UNWTO Unites Tourism Around Tangible Climate Action Plans at COP27

At COP27, UNWTO brought leading sector stakeholders together to share practical insights into accelerating the shift to greater sustainability and reaching Net-Zero.

Zoritsa Urosevic, UNWTO Executive Director said, “One year after its launch, we are proud to see the way the Glasgow Declaration has inspired our sector into action. Unlocking finance and developing measurement frameworks will be critical to scaling-up our support and continue accelerating climate action for resilience.”

“A net zero future for tourism largely depends on the ocean and the regeneration of destinations, notably coastal destinations. We have to turn tourism into a sector that is responsive to the climate emergency” said Peter Thomson, UN Secretary General’s Special Envoy for the Ocean

On 10th November, the side event focussed on the pathways of measurement and decarbonization. The Secretaries of State for Tourism and for Environment of Guanajuato, Mexico, shared about their unique collaborative approaches; the Minister of Tourism of the Canary Islands presented their climate action plan – one of the first ones at destination level; Iberostar released its decarbonization roadmap; the Sustainable Hospitality Alliance reflected on the improvements of the Hotel Carbon Measurement Initiative; and Intrepid Travel put forward the multiplier role that tour operators can have by supporting smaller businesses to decarbonize.

“The tourism sector requires a reset. A transition to sustainable tourism models requires a collective effort, one that UNDP is ready and willing to support,” said Dr Khalida Bouzar, Assistant Secretary General and Regional Director for UNDP Arab States.

On 11th, the Minister of Tourism, Maldives and representatives from The Bahamas Ministry for Tourism reiterated the place of tourism in the protection of fragile ecosystems. At the same time, the challenges faced by Ministries of Tourism to play an active role in climate negotiations at the national level was highlighted, as was the need to enhance the education of communities and visitors.

“Achieving Net Zero by 2050 remains ambitious for tourism and more finance is needed. Investing in climate action in tourism is investing in green resilient and inclusive development” said Mari Pangestu, Managing Director, Development Policy and Partnerships, World Bank Group.

Also in Sharm El-Sheikh, UNWTO convened its Committee of Tourism and Sustainability, chaired by the Ministry of Tourism of Croatia, within the framework of a UNFCCC COP.