Crowds at Jackson's Wold Championship Snowmobile Hillclimb in March 2023. Photo courtesy Visit Jackson Hole
by Sophie Tsairis
Well over
200 people gathered on January 14 at the Teton County Community Recreation Center in Jackson,
Wyoming, to attend a tourism expo hosted by the Jackson Hole Travel and Tourism
Board. Attendees included local nonprofits, representatives from the
hospitality industry, land managers, elected officials, business owners, and
community members.
The goal of the event
was to provide a space for the public to learn about the Sustainable
Destination Management Plan, adopted in 2023, which maps a five-year approach to guide
Teton County toward a sustainable future. The framework outlines an “all lands,
all stakeholders” approach, aiming to balance eight stewardship goals from
community housing to climate action and includes an outline of priorities for
year one.
The tourism board hoped to garner community feedback on its
progress thus far at the tourism expo, including its launch of a tourism data dashboard as part of the management
plan's monitoring and reporting initiative. The online tool helps track and
display the effects of tourism on the town of Jackson and has received
international recognition in the travel industry.
“The
purpose of the SDMP is not to grow visitation numbers but rather to ensure that
tourism is a positive force for people, for nature, and for the economy,” the
plan summary reads.
Crista Valentino,
executive director of Jackson’s tourism board, told Mountain Journal that
the management plan aspires to strike a balance between the needs of the
community and the integrity of the area’s wild landscapes.
Valentino
said she was encouraged to see the community gather to consider an industry
that affects the lives of everyone in Teton County.
“We want to ensure that
the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem remains a sanctuary for the wildlife and open
lands that so many from around the world flock here to experience,” she said. “By
fostering responsible stewardship and sustainable tourism, the SDMP envisions a
future where conservation and preservation are shared responsibilities,
securing this iconic region for both residents and guests into the
future."
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About Sophie Tsairis
Sophie Tsairis is a freelance writer based in Bozeman, Montana. She earned a master's degree in environmental journalism from the University of Montana in 2017.
