{"id":22734,"date":"2017-12-12T16:45:39","date_gmt":"2017-12-12T15:45:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/?p=22734"},"modified":"2017-12-12T16:55:36","modified_gmt":"2017-12-12T15:55:36","slug":"palau-creates-world-first-conservation-pledge-stamped-visitors-passports","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/2017\/12\/palau-creates-world-first-conservation-pledge-stamped-visitors-passports\/","title":{"rendered":"Palau creates world first conservation pledge, stamped in visitors\u2019 passports"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-22735\" src=\"https:\/\/travindy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Palau-Pledge.png\" alt=\"Palau creates world first conservation pledge, stamped in visitors\u2019 passports\" width=\"655\" height=\"377\" srcset=\"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Palau-Pledge.png 655w, https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Palau-Pledge-300x173.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 655px) 100vw, 655px\" \/><span class=\"wpsdc-drop-cap\">T<\/span>he Republic of Palau in the Western Pacific has today launched the <a href=\"https:\/\/palaupledge.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Palau Pledge<\/a>, a world-first eco-initiative that asks all inbound visitors to make a compulsory promise, directly to the children of Palau, to preserve their home before they can enter the country.<\/p>\n<p>The Palau Pledge is a new immigration policy that takes effect this December. Palau has become the first country to update its immigration policy and landing procedures to implement such legislation, aimed at preserving its culture and the beauty of its natural environment for future generations. It also hopes that other countries will follow suit to protect the planet for children worldwide.<\/p>\n<p>The Palau Pledge is based on the Palauan tradition of BUL, a moratorium declared by Palau\u2019s traditional leaders that places an immediate halt to the over-consumption or destruction of a species, place or thing. It has become the symbol of the Palau National Marine Sanctuary and the Palau Pledge, which are modern-day applications of a traditional BUL.and written with the help of Palau\u2019s children. The Palau Pledge will be stamped and signed in the passports of<br \/>\nevery visitor. The initiative puts an onus on \u2018responsible, sustainable tourism\u2019 from the growing number of tourists who have visited the island in recent years.<\/p>\n<p>Palau is the thirteenth smallest nation in the world with a population of less than 20,000 people but it sees over 160,000 visitors to its shores each year. The Pledge was deemed necessary after careless behaviour from visitors started to erode Palau\u2019s pristine environment and have a negative impact on its culture. Policy has also been put in place by the Palauan Government enabling action to be taken against those who break the conditions of the Pledge, with fines of up to $1 million USD for offences committed.<\/p>\n<p>The pioneering project draws attention to the ecological challenges related to tourism, with the future of the Palauan children in mind. It further seeks to change the damaging impact of human activity on the local ecosystem, especially as the number of visitors to the island continues to rise.<\/p>\n<p>Palau has a long history of world-firsts in conservation. It was the first country to create a shark sanctuary in its national waters, it was the first to ban the destructive practice of bottom trawling, and in 2015, its leadership created the Palau National Marine Sanctuary: the largest fully-protected, no-take zone in the world.<\/p>\n<p>Tommy E. Remengesau Jr President of Palau, and long-time advocate for conservation and sustainability, believes everybody holds responsibility for enacting change. \u201cIt is our responsibility to show our guests how to respect Palau, just as it is their duty to uphold the signed pledge when visiting,\u201d said President Remengesau. \u201cWhile Palau may be a small-island nation, we are a large ocean-state and conservation is at the heart of our culture. We rely on our environment to survive and if our beautiful country is lost to environmental degradation, we will be the last generation to enjoy both its beauty and life-sustaining biodiversity. This is not only true of Palau. Human impact on our earth\u2019s environment is one of the biggest challenges facing our world today. As a small country we feel the impact of these actions acutely. We hope that the Palau Pledge raises global awareness of the responsibility that this generation has to the next.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The Palau Pledge is further brought to life with an imaginative in-flight video that features the children of Palau explaining the massive impact that visitors can have on their home. Signage and information packs will also be placed around Palau\u2019s airport terminal and throughout the country to remind visitors about the conditions of the Pledge once they arrive. The Palau Pledge and its philosophy is also being integrated into the children\u2019s education by the Ministry of Education,<br \/>\nto help the children understand the essential role they play in protecting their country\u2019s future.<\/p>\n<p>The local community and businesses, including tour operators, will also be encouraged to take the Pledge to commit to upholding Palau\u2019s conservation laws, helping visitors understand them and celebrating Palau\u2019s unique beauty.<\/p>\n<p>The Palau Pledge was created by Australian communications agency, Host\/Havas, in partnership with the Palau Legacy Project, a local group of voluntary business and marketing professionals that work alongside the government to help communicate Palau\u2019s conservation message. \u201cThe Palau Pledge is about helping guests understand the vital role they play in protecting Palau for the next generation. Most visitors are unaware of the serious impact their actions have<br \/>\nor even what they can do to help. The Palau Legacy Project team came together to help communicate these important messages in a way that all guests<br \/>\nwould understand.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>First country in the world to ask visitors to sign declaration in passports to protect its environment and culture for next generation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[266,131,16,130,287,534],"tags":[2375],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v21.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Palau creates world first conservation pledge, stamped in visitors\u2019 passports<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"First country in the world to ask visitors to sign declaration in passports to protect its environment and culture for next generation.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/2017\/12\/palau-creates-world-first-conservation-pledge-stamped-visitors-passports\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Palau creates world first conservation pledge, stamped in visitors\u2019 passports\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"First country in the world to ask visitors to sign declaration in passports to protect its environment and culture for next generation.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/2017\/12\/palau-creates-world-first-conservation-pledge-stamped-visitors-passports\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Travindy\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/travindy\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:author\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/travindy\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2017-12-12T15:45:39+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2017-12-12T15:55:36+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/travindy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Palau-Pledge.png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Travindy\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@travindy\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@Travindy\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Travindy\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/2017\/12\/palau-creates-world-first-conservation-pledge-stamped-visitors-passports\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/2017\/12\/palau-creates-world-first-conservation-pledge-stamped-visitors-passports\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Travindy\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/79576b26c03e84ac969c6cf7ad8118bb\"},\"headline\":\"Palau creates world first conservation pledge, stamped in visitors\u2019 passports\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-12-12T15:45:39+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2017-12-12T15:55:36+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/2017\/12\/palau-creates-world-first-conservation-pledge-stamped-visitors-passports\/\"},\"wordCount\":793,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/#organization\"},\"keywords\":[\"pledge\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Communications\",\"Community\",\"Destinations\",\"Environmental issues\",\"Innovation\",\"News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/2017\/12\/palau-creates-world-first-conservation-pledge-stamped-visitors-passports\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/2017\/12\/palau-creates-world-first-conservation-pledge-stamped-visitors-passports\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/2017\/12\/palau-creates-world-first-conservation-pledge-stamped-visitors-passports\/\",\"name\":\"Palau creates world first conservation pledge, stamped in visitors\u2019 passports\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2017-12-12T15:45:39+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2017-12-12T15:55:36+00:00\",\"description\":\"First country in the world to ask visitors to sign declaration in passports to protect its environment and culture for next generation.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/2017\/12\/palau-creates-world-first-conservation-pledge-stamped-visitors-passports\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/2017\/12\/palau-creates-world-first-conservation-pledge-stamped-visitors-passports\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/2017\/12\/palau-creates-world-first-conservation-pledge-stamped-visitors-passports\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Palau creates world first conservation pledge, stamped in visitors\u2019 passports\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/\",\"name\":\"Travindy\",\"description\":\"sustainable tourism consulting, news and resources\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Travindy\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/travindy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/cropped-travindy-logo-square.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/travindy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/cropped-travindy-logo-square.png\",\"width\":512,\"height\":512,\"caption\":\"Travindy\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/travindy\",\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Travindy\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/79576b26c03e84ac969c6cf7ad8118bb\",\"name\":\"Travindy\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7e8e24b511c9178e320b9eb2226dadb1?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7e8e24b511c9178e320b9eb2226dadb1?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Travindy\"},\"description\":\"Travindy is an independent website featuring news and opinion on all issues to do with tourism and sustainability. Written primarily for an industry audience, our aim is to support the transformation of the sector into one that is regenerative, restorative and fully inclusive.\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/travindy\",\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/travindy\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/author\/travindy\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Palau creates world first conservation pledge, stamped in visitors\u2019 passports","description":"First country in the world to ask visitors to sign declaration in passports to protect its environment and culture for next generation.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/2017\/12\/palau-creates-world-first-conservation-pledge-stamped-visitors-passports\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Palau creates world first conservation pledge, stamped in visitors\u2019 passports","og_description":"First country in the world to ask visitors to sign declaration in passports to protect its environment and culture for next generation.","og_url":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/2017\/12\/palau-creates-world-first-conservation-pledge-stamped-visitors-passports\/","og_site_name":"Travindy","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/travindy","article_author":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/travindy","article_published_time":"2017-12-12T15:45:39+00:00","article_modified_time":"2017-12-12T15:55:36+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Palau-Pledge.png"}],"author":"Travindy","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@travindy","twitter_site":"@Travindy","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Travindy","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/2017\/12\/palau-creates-world-first-conservation-pledge-stamped-visitors-passports\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/2017\/12\/palau-creates-world-first-conservation-pledge-stamped-visitors-passports\/"},"author":{"name":"Travindy","@id":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/79576b26c03e84ac969c6cf7ad8118bb"},"headline":"Palau creates world first conservation pledge, stamped in visitors\u2019 passports","datePublished":"2017-12-12T15:45:39+00:00","dateModified":"2017-12-12T15:55:36+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/2017\/12\/palau-creates-world-first-conservation-pledge-stamped-visitors-passports\/"},"wordCount":793,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/#organization"},"keywords":["pledge"],"articleSection":["Communications","Community","Destinations","Environmental issues","Innovation","News"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/2017\/12\/palau-creates-world-first-conservation-pledge-stamped-visitors-passports\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/2017\/12\/palau-creates-world-first-conservation-pledge-stamped-visitors-passports\/","url":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/2017\/12\/palau-creates-world-first-conservation-pledge-stamped-visitors-passports\/","name":"Palau creates world first conservation pledge, stamped in visitors\u2019 passports","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/#website"},"datePublished":"2017-12-12T15:45:39+00:00","dateModified":"2017-12-12T15:55:36+00:00","description":"First country in the world to ask visitors to sign declaration in passports to protect its environment and culture for next generation.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/2017\/12\/palau-creates-world-first-conservation-pledge-stamped-visitors-passports\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/2017\/12\/palau-creates-world-first-conservation-pledge-stamped-visitors-passports\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/2017\/12\/palau-creates-world-first-conservation-pledge-stamped-visitors-passports\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Palau creates world first conservation pledge, stamped in visitors\u2019 passports"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/#website","url":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/","name":"Travindy","description":"sustainable tourism consulting, news and resources","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/#organization","name":"Travindy","url":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/cropped-travindy-logo-square.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/cropped-travindy-logo-square.png","width":512,"height":512,"caption":"Travindy"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/travindy","https:\/\/twitter.com\/Travindy"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/79576b26c03e84ac969c6cf7ad8118bb","name":"Travindy","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7e8e24b511c9178e320b9eb2226dadb1?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7e8e24b511c9178e320b9eb2226dadb1?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Travindy"},"description":"Travindy is an independent website featuring news and opinion on all issues to do with tourism and sustainability. Written primarily for an industry audience, our aim is to support the transformation of the sector into one that is regenerative, restorative and fully inclusive.","sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/travindy","https:\/\/twitter.com\/travindy"],"url":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/author\/travindy\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22734"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22734"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22734\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22734"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22734"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travindy.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22734"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}