Objectives
Introduction
Getting Organized
How To Conduct This Step
TOP| VISIONING AND GOAL SETTING |  |
How do you see your community after tourism development?
What do you want to see happen?
What is an acceptable level of change in your community?
How much of what type of
tourism
development fits with your image of your community's
future?
| Purpose |
Through visioning you will lay out an image of what you would like your community to look like in the future. This image will help guide you in selecting tourism projects that will lead to the desired future rather than those that are likely to lead away from it.
Goal setting will establish a target level for community tourism development. Goals will help you know if your efforts are actually succeeding in achieving your vision.
| Objectives |
At the end of this section, the task force will have:
- developed a vision statement.
- articulated and agreed upon the overall goals for the program.
- expressed strong commitment to work to achieve their vision.
| Introduction |
Visioning and goal setting are extremely important steps in the community assessment and development process. In the visioning step community members attempt to look into the future and imagine what they would like their community to be. Such an effort involves identifying what is really valued or desired and trying to include those elements in a shared image of their community "being as good as it can be." The image can help community leaders decide among alternatives that are likely to lead to the desired future and those that are likely to lead away from it. It helps a community decide how much of any type of development will fit within its vision and determine what levels of change are acceptable. For example, the decision that preserving their small town atmosphere was most important to them led Townsend, Montana residents to scale back their tourism promotion plans.
Precisely defining goals means deciding what the community really wants out of tourism. For example:
- How many jobs, for whom, at what pay scales, for what seasons?
- What levels of income increase for community members?
Once goals have been agreed upon the community can develop the plans necessary to achieve them. Community members can decide what needs to be done to accomplish each goal, develop time lines and assign responsibilities to ensure the goals are met.
| Getting organized |
Since a vision is only as strong as those who share it, the action committee will want the broadest possible community participation at the visioning session. A concerted effort will be needed to get diverse representatives from throughout the community to turn out for the visioning session. Representatives from the following categories should be personally invited and encouraged to participate. (Also refer to the lists on Form #1-1 and Form #9B-3 for more groups to consider.)
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