China Tourism Industry Association joins hands with 360 HaoSou to drive a revolutionary environmental governance movement in scenic areas

    News from the Tourism Scenic Area Reform and Development Seminar held by the China Tourism Scenic Area Association reveals that the three-year action plan for the "Tourism Toilet Revolution" proposed by Li Jinzao, Director of the National Tourism Administration, is receiving high attention and active promotion across the industry.

    The seminar held in Kunshan, Jiangsu on April 22–23 conducted in-depth discussions on how to fully achieve the various goals outlined in State Council Document No. 31 and the spirit of the 2015 National Tourism Work Conference. Actively advancing the "Tourism Toilet Revolution" was one of the key topics of this meeting. Professor Dai Bin, Dean of the China Tourism Academy, was invited to deliver a keynote speech. Hou Yajun, Deputy General Manager and Technical Director of Beijing Lanjieshi Technology Development Co., Ltd.—one of the revising entities of the new "Classification and Evaluation of Tourism Toilet Quality Grades"—gave a special presentation on the background of the "toilet revolution" and how to carry it out, as well as an interpretation of the new toilet standards.

    In accordance with the directive spirit of Du Jiang, Vice President of the China Tourism Association, to "attach great importance, actively promote, and effectively implement," as follow-up measures to the initiative letter "Break Traditional Concepts and Advance the Toilet Revolution" issued earlier this month by both the China Tourism Association and the China Tourism Scenic Area Association to the industry, the two associations have decided to collaborate with HaoSou to gradually incorporate scenic area toilets into a dedicated toilet information database and mobile internet platform. Making full use of internet technology and leveraging the role of mobile phones, the goal is to provide convenience for tourists seeking nearby toilets, as well as technical support for collecting, analyzing, and releasing information on the construction and management of scenic area toilets. The China Tourism Association and the China Tourism Scenic Area Association plan to gradually include major national A-level scenic areas in the aforementioned work platform in line with the progress of the National Tourism Administration’s three-year work plan. As a pilot this year, 80–100 4A-level or higher scenic areas will be arranged for positioning and database entry on a voluntary basis, aiming to reach 300 next year, and cover all member units of the Tourism Scenic Area Association by 2017. The two associations will progressively refine and continuously advance this initiative, treating it as an important tool for identifying and promoting exemplary work in toilet management, advocating advanced civility, exposing and criticizing weak links in management and uncivilized tourism behaviors, and furthering the construction and development of scenic area toilets. Zhang Xinliang, professional head at HaoSou, introduced the information database and platform to the seminar participants.