When partner organizations have enhanced capacity, they can then do things that serve the greater mission of improving sustainable economic opportunity in tourism. “
why they go there, etc. This study, in combination with the USTA’s tourism data, underscored the importance of nature-based tourism in the cul - ture and history of the state. The Consortium also tracks trends in tourism spending, jobs, establish - ments, wages, and gross domestic product to help monitor and support the state’s marine economy. Talk about some of the Consortium’s part- nerships and why they’re important. In addition to our university partners, we collabo - rate with organizations that represent the interests
ronmental stewardship. They are also important for building trust and relationships in rural and underserved communities. How do you plan to expand and promote the Consortium’s work? As a part of the Gullah Geechee Seafood Trail project, the team offers “Business of Doing Busi - ness” courses and plans to expand this program. Also planned for year two of the project is spon - soring Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point training that will cover safe seafood handling
practices for community engagement, etc.—all of which builds their capacity to reach and accom - modate more customers.
and stakeholder perceptions of the seafood trail. In a series of interviews, we asked food harvesters, sea - food retail owners, a restaurant manager, a tourism promoter, and an ecotourism provider about the viability of such a trail as well as the best ways to de - velop and maintain it, how to fund marketing and promotion, and what the trail membership criteria should be for businesses and attractions. We discovered strong stakeholder support, which gave us confidence that it was a project worth pursuing and one that would celebrate South Carolina’s maritime cultural heritage and lever - age untapped economic potential in underserved communities. The need for a champion was clearly identified in these interviews, as well. In 2020, the Consortium partnered with the Gullah Geechee Chamber of Commerce and realized we had several mutually beneficial goals. With the chamber as the champion and the Consortium, along with several other partners, providing sup - port, the Gullah Geechee Seafood Trail began to develop. On the nature-based tourism side, the Consortium partnered with Clemson University and the Col - lege of Charleston to estimate the economic con - tribution of nature-based tourism in coastal South Carolina. We surveyed visitors to gauge their knowledge of, attitudes about, and perceptions of nature-based tourism, asking them where they go,
of businesses that rely on coastal tourism— such as the SCNBTA and the South Carolina Association of Tour - ism Regions. We also partner with several state agencies, includ - ing the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources and Depart - ment of Parks, Recre - ation, and Tourism, as well as the Coastal Carolina University Athenaeum Press.
best practices and offer HACCP certification for Gullah Geechee Seafood Trail entities. Membership expansion is also a priority for SCNBTA and the Seafood Trail. For the Seafood Trail, near term plans are to cover the entire South Carolina coast, includ - ing the development of a website and a digital Trail Map in year 2 of the
Spending on coastal South Carolina nature-based tourism
Overall visitor spending in coastal South Carolina
What are some recent outcomes of the Consortium’s work?
In addition to the grant from NOAA, we have received funding from the National Sea Grant Office to work with regional tourism experts and agencies to develop and implement market strat - egies to help the South Carolina Nature-Based Tourism Association (SCNBTA) and its small business members to cope with impacts of the COVID pandemic and ultimately enhance the resilience of the nature-based tourism industry. This included a membership recruitment cam - paign with the SCNBTA, which resulted in a 50% increase in membership from 2020-2021. Overall, the Consortium’s work in extension tour - ism programming has cultivated several commu - nity-based partnerships to connect coastal small businesses that rely on tourism with relevant resources, including marketing and promotional capacity, training sessions, research, and grant opportunities.
$9.1B
$1.31B
grant. But the long term goals are to expand into North Carolina, Georgia, and Florida to encom - pass the entire Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor. What lessons are you learning that could help other Sea Grant professionals? One of the most important things we’ve learned is that building capacity in our partner organi - zations increases indirect benefits of the work. When partners have more capacity, they can improve sustainable economic opportunity in tourism with less effort from our Sea Grant program. This also enables partners to be more self-sustaining.
For the Gullah Geechee Seafood Trail project, we partnered with organizations that promote di - versity, equity, inclusion, environmental justice, historic preservation, and sustainable economic opportunity—such as the Gullah Geechee Cham - ber of Commerce, WeGOJA Foundation, South Carolina African American Heritage Commission, Gullah/Geechee Sea Islands Coalition, and the Gullah/Geechee Fishing Association. These partnerships are important for enhancing access to economic opportunity and resources for business owners, and for promoting envi -
How has research informed the Consortium’s work?
A three-year study (2012 to 2015) in partnership with Clemson University explored the feasibility
48 The NET Effect | Extension Foundation/NTAE
Extension Foundation/NTAE | The NET Effect 49
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