The certification schemes related to the sustainability. The case of Italian National Parks

Environmental sustainability of a territory is increasingly becoming a fundamental element of tourist attraction. National Parks could benefit from this trend principally because of their natural resource endowment. Moreover, in recent years, they have taken on an active role in several aspects related to government of the territory. In this regard, the management of the National Parks has become a laboratory to promote initiatives of sustainable tourism development that ensure the right balance between the protection of natural resources and economic and social development, with sustainability understood as an ethical choice and differentiation strategy. Therefore, the management of National Parks should be characterized by strategic goals that aim for the gradual reduction of environmental impacts, protection of natural heritage, improvement of the welfare of citizens, and protection of local identities. Thus, the managing bodies would operate by improving the sustainability and competitiveness of the tourist destination, thereby sustaining its attractiveness. Some management bodies have been able to manage and improve their touristic capital by adopting several certification schemes, although not in a systematic way. In addition, the opportunity exists for certification scheme adoption by firms of different sectors that operate in the park areas. A scheme has the function of communicating to tourists the management approach according to sustainable tourism. The paper analyzes certification schemes that are considered highly relevant at the international level: European Charter for Sustainable Tourism in Protected Area (Part I and Part II), UNESCO’s Man and Biosphere Reserve, ISO 14001 certification, Eco Management and Audit Scheme registration (Regulation EC n. 1221/2009). The analysis is intended to identify the adoption of these certification schemes in the Italian National Parks.