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Europe, Responsible Tourism

2017 is the Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development

Great! So, what do you need to know about sustainability for your travels this year? Vicky Smith, Travel Massive London member/sustainability guru tells us.

On January 18th, 2017 #IY2017 (International Year of Sustainability) was launched.

But what does that really mean?

A commercial organizations ‘bottom line’ is just its profit – its economic benefits.

Any consideration of Sustainability is done as a Triple Bottom Line balance of three pillars – Economic, plus Social and Environmental. This is what we need to focus on for 2017.

But isn’t “sustainable tourism” a contradiction in terms?

Aren’t we, just by travelling somewhere, especially flying, creating a negative impact?

Any industry can have a negative impact, or be more sustainable – tourism included.

Sustainable tourism isn’t a ‘type’ of tourism such as cruising or camping. It does not occur in specific places like remote jungle or desert. Rather, sustainable tourism is the ethos by which an organization’s decisions are made, considering the balance of costs and benefits environmentally, socially and economically.

A journey may have a negative environmental impact, but a trip might also make positive contributions economically or socially – it’s not always clear-cut and simple, but a balance.

Triple bottom line benefits

Putting a halt on global travel could reduce the carbon footprint of tourism aviation, which represents 5-6% greenhouse gas emissions and the impact on global warming.

However, accommodations, tours, and activities also have emissions: Domestic tourism impacts too.

Plus tourism is an important sector throughout a country in a way that many other industries are not, eg. extractives are focused on a relatively small geographic area.

Tourism is a top 3 sector for export trade, for many of the world’s least developed countries. If global tourism were limited, arguably the countries that need it most would suffer most.

Tourism’s Value in the Global Economy

The World Travel and Tourism Council reports that in 2015, travel and tourism represented:

  • 9.8% of global GDP: US$7.2 trillion
  • 1 in 11 jobs: 284 million (108 million directly)
  • 2.5 million new jobs generated in 2015 (directly)
  • Growth of 3.1%, outperforming the wider economy, manufacturing, and retail.
  • Ranked 3rd worldwide export category in 2015, after fuels and chemicals and ahead of food and automotive products. (UNWTO)

The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

At the 2012 UN Conference on Sustainable Development in Rio, Brazil, it was recognized that “well-designed and well-managed tourism” can contribute to sustainable development: economically, socially and environmentally.

On January 1st, 2016, the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) officially came into force, comprised of 169 targets aimed at promoting sustainable development globally.

All the SDGs can apply to tourism, though tourism is mentioned specifically in three:SDG 8 – Tourism is one of the driving forces of global economic growth and provides for 1 in 11 jobs worldwide.

 SDG 8 – Tourism is one of the driving forces of global economic growth and provides for 1 in 11 jobs worldwide.

 SDG 12 – Tourism that adopts sustainable consumption and production (SCP) can play a significant role in accelerating the global shift towards sustainability.

 SDG 14 – Coastal and maritime tourism, tourism’s biggest segments, particularly for Small Island Developing States’ (SIDS), rely on healthy marine ecosystems.

So, let’s celebrate the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development #IY2017

The International Year aims to support a change in policies, business practices and consumer behaviour to a more sustainable tourism sector that can contribute to the SDGs. Earth Changers is pleased to support these sustainable development goals by being the pioneers for Sustainable Tourism for Development in the world.

For more information on how to get involved, you can check out Earth Changers on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.


Vicky Smith is a sustainable tourism marketing consultant and part of the Travel Massive London chapter. She has more than 20 years of experience in tourism management of destinations, online and marketing. She has more than 10 years of experience in responsible and voluntourism. Neat fact? Vicky is a qualified ranger, she is mindful and organized. She also co-hosts the #rttc Twitter chat on @RTUnite.


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