The COVID pandemic has severely disrupted the global economy and decimated the Travel & Tourism sector, with international travel declining by 73% in 2020 and domestic travel by estimated 34%. However, it showed that the government and tourism sector can act rapidly to boost resilience and radically change operational strategies and underlying regulations when faced with extreme situations.
SUNx Malta has recently released its 2021 Report on Climate Friendly Travel, ahead of the Glasgow Climate COP26. It calls for a DASH-2-Zero now – for climate resilience, emission reduction & sustainability – responding to the UN Code Red for Humanity.
SUNx is an EU-based NGO established as a legacy for climate and sustainability trailblazer, Maurice Strong. The SUNx Report calls for a DASH-2-Zero supporting the recent Glasgow Tourism Declaration.
Based on curated research data, the report shows the intensifying of climate driven global disasters and how this impacts the vital Travel & Tourism sector of the world economy.
Highlights of the report:
1. Report endorses the Glasgow Tourism Declaration and urges a DASH-2-Zero to take the commitments made further and faster. It suggests more ambitious targets of Net Zero carbon dioxide emissions for 2030 and Zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
2. Calls for climate resilience now for Travel & Tourism activities, as well as clear emission reduction and sustainability plans, based on the science, the weather & demands of youth.
3. Identifies a range of support services available to help companies and communities stay on track for a climate friendly travel future.
4. Offers its Climate Friendly Travel Registry linked to the UN Global Climate Action Portal to help tourism stakeholders register climate and sustainability ambitions and show progress.
5. Recognises the central interest and role of youth in dealing with the existential climate crisis and in helping to promote positive change across the Travel & Tourism sector.
Professor Geoffrey Lipman, President of SUNx Malta said, “We are not only pleased to support the Glasgow Declaration, but we hope that our Climate Friendly Travel Report will spur real action and positive response to UN Secretary General Guterres’ call for a Code Red for Humanity, underscored by the recent IPCC 6th Assessment Report. Our concept of Climate Friendly Travel and our call for a DASH-2-Zero can act as a catalyst for rapid change and a conduit to the UN led 2030/2050 Green and Clean Roadmap for a better future.
“SUNx Malta has also laid out its own Decade Vision, which targets 10,000 registered companies and 1000 communities by 2030, as well as 100,000 Climate Champions to support the transformation”
Governments and industry quickly recognised the need to support the Travel & Tourism value chain at all levels during the COVID-19 pandemic. It is widely seen as clarion call to build back better and ensure the positive lessons from the crisis are progressively incorporated into daily lives and travel patterns, underpinned by increasing application of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and adherence to Paris Agreement 1.5 degree C trajectory.
“Better Travel & Tourism” implies a growing consumer interest in more sustainable trips, increasingly tied to low-carbon transport and nature based experiences.
Report states,
“Travel and tourism has an important opportunity to move into the mainstream of climate resilience and re-invigorate sustainable development, as reflected in COVID-19 recovery plans of organisations including WTTC and IATA. The goal is a world where mobility on land, sea and air continue to shift to non-polluting fuels, where hospitality becomes as energy efficient as possible and destinations practice more thoughtful tourism capacity management, incorporating visitor engagement into thriving communities with resident satisfaction and strengthened local business development.
“But this shift cannot simply be about eco tourism, biosphere, and adventure trave- all of travel & tourism must be the part of this change. It must involve cities, business travel and events management. If not, the warming planet and increasing regulation will force the necessary action, and the unplanned costs will be substantially higher.”
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