The United Nations (UN) announced a week ago that more than 50 governments have signed the declaration that aims to make global tourism more climate-friendly. The historic agreement was reached during COP 29 in Azerbaijan, marking a significant step in global climate protection efforts.
The declaration, entitled "Strengthened Climate Action in Tourism", commits countries to address tourism in their climate strategies, particularly in their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs). The next updates to the NDC, which outline the government's emission reduction policies, are due to be published in February, esgnews.com writes.
Why is this statement important?
Tourism contributes 3% to global GDP, but is responsible for 8,8% of global greenhouse gas emissions, according to UN Tourism Executive Director Zorica Urosevic.
"At COP29, we reached a historic milestone by including tourism formally in the action agenda of the UN Climate Change Conference for the first time," she pointed out.
Climate-related disturbances such as hurricanes, heat waves and droughts also make tourism highly vulnerable.
The declaration was supported by new tools, such as the framework introduced by the Global Alliance for Sustainable Hospitality, which represents over 55 the hotel and over 7 mln. rooms worldwide, including major brands such as Accor, Hilton and Marriott.
The framework tracks indicators such as greenhouse gas emissions, water consumption, waste and energy use. This data will allow both industry and travelers to better understand their impact on the environment.
“We are an industry that has a vested interest in protecting every destination. We need to have a conversation where we can play a bigger role," says Glenn Mandziuk, CEO of the Alliance.
The signing of the UN declaration and the accompanying initiatives set a strong precedent for mainstreaming sustainability in tourism by strengthening the industry's responsibility to address climate change.
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