Let’s not Forget Heritage, Climate Change and Tourism

By Peter Cox, Managing Director, Carrig Conservation International Ltd. 

During these strange times it is easy to lose sight of issues which are still of the utmost importance, even if they may not be as urgent as the current crisis. Of course the fight against Covid-19 must be the priority but as doing what is necessary right now leaves many of us with more free time than we once had, let’s use that time to reflect and consider what we can do when things start getting back to a new normal. Today is Earth Day and one can't help but wonder what the current circumstances mean for our environment and whether our behaviour will change towards it. 

​During the Tiger years, international tourism increased, and more money was invested in cultural heritage, which was significantly reduced after the crash. Now we have a different and much tougher challenge with millions affected and hundreds of thousands dead, with more to come. We are a resilient species and together we will overcome this threat as we did the Spanish Flu, two world wars and the 2008 financial crisis. However just as the aftermath of these events saw leaders introducing new ideas, our current leaders must re-think how we can come back from this, changing the way in which we approach so many things. One of the changes we can make is in our attitude towards cultural heritage tourism. 

​Nearly 80% of our international tourists visit Ireland for our heritage. Despite this, our government cut heritage funding in 2009 by 87% which has not yet been reintroduced into the current investment.  

Examples of the rich heritage sites that Ireland has: Ballinskelligs Priory and Castle.

​International tourism is not going to come back anytime soon as airlines have cut 80% of their capacity and many will go out of business so air travel will be different. This could be an opportunity to push our cultural heritage as an economic and tourism driver. Once the current restrictions are lifted, everyone will be looking to travel where they can. Let’s start a campaign to encourage our own nations to visit national cultural heritage sites which will drive economies in local communities and restart a local tourism industry which will be more sustainable in the short to medium term

​Let’s invest in cultural heritage sites across the nation improving the construction and traditional skills sector and getting people back to work.

​The current restrictions have shown how much of an impact we can have in the fight against climate change – city dwellers around the world are seeing their air quality improve before their eyes! With the vast reduction in travel, carbon dioxide emissions have reduced so let’s keep on this trajectory and reduce our greenhouse gases, especially when we re-start our industries. This period has certainly proved that if we care enough about something, we can and will work hard achieve our goals. Happy Earth Day, everyone.