The public is invited to the event which starts at 9:30 a.m. Friday, June 26, with coffee, hosted by Buena Vista Roastery. Before cutting the ribbon, Ritter will talk about the importance of tourism and geotourism to the area. As sustainability is a key tenet of geotourism, attendees are encouraged to arrive at the event by foot or bike. If the weather turns bad, ceremonies will be moved indoors at Eddlyline Restaurant and Brewpub.

TravelGreenColorado.com development and marketing was made possible in large part thanks to a $15,000 regional matching grant provided by the Colorado Tourism Office and the generous support of underwriters such as The Trailhead, an outdoor specialty retail shop in Buena Vista, Mount Princeton Hot Springs Resort and Pinon Real Estate Group. Recognizing that geotourism is aligned with its mission, the Greater Arkansas River Nature Association signed on as sponsoring non-profit for the effort.

“We’re obviously immensely gratified that the Governor is giving this effort his attention,” said CPG co-founder Lee Hart. “We’ve gotten an overwhelmingly positive response to the initiative whenever and with whoever we mention it to, so the Governor’s interest in helping us launch the site just lends credence and momentum to this grass roots geotourism effort.”

National Geographic’s Center for Sustainable Destinations defines geotourism as tourism that sustains or enhances the geographical character of a place—its environment, culture, aesthetics, heritage, and the well-being of its residents. It is the umbrella under which is found ecotourism, sustainable tourism, culture and heritage tourism, culinary tourism and agritourism.

Geotourism is a movement that calls upon residents, businesses, civic and political leaders as well as visitors to embrace, celebrate and preserve the unique attributes of a destination, Hart explained. For that reason, she noted TravelGreenColorado.com provides equal access to locals and tourists as well as destination marketers to tell the stories of the people, places, businesses and non-profits that matter most and carry the past forward to the future.”In this way,”  Hart said, “We believe this site helps pave the way for the democratization of tourism information.”

Participation in TravelGreenColorado.com is priced in such a way to encourage participation in the site, since the members of CPG feel so strongly about making sure price is not a barrier. “In many cases, the places and businesses most interested in getting their stories out are the least able to afford it,” she said. The site focuses on storytelling; with “stories” illustrstrated with text, photos and videos. Stories are non-commercial in nature, but the site also welcomes commercial content such as may be provided by restaurants, lodging properties attractions and even non-profits that support the principles of geotourism.

Unique to most tourism sites, Hart said TravelGreenColorado.com will also feature an advocacy component so locals and visitors alike can discover and participate in opportunities that help promote a more sustainable approach to the futre. In addition to GARNA,  other geotourism allied non-profits are encouraged to use the site as a way to promote events, membership, volunteer opportunities and issues. All events, as well as blogs and other submissions by fans of geotourism can be found on TravelGreenColorado.com’s companion community site.

The concept for the site started out as just a local effort, but expanded statewide after the strong positive reception to the concept during last fall’s annual meeting of statewide tourism leaders. Other destinations throughout Colorado, including the San Luis Valley, Gunnison-Crested Butte, Glenwood Springs, Manitou Springs,  and others have expressed interest in joining the site.

TravelGreenColorado.com was created by Collegiate Peaks Geotourism co-founders Hart and Bill Donavan with programming wizardry provided by Andrew Koransky and Mark Wiard. For further information about the governor’s appearance or TravelGreenColorado.com, email Hart at lee@sustainable.travel.

According to Hart, Collegiate Peaks Geotourism is a market-driven, citizen-led initiative aimed at promoting sustainability and showcasing those businesses, organizations, people, projects and stories within the county that support a more sustainable future. The initiative will be officially unveiled to the media and public during a new annual event called Green Jam. Green Jam is a compilation of interactive experiences, educational sessions and celebration held in conjunction with Earth Day, the worldwide event held annually April 22. The debut of Green Jam will be April 24 – 26 and every fourth weekend of April years afterward.

Commissioner Jerry Mallett, running on a re-election campaign platform solidly promoting sustainability, said he is encouraged by the broad-based community support and statewide interest the Collegiate Peaks Geotourism Initiative has already garnered. “This geotourism initiative is an integral part of the larger story of the emerging culture and business of sustainability in Chaffee County,” Mallett said. “I support this initiative and believe it will provide a beneficial enhancement to our traditional tourism marketing efforts.” Mallett said he also appreciates that the project will showcase such non-traditional tourism issues as renewable energy, local food production and ways for visitors and locals alike to interact with allied advocacy organizations.

Hart shared information about the local sustainability initiative to statewide tourism industry leaders at the recent governor’s conference on tourism. Colorado State University Professor Stuart Cottrell joined Hart to provide a global perspective. Also on the panel was Kate Collins, marketing director for the Glenwood Springs Chamber Resort Association that, with help from CSU, is conducting its own research into sustainable directions for that community.

Following the conference presentation, Colorado Tourism Office Board member Steve Smith told Hart he would support the development of a statewide sustainable tourism effort and recognized Chaffee County for its leadership in that direction.

For further information about the local sustainability initiative, visit http://www.sustainable.travel or call Hart at 539.7788.