Coastin Carl
People all over the world enjoy quality downtime. We’re prompted by examples of how to create good habits. The vast majority of people enjoy leisure activities whether it’s an amusement park, an outdoor venue, recreational parks, gardens, zoos, museums, theaters as well as the hotel industry and the list goes on. Things we experience motivate us especially during rest away from work hopefully through quality off time.
FORREC is a company that oversees the design creation of some of the world’s most successful leisure and entertainment destinations. They’re the planners of attractions, theme parks, and recreation facilities and are located in Toronto including branches on six continents all over the world. You could say they’re a major player in conservation and sustainability in the recreation industry throughout the world.
There are several great examples of restaurants and food service retailers in the recreation amusement park and attraction industry that are members of IAAPA that help in the initiative of STOP FOOD WASTE Day. Although this day is set aside as National FOOD Day in the United States it’s important to recognize the efforts made by the Europeans and countries on other continents as well.
Certain theme parks and attraction facilities have made concerted efforts toward helping promote sustainability, healthy nutrition choices, diminishing food waste, cutting their amount of waste through recycling materials, and applying respectful farm practices to plants or animals.
These facilities optimistically spread the message of how each individual can play their part in caring for these very important food issues.
According to the writings of Paula Sanchez Almendros of Smart Water Magazine, she writes in an article regarding European theme parks – “some of the main theme parks in Europe are active in environmental stewardship and have implemented different strategies and measures to safeguard the most precious resource we have without compromising fun.”
Real World Examples of SUSTAINABILITY
An example that honor good food practices in the United States is the Land at Epcot which also applies to some Disney properties as well. Yellowstone National Park is another great example. These recreation facilities and others that apply such practices should be applauded for their efforts. Hopefully, other companies and individuals will take from this experience and apply it to how they help with the efforts of National Food Day.
In Europe, Dr Fabrizio Sepe, the CEO of Serengeti Park created an eco-friendly park combining a safari park, an amusement park, and a resort in Hodenhagen, Germany. Sepe used thoughtful eco-friendly considerations in developing all areas of Serengeti Park.
Both new and older theme parks including zoos, museums, and family entertainment centers (FECs) modeling sustainability and allowing for healthier choices are important and they go hand and hand. We don’t want to sacrifice fun. The incentive to help these responsible goals can make entertainment costs rise where they become less affordable. This creates a challenge but it’s worth it to work toward a solution.
Although this article focuses on theme parks, waterparks, and attractions, the application of sustainability applies across the grand planet. We now have over 8 billion people in the world. The most important part is that everyone works symbiotically whether in society or in their personal lives. IAAPA has helped to promote some solutions that can help with the challenges that lie ahead.
We at iHEARTdays promote the idea to persuade individuals in choosing & practicing healthier choices to work on making this earth sustainable. The greater the number of people working cooperatively to share ideas and educate themselves on these two topics, the better off we become. In the area that encompasses the IAAPA’s audience, it’s important to work together and respect and care for each other as we are all part of this community. There are many wonderful thinkers in this industry. Let’s come together to create solutions to help protect our planet.
