(Optional) Thursday 5th December.
An inside look at Spicers Hidden Vale (southwest of Ipswich) with its koala walking track and wonderful facilities for breeding endangered animals of the region for subsequent release on the Spicers property and neighbouring properties where landowners are supportive. Please let us know ASAP if interested in this. Delegates may either drive directly to Hidden Vale (we will give directions) or meet us in Beaudesert to either board the Araucaria Ecotours minibus or follow in convoy.
The workshop: Friday 6th December 2019
9.00am Delegates arrive
9.30am. Welcome, overview. Ronda Green (chair of WTA)
9.35am Wildlife of Ramada Resort Kooralbyn and future potential. Jeremy Ring (manager, and wildlife enthusiast, Ramada)
9.40am Wildlife tourism within the Scenic Rim. Nadia O’Carrol (Councillor, Scenic Rim Regional Council)
9.45am Geotourism features of the Scenic Rim Georegion. Angus M Robinson, Australian Geoscience Council (via Skype) The underlying geology explains a lot about why the biodiversity is so high here, and is fascinating in itself..
9.55am Wildlife of the Scenic Rim: the famous and the lesser known, an Wildlife Tourism potential for the Scenic Rim. Ronda Green
10.10am . The Scenic Rim and it’s Potential Role as an Ethical Wildlife Tourism Destination. Robin Rowland (Glow Worm Cave, Cedar Creek Estate, Tamborine Mountain)
10.25am Morning Tea
10.55am Keynote speaker Dr Andrew Tribe, University of Queensland an Spicers Hidden Vale. Koala trail and tourism assisting endangered species at Hidden Vale (including release of captive-bred endangered species)
11.25am. Bat tourism in the Scenic Rim
11.35am. Speed talks on current tour operations (Binna Burra, Gondwana Guides, Araucaria Ecotours and the Cedar Creek Glow Worm Caves, Country Charm: still space for a couple more)
12.00 Indigenous perspectives on wildlife tourism: John Long, Yugambeh elder who has lived all his life in the region and has a tremendous knowledge of his culture and the wildlife and forests that were here in his youth.
12.15 noon Lunch
1.00pm The Scenic Rim Trail. Kira Klein, Spicers Hidden Vale
1.15pm The Scenic Rim as an eco-certified destination. Rod Hillman, CEO, Ecotourism Australia
1.30pm Roundtable discussion: what do we offer already, what other experiences or packages could we offer?
2.00pm What do we mean by ecologically sustainable? How do we achieve this while also being economically sustainable and not infringing on resident lifestyles?
2.15pm Roundtable discussion: How do we keep tourism growth in the Scenic Rim ecologically sustainable?
3.00pm Afternoon tea
3.30pm. What kinds of tourists do we most wish to attract? How do we market effectively to the “right” kinds of tourists?
4.00pm Final general discussions, future plans
4.30pm close of workshop
4.40pm AGM of Wildlife Tourism Australia. All welcome but only financial members have voting rights.
