart from other similar destinations.

Sayuri is assisting the Executive Board in pursuing Arosa 2030, a vision to achieve a 100% destination sustainability by 2030. The first step towards this aim was a conservation project launched in 2018, in cooperation with the animal welfare NGO, ForPaws. The project seeks to protect circus and restaurant bears, which were before illegally held, by rehoming them in the Arosa Bear Sanctuary. This doubles as an educational and leisure facility for tourists, where they can visit the three bears currently protected and housed in the sanctuary. The project can save up to five bears.

This project indicates a social consciousness that is at the heart of this push for sustainability and is part of a move to change the culture and mindset of the tourists and tourism industry in the region. Arosa 2030 as a whole, is a campaign which is driving stakeholders in the region such as transport companies, hotels, restaurants and many more to join the push to be an industry leader in sustainability.

Ultimately sustainability is not just an ambition for Arosa, but a necessity for Alpine tourism in general and Arosa Tourismus aims to be a pioneer in the industry. Sayuri and the organisation are in the process of organising a One Young World Caucus, exploring the topics on sustainability and animal welfare in tourism, and purpose marketing.