This section describes the essential skills and knowledge and their level required for this unit

The following skills must be assessed as part of this unit

interpretation of environmental legislation and regulation imposed by relevant land management agencies and federal state or territory and local governments

interpretation of industry and ecotourism codes of practice

highlevel communication skills to conduct comprehensive consultation with key stakeholders

critical thinking skills to facilitate rational and logical analysis of cost versus yield and other evaluations associated with planning the establishment of the tourism operation

literacy skills to read and interpret complex material describing environmental regulatory requirements and industry and ecotourism codes of practice

highlevel written literacy skills to develop comprehensive plans for ecologically sustainable tourism operations and operational and customerfocused codes of practice

numeracy skills to perform complex calculations when evaluating cost versus yield

The following knowledge must be assessed as part of this unit

broad working knowledge of tourism trends developments and the environmental impact of tourism

general knowledge of global environmental issues and indepth knowledge of local environmental issues

indepth understanding of the social cultural and economic aspects of the local host community

how to access information on a broad range of environmental legislation and regulations imposed by relevant land management agencies and federal state or territory and local governments

how to access industry and ecotourism codes of practice especially that of the Ecotourism Association of Australia

indepth knowledge of consultative and communication mechanisms commonly used by organisations

minimal impact techniques

methods of managing tourism impacts

environmental management strategies and methods of acceptably balancing ecological sustainability and the economic viability of an operation

The evidence guide provides advice on assessment and must be read in conjunction with the performance criteria required skills and knowledge the range statement and the Assessment Guidelines for this TrainingPackage

The evidence guide provides advice on assessment and must be read in conjunction with the performance criteria, required skills and knowledge, the range statement and the Assessment Guidelines for this TrainingPackage.

Critical aspects for assessment and evidence required to demonstrate competency in this unit

Evidence of the following is essential

project or work activities that show the candidates ability to plan for strategically establish and operate an ecologically sustainable tourism operation and to monitor any environmental impact

project or work activities conducted over a commercially realistic period of time so that the planning evaluation and monitoring aspects of the operations can be assessed

ability to critically analyse all information that relates to the product development phase

knowledge of how to access information on the current range of legislation regulations and industry codes and ability to interpret the requirements clearly as they relate to the tourism operation

knowledge of minimal impact and environmental management strategies

Context of and specific resources for assessment

Assessment must ensure

that the candidate has accessed a fully equipped industryrealistic office environment using appropriate computers printers information programs and publications currently used in the tourism industry to facilitate the planning and product development processes involved

access to a destination where the ecologically sustainable tourism operation would be established and operated or access to comprehensive and sufficient information about that destination to allow the candidate to plan for strategically establish and operate an ecologically sustainable tourism operation and monitor any environmental impact

access to current regulatory documents distributed by key land management agencies and federal state or territory and local governments such as plain English legislative publications codes and standards outlining environmental regulatory requirements

involvement and interaction with a group of people so that consultation with key stakeholders can be achieved

Methods of assessment

A range of assessment methods should be used to assess the practical skills and knowledge required to plan and develop ecologically sustainable tourism operations The following examples are appropriate for this unit

review of a completed plan for the tourism operation including analysis of all evaluations that have been conducted

review of codes of practice developed by the candidate

review of environmental impact monitoring reports completed by the candidate and action plans for any required corrective measures

project activities to plan and develop an ecologically sustainable tourism operation in conjunction with industry

project activities to plan and develop an ecologically sustainable tourism operation for a given environmentally sensitive area

case studies to assess the candidates ability to evaluate the development and operation of different tourism operations with differing environmental issues

case studies and projects to assess the candidates ability to improve the ecological sustainability of existing tourism operations

written and oral questioning or interview to test knowledge such as environmental regulatory requirements minimal impact techniques and methods of managing tourism impact

review of portfolios of evidence and thirdparty workplace reports of onthejob performance by the candidate

Holistic assessment with other units relevant to the industry sector workplace and job role is recommended for example

SITTPPDA Research assess and develop tourism products

SITTPPD001A Research, assess and develop tourism products

SITTPPDA Plan and implement minimal impact operations

SITTPPD004A Plan and implement minimal impact operations

SITTPPDA Plan and develop culturally appropriate tourism operations

SITTPPD007A Plan and develop culturally appropriate tourism operations

SITXFINA Prepare and monitor budgets

SITXFIN005A Prepare and monitor budgets.

Assessing employability skills

Employability skills are integral to effective performance in the workplace and are broadly consistent across industry sectors How these skills are applied varies between occupations and qualifications due to the different work functions and contextsEmployability skills embedded in this unit should be assessed holistically with other relevant units that make up the skill set or qualification and in the context of the job role

Employability skills are integral to effective performance in the workplace and are broadly consistent across industry sectors. How these skills are applied varies between occupations and qualifications due to the different work functions and contexts.
Employability skills embedded in this unit should be assessed holistically with other relevant units that make up the skill set or qualification and in the context of the job role.

Range of evaluations prior to establishing the operation may involve:

Methods of managing tourism impact may include:

Stakeholders may include: