Tactic A4.6
Develop Voluntourism Opportunities - Trails & Land (mid-term goal)
Develop voluntourism opportunities that focus on restoration and enhancement of trails and lands.
Similar to the water-based voluntourism efforts outlined in Tactic A2.2, this tactic engages visitors in helping restore and enhance Sedona’s trails.
Voluntourism trail-building experiences would be developed and promoted by a mix of Sedona organizations.
IMPACTED PILLARS
TIMEFRAME Mid-term (2-3 years)
LEAD PARTNER To Be Determined
SUPPORTING PARTNERS SCC&TB, USFS, State Parks, Sustainability Alliance, Keep Sedona Beautiful, Sedona Red Rock Trail Fund, Other Nonprofit Organizations
ALIGNING RESEARCH Nonprofit Focus Group, Land Managers Focus Group, Public Input, Industry Best Practices
TARGET / STATUS TO DATE
1. Number of voluntourism programs
2. Number of visitors participating in voluntourism programs
3 Number of promotional efforts to encourage visitors to participate
PROGRESS TO DATE
Voluntourism Programs - Trails & Land (mid-term goal)
Develop voluntourism opportunities that focus on restoration and enhancement of trails and lands.
FY21: In April, the SCC&TB added an Earth Month poster with voluntourism promotion at the Visitor Center and partnered with Slide Rock State Park to distribute AppreciateAZ Clean-Up kits from the Arizona Office of Tourism on Earth Day, April 22.
The SCC&TB began organizing and promoting voluntourism to Sedona visitors, adding a Voluntourism Events item under the ‘Events’ tab on VisitSedona.com in March 2021 and sharing voluntourism program information with 890 national media members in their Media Roundup e-Newsletter.
In August, the SCC&TB added Stewards of Sedona as a voluntour suggestion to its Voluntourism in Sedona web page.
A SCC&TB February Consumer e-News Letter sent to 156,627 email address included a Voluntourism ad and achieved a 25.3% open rate.
In March, the SCC&TB added the OAK Creek Watershed Council voluntourism event to its Calendar of Events page.
During April’s Earth Month, voluntourism was a prominent theme among many sustainability-related topics.
Sedona’s tradition of volunteer events offers many opportunities for visitors. The USFS has held 46 volunteer trail events since October 2, 2019 with 756 volunteers. Nine more volunteer events took place in FY21.
The SCC&TB will continue to promote voluntourism opportunities at VoluntourismInSedona.com and at the Visitor Center, on social media and on the event calendar.