TEHRAN – Iran has presented two community-based tourism initiatives as examples of climate-resilient and sustainable tourism at the 27th Meeting of the COMCEC Tourism Working Group in Ankara.
The meeting, held on September 16 and 17, brought together representatives of member states of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), international organizations, the private sector and non-governmental organizations to examine the impacts of climate change on tourism and discuss strategies to strengthen the resilience of destinations.
Bita Sadeqzadeh, Iran’s national representative and liaison to COMCEC, outlined the effects of climate change on tourism in OIC member states, including rising temperatures, declining precipitation, prolonged droughts and changing seasonal patterns, Mehr news agency reported.
She said such changes were placing increasing pressure on natural, coastal and desert destinations and underscoring the need to reconsider tourism development policies.
Sadeqzadeh highlighted the villages of Soheili on Qeshm Island and Shafiabad in Kerman as notable Iranian examples. Both villages were included in the UN Tourism Best Tourism Villages list in 2025.
Soheili, located near Qeshm’s mangrove forests, has sought to link tourism development with environmental protection through local community participation, particularly the involvement of women and young people. Its measures include the use of quieter boats, the annual planting of about 200,000 mangrove seedlings and the establishment of more than 40 eco-lodges. These initiatives have created direct employment for nearly 940 people, according to the Iranian presentation.
In Shafiabad, located near the the Lut Desert, a women group has allocated part of its handicraft income to rehabilitating drying qanats, linking tourism with water-resource management, environmental protection and women’s economic empowerment.
Sadeqzadeh said meaningful community participation, active ecosystem protection, the use of local architecture and materials, and directing part of tourism revenues toward conservation could provide useful approaches for other OIC countries.
The meeting is expected to produce policy recommendations for consideration at the 42nd COMCEC Ministerial Session.
COMCEC is the Standing Committee for Economic and Commercial Cooperation of the OIC, with its coordination office based in Ankara.
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