Climate Change Actions Agreed at UNWTO Ministers Summit

The UNWTO Ministers’ Summit endorsed the UNWTO/UNEP/WMO led initiatives to address tourism sector climate change effects. The participants strongly endorsed the Davos Declaration and urged all tourism stakeholders to follow its recommendations.
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Formulated in October, the Davos agreement seeks to put actions in place to:
– Mitigate Greenhouse Gas emissions from the tourism sector
– Adapt tourism businesses and destinations to changing climate conditions
– Apply new technologies to improve energy efficiency
– Source financial resources to assist poorer nations

In October Davos, Switzerland played host to 450 participants from 80 countries and 22 international organizations who agreed the following:

– Climate is a key resource for the tourism industry, which is responsible for approximately 5% of global emissions.
– Tourism is vital to the global economy and an important contributor to the Millennium Development Goals.
– There is a need to urgently adopt a range of policies that provide sustainable tourism’s quadruple bottom line – environment, social, economic and climate.
– The tourism sector must rapidly respond to climate change to mitigate its emissions, adapt to the changing climate and apply new technology. Furthermore, the tourism sector should source financial resources to help poor regions and countries.

The Davos meeting called for the following actions:

BY GOVERNMENTS & INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS TO…

– Incorporate tourism into existing climate change agreements.
– Implement mitigation, adaption technology and financing consistent with the Millennium Development Goals.
– Provide financial and technical assistance to tourism in destination countries to assist with actions related to climate change.
– Promote networks and information sharing to assist with sustainable development of tourism.
– Collaborate to reduce GHG’s in transport.
– Introduce education and awareness programs for all tourism stakeholders including consumers.
– Develop regional and local climate information services.
– Implement policy for effective adaption and mitigation.

BY THE TOURISM INDUSTRY AND DESTINATIONS TO…

– Take leadership to implement concrete measures to mitigate climate change throughout the tourism value chain.
– Reduce the carbon footprint throughout the tourism sector.
– Integrate tourism in local and regional adaption and mitigation strategies.
– Strive to conserve biodiversity particularily “Earth Lungs” (carbon sinks).
– Diminish pollution.
– Implement climate-focused product diversification.
– Raise awareness amongst customers and staff.

BY CONSUMERS TO…

– Reduce Carbon Footprint and/or offset emissions.
– Opt for environmentally-friendly resort activities

BY RESEARCH AND COMMUNICATIONS NETWORKS TO…

– Encourage research and develop tools.
– Include environment and climate-related subjects in tourism education.
– Promote quadruple bottom line responsible travel.
– Raise awareness of tourism’s development potential.

The Davos Declaration provided the basis for the UNWTO Minister’s Summit on Tourism and Climate Change. It will be submitted for adoption at the UNWTO General Assembly in Cartagena de Indias, Colombia, 23-29 November 2007, and also will be presented at the United Nations Climate Change Conference
in Bali, Indonesia, in December 2007.

unwto climate change website

Valere Tjolle

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