Climate change and climate action:

“Climate action is understood as the efforts to measure and reduce GHG emissions and strengthen adaptive capacity to climate induced impacts.” – UNDP, SDG, Goal 13 – Climate Action (as cited byUN Tourism)

Climate Action is Goal 13 of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

To find out more, watch this short video and read more about the causes and consequences of climate change by the European Commission.

Climate risks:

World Economic Forum’ Global risk report 2024 – the biggest threats to business in the next two years and the next 10 years. The top 4 risks to business in the next 10 years are all environment-related.

EUCRA – the European Climate Risk Assessment identified 36 climate-related risks “that threaten our energy and food security, ecosystems, infrastructure, water resources, financial systems, and people’s health”. Explore the interactive materials and FAQs about Europe’s climate risks and EUCRA’s assessment.

As described in the Blueprint for Tourism Climate Action Plans (p.22-23), a climate action is any action that:

1. “Result[s] in less emissions being caused.”
2. “Result[s] in more emissions being removed/absorbed.”
3. “Improve[s] resilience towards climate change impacts.”
4. “Enable[s] or support[s] one or more of the first three categories,
   e.g. through measurement, training, networking, communication or fund
   raising.”

• Cost savings and ROI – Immediate and long-term savings (e.g. on energy, water, fuel, waste)
  • Access grants and funding.
• Regulatory compliance – Prepare for upcoming sustainability regulation such as CSRD and Green Claims. Be proactive and implement change at your own pace without regulatory pressure.
• Organisational resilience – Improved capacity to adapt and thrive under changing conditions: climate and regulation
• Changing requirements of supply chain management 
• Stakeholder appeal:
  • Increased demand for sustainable product.
  • Increased demand from supply chain.
  • Community perception.

Read the UNEP’s report: Making the Business Case for Climate Smart Investments: Guidelines for the Tourism Sector

• Benefits of mitigation actions for tourism businesses (page 10)
• Examples of mitigation actions and implementation (Chapter 2)

“These guidelines aim to support tourism sector businesses in identifying potential sources of finance, and in structuring and developing finance proposals for mitigation actions. Although the guidelines focus on accommodation service providers and event organizers with their own venues, the general guidance could also apply to other tourism businesses planning to develop a financial proposal for mitigation actions.” (page 8)

In the WTTC report, ‘Bridging The Say-Do Gap‘, in partnership with YouGov (2025), they identify six types of consumer* and provide seven recommendations with examples of actions for each recommendation, tailored to the different consumer types:

1. “Highlight economic and personal benefits”
2. “Make sustainability hassle-free”
3. “Offer tiered reward schemes”
4. “Highlight corporate sustainability initiatives and partnerships”
5. “Show that environmental action supports wider benefits”
6. “Tailor your marketing”
7. “Seek feedback”

*Based on UK residents, but “can be considered a reasonable proxy for consumers in other markets too – or at least a starting point to be
complemented by further local market research.” – WTTC.

Other findings include:

• Price is a more important purchasing factor than sustainability, so sustainability must become more cost-effective and of higher quality. Integrate sustainability into the value proposition.
• “…education plays an integral role in nudging consumer uptake of sustainable options.”

World Travel and Tourism Council, (2025) ‘Bridging The Say-Do Gap’. Available at: https://researchhub.wttc.org/product/bridging-the-say-do-gap-create-an-effective-sustainability-strategy

More research by WTTC available here.

We are currently working on this section. For more information, please contact sustainability@etoa.org

We are currently working on this section. For more information, please contact sustainability@etoa.org

Background

Current Sustainability Regulation

Upcoming sustainability regulation

Green Claims Directive

Credits are “tradeable certificates that represent the mitigation (reduction or removal) of a specified amount of greenhouse gas emissions.^14 Credits are often used to offset emissions but can be acquired and retired without use as an offset as a form of extra beyond value chain mitigation.”

– Oxford Principles for Net Zero Aligned Carbon Offsetting (revised 2024) (p.9)

According to the Oxford Principles for Net Zero Aligned Carbon Offsetting (revised 2024) (p.10):

“While some actors can feasibly reduce all of their emissions to reach “absolute zero”, others will have residual emissions.7” (p.7)

Offsetting is defined as “emissions reduction or removal resulting from an action outside an organisation’s boundaries used to counterbalance the organisation’s residual emissions.”

According to United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change – Race to Zero:

“Organisations must not use offsets to substitute for or delay decarbonisation. But that also doesn’t mean that they cannot offset on top of decarbonising. Investing in nature based solutions is critical to reaching a net zero world.” (p.8)

The Glasgow Declaration’s decarbonisation pathway states that “while offsetting may have a subsidiary role, it must be complementary to real reductions”.

According to the Oxford Principles for Net Zero Aligned Carbon Offsetting (revised 2024):

The terms ‘carbon neutral(ity)’ and ‘net zero’ “should be functionally equivalent concepts”, but the two concepts are interpreted differently. (p.9)

Net-negative / climate positive:

“When an actor’s greenhouse gas removals, internal and external, exceed its emissions over a declared time period.18 Such targets are often made by organisations in recognition that net zero is a global target requiring actors who can to go further, faster”

– Oxford Principles for Net Zero Aligned Carbon Offsetting (revised 2024) (p.10)

As explained in UN Tourism’s Climate Action in the Tourism Sector – An overview of methodologies and tools to measure greenhouse gas emissions (p.49):

GHG emissions can be segmented into three ‘scopes’ to help stakeholders understand where their emissions come from, and their responsibility over them.

• Scope 1: GHG emissions produced directly by an organisation “through combustion of fuels or use of refrigerants in its owned properties and vehicles.”
• Scope 2: GHG emissions produced indirectly by an organisation “through the purchase of electricity or energy – for example for heating and cooling buildings.”
• Scope 3: GHG emissions produced indirectly by activities up and down-stream in the organisation’s value chain. Comprised of 15 sub-categories, scope 3 emissions often form the largest share of an organisation’s total emissions.

For more information and tourism-specific examples of emission sources, see pages 45-47.

“To comply with the CSRD, your company will need to identify its material sustainability impacts, risks and opportunities. The required approach for doing that is a “double materiality” assessment, which broadens the concept of materiality from a sole focus on financial materiality to one that includes a view of your impact on stakeholders and society.” – PwC

• Financial materiality = ‘outside in’. Risks and opportunities in the external environment that could affect your financial performance and position.
• Impact materiality = ‘inside out’. Your impact on the external environment (climate, stakeholders, society etc.).

See the attached glossaries below:

• Glossary by Climate Adapt (EU) – links to the IPCC and EEA glossaries.
• UNFCC Race to Zero Lexicon
• Climate change glossary by the Travel Foundation.

Launched in 2021 at COP26, the Glasgow Declaration on Climate Action in Tourism united the tourism sector in a commitment to climate action and offered a harmonised framework for organisations and individuals to develop a Climate Action Plan (CAP). A list of signatories is available here.

The Glasgow Declaration is hosted online by the UN-led One Planet network.

• FAQs about the Glasgow Declaration.
• You can find out more information about the Glasgow Declaration from UN Tourism.
• Read the full declaration in all UN official languages.

(1) Need for urgent climate action. Tourism is dependent on a stable climate and despite being vulnerable to climate change, the sector is also a major contributor.

(2) Glasgow Declaration acts as a catalyst for climate action, spreading awareness and heightening ambition for change.

(3) Signatories are supported through tools and collaboration.

As stated in the Declaration, signatories must make the following commitments:

1. “As signatories we commit to deliver climate action plans within 12 months of signing and implementing them accordingly.
   
2. If we already have plans, we commit to updating or implementing them in the same period to align with this declaration.
   
3. We commit to report publicly both progress against interim and long-term targets, as well as the actions being taken, at least annually.”

The Glasgow Declaration’s framework for producing climate action plans follows five pathways:

1. Measure,
2. Decarbonise,
3. Regenerate,
4. Collaborate,
5. Finance.

By signing the Glasgow Declaration, you “commit to deliver plans aligned with these pathways to cut tourism emissions in half over the next decade [2030] and reach Net Zero emissions as soon as possible before 2050.”

– One Planet Sustainable Tourism Programme (2021) – Glasgow Declaration: A commitment to a decade of climate action

To sign the Glasgow Declaration on the One Planet network, and view the application form, terms and conditions, and operating guidelines, click here.

Sports organizations:

ETOA members who are predominantly sports organizations may wish to sign the United Nation’s Sports for Climate Action and develop their climate action plan accordingly, taking inspiration from the Glasgow Declaration‘s framework and signatories where appropriate.

Cultural organisations:

ETOA members who are primarily cultural organisations such as museums and galleries, may wish to declare a climate and ecological emergency with Culture Declares.

Environmental organisations:

ETOA members who are part of the environmental industry may wish to Pledge to Net Zero. Their tools and guidance are available here.

Non-sector-specific declarations:

SMEs (non-specific):

SMEs may choose to join the SME Climate Commitment by the SME Climate Hub. Find out more here.

Businesses (non-specific):

Other non-tourism specific businesses may wish to join Business Declares to declare a climate and ecological emergency.

Tourism Declares was a forerunner to the Glasgow Declaration. Its website hosts a range of resources including case studies.

You can still join, either by making a declaration on your website / online (using or taking inspiration from their sample declaration), or joining the Glasgow Declaration.

By indicating in your ETOA Member Profile that you have made a climate declaration:

1. You will be found by ETOA members using the ‘Climate Action Declaration’ filter in our advanced Member Search.
2. You will encourage other ETOA members to declare.

On your member profile:

1. Navigate to ‘Climate action declaration’ in the ‘Sustainability information’ section.
2. Select all that apply:
   1. Glasgow Declaration signatory
   2. Tourism Declares a Climate Emergency signatory
   3. Other (insert initiative URL)

If ‘Other (insert initiative URL)’ is selected, please insert the link of your climate declaration into the ‘Other declaration URL’ field.

Open your member profile

A Climate Action Plan (CAP) is a strategic plan written by organisations, governments, local authorities, individuals and communities to address the need for urgent action to combat climate change.

Aligning with the pathway to net zero, CAPs feature a range of short, medium, and long-term targets, and the actions necessary to reach them. Plans may be a standalone document or form part of a wider sustainability strategy. They are typically updated through implementation reports produced every 12 months to update progress, reflect on challenges, and realign goals as operations are developed during the transition process.

In the tourism sector, the Glasgow Declaration (see: Making a declaration) serves as the catalyst for comprehensive climate action. It aligns stakeholders through a 5-pathway framework to produce CAPs, provides scope for collaboration, and offers tools and support to accelerate capacity for climate action.

For the private sector, in addition to content below please see Drivers for Sustainable Practice in the Sustainability in the business environment section above.

For the public sector, see the European Travel Commission’s Roadmap for National Tourism Organisations Towards Climate Action in Destinations lists five benefits of climate action planning (p. 9)

“1. Creating a Climate Action Framework

You will take a structured approach to your climate action activities, enabling you to track and monitor your progress and benchmark your targets.

2. Building resilience for the future

We are in the midst of a transition to a low-emissions planet that will shape our economy over the next decade. Get your destination ready and start planning for the renewable energy and low-carbon tourism supply chain your destination will need in the future.

3. Reducing business costs

Reducing carbon emissions means reducing consumption, which directly impacts the bottom line of tourism businesses in your destination. Climate action can help businesses in your destination reduce costs and avoid additional expenses such as carbon taxes.

4. Improving the image & reputation of your destination

To stay well positioned in the international tourism market, it is crucial to demonstrate a commitment to climate action in the destination. If you want to be or remain at the forefront of the sustainable tourism market, climate action planning is a must.

5. Enhancing marketing and staying competitive

Investors, tour operators, and visitors are increasingly demanding greater sustainability and more sustainable tourism products in destinations. Sustainability practices and climate action are increasingly becoming key decision-making factors. Undertaking climate action will help you meet the expectations of investors, tour operators, and visitors and thereby remain competitive.”

Whether or not organisations use suggested frameworks as the Glasgow Declaration’s, many will need additional support to determine the scope and content of their CAP.

Climate Action Planning Toolkit:

“The Climate Action Planning Toolkit is a practical guide developed by the CPMR and its external experts, The Travel Foundation, to support tourism stakeholders in transitioning towards sustainable and climate-conscious practices. It provides guidance on developing Climate Action Plans for tourism, offering best practices, case studies, and methodologies to integrate climate resilience into tourism strategies.”

“The toolkit is intended for local authorities, policymakers, tourism businesses, and sustainability professionals looking to create tourism models that address climate challenges while enhancing the resilience of destinations. It serves as a valuable resource for those committed to shaping a more sustainable future for coastal and nature-based tourism.”

• Destination-focused, but can be applied to other tourism businesses.
• Paired with the Tourism Climate Action Blueprint, which provides extensive background into climate action planning and creating a CAP.

Blueprint for Tourism Climate Action Plans: A Guide for Regional Authorities and Destination Management Organizations (DMOs):

A comprehensive, step-by-step guide for DMOs to create a climate action plan. It features recommended actions, resources and additional guidance that spans everything from the preparation phase to implementation and progress reporting. Despite its focus on Mediterranean DMOs and Regional Authorities, the Blueprint’s actionable steps can benefit all tourism stakeholders in their climate action journey.

• You can download the Blueprint in English and Catalan.

Climate Action Planning Toolkit  (see tab above for more information).

Follows the Blueprint for Tourism Climate Action Plans with:

• CAP Template
• CAP Scheduler
• Recommended actions
• Action Planner

Roadmap for National Tourism Organisations Towards Climate Action in Destinations:

“A step-by-step guide for National Tourism Organisations (NTOs) to create a climate action plan tailored to their needs, it serves as a comprehensive toolkit to help destinations achieve sustainability and climate resilience, maintaining global competitiveness.”

• Aligns with the Glasgow Declaration, providing targets, activities, and good practice examples for each of the 5 pathways (Chapter 6).
• Provides a climate action toolkit for NTOs with 3 templates: ‘ Strategic Climate Action Plan’, ‘Climate Action Plan Implementation’, and ‘Climate Action Plan Annual Report’ (Chapter 7).
• Case study examples (Chapter 8).

On your member profile:

1. Navigate to ‘Climate Action Plan URL’ in the ‘Sustainability information’ section.
2. Insert the web address of your published CAP.

Open your member profile

By adding your Climate Action Plan to your ETOA Member Profile:

1. You will be found by ETOA members using the ‘Climate Action Plan Available’ filter in our advanced Member Search.
2. You will support other ETOA members in the development of their CAP.

Once you have published a plan you can add its URL to your member profile.

Between July and October 2024, ETOA looked through every member’s website (provided through our Member Search database) to establish a baseline percentage of our community’s climate action plans. This included searching for members through the Glasgow Declaration signatories list, as well as on Tourism Declares a Climate Emergency.

During the mapping process, ETOA amended the ‘Climate Action Plan Available’ field for each member profile using our findings.

In some instances the URLs were broken or outdated, or lacked sufficient specificity. For example, they linked to general sustainability or climate action commentary, or to sustainability documents that featured only some elements of a Climate Action Plan such as emissions measurements.

In September 2024, ETOA added new fields to Member Search to distinguish between sustainability practices/ polices/ plans, and Climate Action Plans.

What counts as a CAP is not always clear. If you think your record is incorrect and you cannot amend it, please email us.

As explained by the Tourism Sustainability Certifications Alliance – TSCA:

“Certification is a process where the conformity of products, services, management systems, or businesses is assessed by a third-party, known as certification body. It’s a way of showing that the object of the assessment meets specific standards, expressed in the form of requirements and criteria. For example, hotels can participate in a certification process and be assessed for conformity with requirements on how they provide tourism accommodation services.

Accreditation, on the other hand, is a formal recognition that a certification body is qualified to audit and certify according to certain standards. Think of it as a quality stamp for certifiers.

In summary, certification is a third-party attestation that a product, service, management system, or business conforms with certain standards, while accreditation is for the organizations that can certify them.”

Example: “GSTC is involved in Certification of businesses, Accreditation of certification bodies, and Recognition of standards.” – GSTC

According to the Tourism Sustainability Certifications Alliance – TCSA:

“Sustainable tourism certification is a process to assess an enterprise or destination’s conformity to an internationally accepted set of criteria for sustainability in tourism operation and management.

Certification acts as a fundamental process to mitigate against greenwashing. For decades the certification organisations have utilised the process of independent, third-party audits to assure the veracity of an enterprise or destination’s performance across a range of sustainability criteria covering environmental, socio-economic, cultural-heritage and climate factors.”

EU Green Claims Directive

The EU’s Green Claims Directive, expected to enter into force in 2026, proposes that organisations must “substantiate claims they make about environmental aspects or performance of their products and organisations using robust, science based and verifiable methods.” – European Commission

See: ‘Current and upcoming sustainability regulation‘ for more information about the proposed Green Claims Directive.

Importance of third-party certifications

“A third-party audit supports the reliability and credibility of sustainability claims. Third-party auditing for the verification of sustainability claims is likely to become a requirement in EU legislation through the forthcoming Green Claims Directive” – Travalyst

“Under the EU Green Claims Directive, businesses and destinations can only use sustainability labels that are based on a certification scheme which utilizes a third party to verify performance against the certification standard.” – TSCA

• “…self-assessment and other non-verified green programs and labels are disqualified for use…” – TSCA

Travalyst

“Travalyst is a not-for-profit coalition aiming to align the industry behind clear, consistent and compliant sustainability data.”

In their long-term certifications initiative, the coalition reviews “sustainability certifications, standards and schemes against a set of criteria intended to support the certifications industry on its journey towards regulatory compliance, and drive consistency in the minimum threshold these entities meet.”

• Travalyst’s Frequently Asked Questions about their certifications initiative.

The Tourism Sustainability Certifications Alliance (TSCA)

Formed in 2024, TSCA is “a collaboration of leading globally recognised certification bodies” that together “represent 19,000 tourism certifications world wide”. The alliance aims to “harmonise and reach a consensus on sustainability criteria and standards, creating a common, internationally recognised standard and language for the tourism industry”.

TSCA’s certification organisations “develop their own systems, and methodologies, as well as management and certification tools, under a theoretical framework of common and consensual criteria that grant a unified recognition of sustainability assurance and good practices”. “TSCA’s common seal shows that the certification bodies are accredited by the Alliance”.

• Members of the TSCA.

Travalyst’s glossary by Travalyst of various entities, processes and definitions that function within the certifications sector.

TSCA’s glossary of sustainability certification and accreditation key terms.

TSCA’s frequently asked questions (FAQs) about sustainability certification and accreditation.

Travalyst‘s certification’s initiative provides a list of 60+ sustainability certifications, standards and schemes compliant with their three criteria. The list is updated and reviewed iteratively against the criteria, reflecting the “evolving legislative landscape”.

• Link to Travalyst’s list of compliant certifications, standards and schemes.

Some schemes are country/ destination-specific. Check the compliance requirements for each certification/ standard/ scheme on their respective websites.

GSTC‘s list of “sample questions to ask a certification body“:

1. “How much will it cost to become certified? Do you offer group pricing in order to reduce costs? Are there other special pricing arrangements you can offer me?
2. [For GSTC certified bodies] Do you offer the option to conduct a pre-assessment to see how my business measures up to the GSTC Criteria and whether we might run into any challenges prior to conducting the certification audit?
3. How long do you anticipate the certification assessment process will take with a company of our size?
4. During the assessment process, what type of documents will you ask our company to provide? Is there a document noting what we will need that we can review beforehand?
5. [Tour operators only:] During the assessment, do you evaluate all of our tours, or only a selection?
6. In addition to conducting the assessment, what other support services and/or tools are included for me to manage my compliance with the sustainability standard?
7. Does your company offer tour operators/ destinations / hotels undergoing certification a dedicated customer service personnel?
8. What happens if we fail to attain certification?
9. Can you provide a reference from a customer, comparative to our business that has undergone an assessment with your certification body?”

Each certification provider has different requirements for organisations to achieve sustainability certification. You must meet the minimum sustainability standards they set for your type of organisation.

• A typical certification process is described by TSCA.

The purpose of certification is to ensure an organisation adheres to a minimum set of standards. Therefore, re-certification is required to check that the organisation continues to meet these standards.

Different certification schemes have different lengths of validity.

No. Certifications vary in price.

Contact the certification entity you are interested in, or look on their website, for information about pricing.

The demand for sustainable travel has grown amongst tourists and businesses alike. By adding your sustainability certification or accreditation to your ETOA Member Profile:

1. You will be found by ETOA members using the ‘Sustainability Certification / Accreditation’ filter in our advanced Member Search.
2. You will support other ETOA members who are considering whether to obtain certification or accreditation,

On your member profile:

1. Navigate to ‘Third-party certification URL’ in the ‘Sustainability information’ section.
2. Insert the web address of the organisation who has awarded your sustainability certification or accreditation.

Open your member profile

If you haven’t measured your emissions before you will need data for the most recent full year to establish a baseline measurement against which future progress can be judged. Typically, these periods will align with your financial reporting years so that you already have the measurement system in place if environmental impact becomes compulsory for your organisation.

tCO2e means ‘tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent’.

“A carbon dioxide equivalent or CO₂ equivalent, abbreviated as CO₂-eq [or CO2e] is a metric measure used to compare the emissions from various greenhouse gases on the basis of their global-warming potential (GWP), by converting amounts of other gases to the equivalent amount of carbon dioxide with the same global warming potential.” – Eurostat

As explained in UN Tourism’s Climate Action in the Tourism Sector – An overview of methodologies and tools to measure greenhouse gas emissions (p.49):

GHG emissions can be segmented into three ‘scopes’ to help stakeholders understand where their emissions come from, and their responsibility over them.

• Scope 1: GHG emissions produced directly by an organisation “through combustion of fuels or use of refrigerants in its owned properties and vehicles.”
• Scope 2: GHG emissions produced indirectly by an organisation “through the purchase of electricity or energy – for example for heating and cooling buildings.”
• Scope 3: GHG emissions produced indirectly by activities up and down-stream in the organisation’s value chain. Comprised of 15 sub-categories, scope 3 emissions often form the largest share of an organisation’s total emissions.

For more information and tourism-specific examples of emission sources, see pages 45-47.