After a long battle, Paris’s beloved bouquinistes will be staying put this summer. The decision, announced on 13 February by the French government, came after considerable public backlash to the police prefecture’s original plan to move part of the iconic Seine booksellers elsewhere for the inauguration of the Olympics Games on 26 July.

Meanwhile, less than six months away from the event, Parisians continue to grumble over a lack of consultations with locals, warnings of gridlocked traffic, closed metro stations, extensive video surveillance and other grievances. So for host countries, what was the point of the Olympics, again?

In academia, the debate about the potential positive and negative effects of large-scale sporting events is ongoing. Although these events are often associated with substantial economic losses, the long-term benefits are the main argument in favour of hosting them. These include the development of material and soft infrastructure such as hotels, restaurants or parks. Big games can also help put the host region on the map as an attractive place for sports and cultural events, and inspire a better entrepreneurial climate.

The pros and the cons of big sporting events?

The cost of these benefits, as the Parisians have realised, is steep. Host countries appear to suffer from increased tax burdens, low returns on public investments, high construction costs, and onerous running cost of facilities after the event.

Communities can also be blighted by noise, pollution, and damage to the environment, while increased criminal activity and potential conflicts between locals and visitors can take a toll on their quality of life. As a result, in the recent past several major cities, including Rome and Hamburg, withdrew their bids to host the games.

A common feature of the economics of large-scale sporting events is that our expectations of them are more optimistic than what we make of them once they have taken place. Typically, expenditure tends to tip over the original budget, while the revenue-side indicators (such as the number of visitors) are rarely achieved.

When analysing the effect of hosting large-scale sporting events on tourist visits, it is important to take into consideration both the positive and negative components of the overall effect. While positive effects may be associated with visitors, negative effects may arise when “regular” tourists refuse to visit the location due to the event.

This might be because of overloaded infrastructure, sharp increases in accommodation costs, and inconveniences associated with overcrowding or raucous or/and violent visitors. On top of that, reports of poverty or crime in the global media can actually undermine the location’s attractiveness.

When big sporting events crowd out regular tourists

In an article published in the Journal of Sports Economics with Igor Drapkin and Ilya Zverev, I assess the effects of hosting large-scale sporting events, such as Winter and Summer Olympics plus FIFA World Cups, on international tourist visits.

We utilise a comprehensive dataset on flow of tourists covering the world’s largest destination and origin countries between 1995 and 2019. As a first step, we built an econometric model that effectively predicts the flow of tourists between any pair of countries in our data. Subsequently we compared the predicted tourist inflow in a hypothetical scenario where no large-scale sporting event would have taken place with the actual figures.

If the actual figures exceed the predicted ones, we consider the event to have a net positive impact. Otherwise, we consider that it had a “crowding out” effect on “regular” tourists. While conducting this analysis, we distinguished between short-term (i.e., focusing just on the year of the event) and mid-term (year of the event plus three subsequent years).

Our results show that the effects of large-scale sporting events vary a lot across host countries: The World Cup in Japan and South Korea 2002 and South Africa 2010 were associated with a distinct increase in tourist arrivals, whereas all other World Cups were either neutral or negative.

Among the Summer Olympics, China in 2008 is the only case with a significant positive effect on tourist inflows. The effects of the other four events (Australia 2000, Greece 2004, Great Britain 2012, and Brazil 2016) were found to be negative in the short- and medium-term. As for the Winter Olympics, the only positive case is Russia in 2014. The remaining five events had a negative impact except the one-year neutral effect for Japan 1998.

Following large-scale sporting events, host countries are therefore typically less visited by tourists. Out of the 18 hosting countries studied, 11 saw tourist numbers decline over four years, and three did not experience a significant change.

The case for cautious optimism

Our research indicates that the positive effect of hosting large-scale sporting events on tourist inflows is, at best, moderate. While many tourists are attracted by FIFA World Cups and Olympic games, the crowding-out effect of “regular” tourists is strong and often underestimated.

This implies that tourists visiting for an event like the Olympics typically dissuade those who would have come for other reasons. Thus, efforts to attract new visitors should be accompanied by efforts to retain the already existing ones.

Large-scale sporting events should be considered as part of a long-term policy for promoting a territory to tourists rather than a standalone solution. Revealingly, our results indicate that it is easier to get a net increase in tourist inflows in countries that are less frequent destinations for tourists – for example, those in Asia or Africa. By contrast, the United States and Europe, both of which are traditionally popular with tourists, have no single case of a net positive effect.

Put differently, the large-scale sporting events in Asia and Africa helped promote their host countries as tourist destinations, making the case for the initial investment. In the US and Europe, however, those in the last few decades brought little return, at least in terms of tourist inflow.

Ivan Savin is associate professor of quantitative analytics and a research fellow at ICTA-UAB at the ESCP Business School in Europe.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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In late 2023, I embarked on my first Formula One race experience, attending the first-ever Las Vegas Grand Prix. I had never been to an F1 race; my interest was sparked during the pandemic, largely through the Netflix series Formula 1: Drive to Survive.

But I wasn’t just attending as a fan. As the inaugural chair of the University of Florida’s department of tourism, hospitality and event management, I saw this as an opportunity. Big events and festivals represent a growing share of the tourism market – as an educator, I want to prepare future leaders to manage them.

And what better place to learn how to do that than in the stands of the Las Vegas Grand Prix?

The future of tourism is in events and experiences

Tourism is fun, but it’s also big business: In the United States alone, it’s a US$2.6tr industry employing 15 million people. And with travellers increasingly planning their trips around events rather than places, both industry leaders and academics are paying attention.

Event tourism is also key to many cities’ economic development strategies – think Chicago and its annual Lollapalooza music festival, which has been hosted in Grant Park since 2005. In 2023, Lollapalooza generated an estimated US$422m for the local economy and drew record-breaking crowds to the city’s hotels.

That’s why when Formula One announced it would be making a 10-year commitment to host races in Las Vegas, the region’s tourism agency was eager to spread the news. The 2023 grand prix eventually generated US$100m in tax revenue, the head of that agency later announced.

Why Formula One?

Formula One offers a prime example of the economic importance of event tourism. In 2022, Formula One generated about US$2.6bn in total revenues, according to the latest full-year data from its parent company. That’s up 20% from 2021 and 27% from 2019, the last pre-Covid year. A record 5.7 million fans attended Formula One races in 2022, up 36% from 2019.

This surge in interest can be attributed to expanded broadcasting rights, sponsorship deals and a growing global fan base. And, of course, the in-person events make a lot of money – the cheapest tickets to the Las Vegas Grand Prix were US$500.

That’s why I think of Formula One as more than just a pastime: It’s emblematic of a major shift in the tourism industry that offers substantial job opportunities. And it takes more than drivers and pit crews to make Formula One run – it takes a diverse range of professionals in fields such as event management, marketing, engineering and beyond.

This rapid industry growth indicates an opportune moment for universities to adapt their hospitality and business curricula and prepare students for careers in this profitable field.

How hospitality and business programmes should prepare students

To align with the evolving landscape of mega-events like Formula One races, hospitality schools should, I believe, integrate specialised training in event management, luxury hospitality and international business. Courses focusing on large-scale event planning, VIP client management and cross-cultural communication are essential.

Another area for curriculum enhancement is sustainability and innovation in hospitality. Formula One, like many other companies, has increased its emphasis on environmental responsibility in recent years. While some critics have been skeptical of this push, I think it makes sense. After all, the event tourism industry both contributes to climate change and is threatened by it. So, programmes may consider incorporating courses in sustainable event management, eco-friendly hospitality practices and innovations in sustainable event and tourism.

Additionally, business programmes may consider emphasising strategic marketing, brand management and digital media strategies for F1 and for the larger event-tourism space. As both continue to evolve, understanding how to leverage digital platforms, engage global audiences and create compelling brand narratives becomes increasingly important.

Beyond hospitality and business, other disciplines such as material sciences, engineering and data analytics can also integrate F1 into their curricula. Given the younger generation’s growing interest in motorsports, embedding F1 case studies and projects in these programmes can enhance student engagement and provide practical applications of theoretical concepts.

Racing into the future: Formula One today and tomorrow

F1 has boosted its outreach to younger audiences in recent years and has also acted to strengthen its presence in the U.S., a market with major potential for the sport. The 2023 Las Vegas race was a strategic move in this direction. These decisions, along with the continued growth of the sport’s fan base and sponsorship deals, underscore F1’s economic significance and future potential.

Looking ahead in 2024, Formula One seems ripe for further expansion. New races, continued advancements in broadcasting technology and evolving sponsorship models are expected to drive revenue growth. And Season 6 of “Drive to Survive” will be released on Feb. 23, 2024. We already know that was effective marketing – after all, it inspired me to check out the Las Vegas Grand Prix.

I’m more sure than ever that big events like this will play a major role in the future of tourism – a message I’ll be imparting to my students. And in my free time, I’m planning to enhance my quality of life in 2024 by synchronising my vacations with the F1 calendar. After all, nothing says “relaxing getaway” quite like the roar of engines and excitement of the racetrack.

Rachel J.C. Fu is chair and professor of the Department of Tourism and Hospitality Management, director of the Eric Friedheim Tourism Institute, and affiliate professor of the Department of Information Systems and Operations Management at the University of Florida.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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After a recent city break to Paris, one of our colleagues told us about how much she’d enjoyed some excellent coffee during her trip. But it hadn’t been served in a restaurant or a cafe – she had made it herself at the apartment she was staying in using one of those capsule coffee machines.

When she returned home, she genuinely missed the quality of the drink she had been able to make so effortlessly. So she ended up buying the machine for her own home – same brand, same model, same colour as the one she had been using on holiday.

Her experience illustrates the effectiveness of a concept known as “tryvertising”. Over the course of her weekend away, she had become familiar with – and extremely fond of – a new product by having the freedom to try it out repeatedly in her temporary holiday apartment.

As a marketing strategy, tryvertising is quite familiar in hotels, where extra comfy pillows or a particular fragrance or shampoo may be available for guests to use during their stay – and then offered for sale to take home.

Overall, it’s an easy win for manufacturers and hotel owners – as well as the customers who get the chance to take a piece of their holiday home with them.

Feelings of ownership

But our research suggests that tryvertising is actually more effective in self-catering accommodation than it is in hotels. This is partly because renting an apartment or cottage for a break provides a more natural environment for customers than the more unusual setting of a hotel.

They are able to feel more at home and in control – what we refer to as a heightened sense of “territoriality” – and are more likely to fully immerse themselves in their surroundings and the products at their disposal. Overall, self-catered accommodation elicits stronger feelings of ownership towards the accommodation space, and potential ownership of the the amenities it contains.

This means tryvertising through self-catered holiday accommodation could provide an excellent opportunity for companies.

Those companies – which could be everything from electronic manufacturers to local artisan businesses – could select suitable hosts with whom to place their products, either for free or with a discount. A QR code could then be attached to the tryvertised goods, directing customers to extra information and purchasing details.

Those businesses could even issue discount codes to those guests. The accommodation platforms themselves wouldn’t need to be involved (they may wish to be at some level, but their input would not be necessary). It would mainly be a beneficial arrangement directly between manufacturers and hosts.

For consumers too, tryvertising makes perfect sense. Rather than looking at images on online, or observing an item in person at a store, they get a real-life user experience before they commit to a purchase.

Mutual benefits

Of course, it can work the other way too. One person told us that he had decided against buying a gadget after having the opportunity to use one on holiday.

He recalled: The presence of the AI assistant in my last Airbnb getaway really made the entire stay overwhelming. I didn’t understand how to use it effectively. It kept misinterpreting our commands, and falsely activating due to background noise. This really made us [feel] stressful and uncomfortable. We had considered buying a similar AI assisted smart speaker at home before, but now we would definitely postpone the decision.

But again, that was beneficial. That particular client was given a chance to try something, and decided it wasn’t for him. He saved money.

Meanwhile, our colleague decided to spend her money on a machine she had enjoyed using, and which now provides her with delicious coffee on a daily basis.

But it’s not only about buying things for your home. Tryvertising can also enhance a traveller’s experience by allowing them to get an authentic taste of the culture through products sponsored by local businesses. And it could contribute to sustainable tourism by encouraging both hosts and visitors to engage with their community and the produce on offer.

Overall, our research suggests that everyone stands to benefit. Hosts, local businesses and travellers should all give it a try.

Jialin (Snow) Wu is a reader in sustainable and digitalised service economy at the University of Huddersfield, Chen Zheng is a senior lecturer in the School of Event, Tourism and Hospitality Management at Leeds Beckett University, and Hongbo (Daisy) Liu is a senior lecturer at the University of Surrey.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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Extreme weather events are affecting the entire world at an increasing and alarming pace. Human activity is driving climate change. Given the urgency and severity of the crisis, we should adopt the term “climate collapse” to more properly convey the emergency to industry and the public.

The travel and tourism industry, which accounts for 10% of global GDP, employs 320 million people and creates 1 in 5 new jobs, is at risk owing to increasing numbers and severity of fires, floods, drought and super storms, as well as high heat and sea level rise. The industry must mitigate its impact on the climate to reduce its emissions and support its economic survival. 

Some major industry actors are rising to the challenge by committing to science-based targets initiatives (SBTi) – an initiative that validates companies’ carbon emissions reduction plan. While these steps are encouraging, only 75 travel and 27 hospitality companies have committed to SBTi (1.6% and 0.6% respectively of all 4,644 SBTi client companies around the world).

The industry must do much more to meaningfully mitigate and reverse climate collapse.

The travel and tourism industry has roared back from Covid-19 and is projected to grow significantly over the next decade and beyond. Combatting overtourism is critical as part of an overall more sustainable and responsible tourism ethos and model, and to reaching net zero goals.

When responsible tourism was defined in 2002, right before the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg, there was no specific mention of the impact of the industry on climate change. In just 20 years it has become evident that this is now the industry’s top priority.

Hospitality sector

All major hospitality players have embraced the environmental, social and governance (ESG) model and are committed to reducing their carbon footprint. They are working toward reducing the impact of their buildings by retrofitting old ones and imposing stricter environmental rules on developers, architects, designers and engineers, using certifications such as LEED or BREEAM.

For almost 20 years, these companies have given guidance and regulations to their assets to develop a more sustainable approach to their operations, from renewable energy, energy efficiency and water conservation, to local employment and supporting cultural heritage. They have developed their own corporate responsibility measurement platforms and most hotel management companies have set up science-based targets (SBTi) for 2030.

But they will not succeed without buy-in from REITS (real estate investment trusts) and smaller owners or franchisees who are the true decision-makers when it comes to necessary investments for technical adjustments to their buildings and operations.

Like many other industries the hospitality industry relies on many important stakeholders in supply chains who will all need to be aligned to the same goals. 

Only 25 years ago almost no one in the sector was focused on responsible tourism, so there are reasons for hope that by 2030, more actors will be thoroughly involved thanks to the attention that client corporations and individual customers are giving to a more responsible approach.

Aviation industry

There is much talk about the impact of aviation on global greenhouse gas emissions. It accounts for 1.9% – far less than livestock and manure for instance (5.8%) and textile industry (10%). That being said, it is important to work on reducing the industry’s emissions as they will keep growing in years to come.

There are two main opportunities offering signs of hope: sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and electric planes:

• SAF, produced from food, oil waste and biomass, should become more efficient by 2035. These fuels are currently used as support to kerosene during many flights.
• Electric and hybrid planes will become a reality by the end of this decade, even if just for short haul. They will meet the requirements of regional flights, private jets and some charter flights.

Becoming a net-zero industry will be a long journey for aviation but its main actors are committed to fulfill that objective by 2050.

Cruise lines

The cruise line sector has come under a lot of scrutiny and major operators have now committed to running more responsible operations and using more sustainable fuels. Its net-zero commitments usually target 2050 – and hopefully research and development will help them reach these goals earlier. 

Tour operators, travel advisors, distribution channels

These important actors all include sustainability criteria in their programmes and platforms and deliver badges to hotels. They usually rely on accredited or recognised standards from the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC).

Trade organisations, such as SHA, WTTC and Travalyst, have created minimum standards and best practices for the industry and recently partnered with GSTC. 

The Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC)

After a first decade of operations during which the GSTC became the common denominator for all sustainable hospitality and destination certifications, the criteria is now recognized by all tourism stakeholders and is the best reference for all actors of the industry.

Another evolution that offers great optimism is the fact that countries like Turkey, Greece and Singapore have adopted the GSTC criteria and are using it to support the industry’s adaptation to Responsible Tourism.

Whilst there is still much to do before responsible tourism becomes a common journey for all industry stakeholders, a lot has been accomplished in the past 20 years. 

The long journey to net zero will reach a checkpoint in 2030, following the UN Agenda for Sustainable Development, and a formal date of 2050 to be fully realised and achieved. Measurement, ongoing reporting and transparency are critical to ensure meaningful progress continues, rather than waiting until 2030 to understand if strategies are working and taking corrective actions if needed. 

It is reasonable to say that those engaging their company in 2050 goals today will no longer be at the helm when 2050 arrives. Their legacy will depend upon the seriousness of their current engagement and the strategies to support it.

Failure is not an option: future generations rely on the accountability of those who have the power today to make a major difference to reversing the climate collapse.

Stuart Greif is chief strategy, innovation and operating officer at Forbes Travel Guide and Herve Houdre is founder and chief executive of H2 Sustainability Consulting.

This article is republished from the World Economic Forum under a Creative Commons licence. Read the original article.

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Over the last months, the raison d’être of winter sports has been threatened more than ever by a range of challenges and controversies. From the occupation by activists of the glacier of Girose, Southeastern France, to protest against plans for a new cable car, to doubts over whether to hold pre-season sporting events following the partial destruction of the Théodule glacier in Switzerland, scarce snow is pitting people against one another.

Behind all these tensions lies the same question: what does the future hold for skiing on an overheating planet?

In recent decades, France has seen some ski resorts close due to a lack of snow or a sustainable business model. However, the majority of resorts continue to cling to the hope of adapting to rising temperatures. But will reproducing the tried and tested recipes of the past be enough to meet the climate challenges ahead?

Published in Nature Climate Change, our study of 2,234 winter sports resorts in Europe sought to measure the impact of global warming on snowmaking in resorts, and the possible room for manoeuvre available to adapt.

This question is not just a concern for amateur or professional skiers. Skiing is also an economic issue, with a total turnover estimated at 30 billion euros in Europe. In France alone, 120,000 jobs depending directly and indirectly on the ski economy.

53% of ski resorts are at risk of running out of snow at +2°C

Climate change is a global phenomenon impacting resorts worldwide, but not all mountain areas are affected to the same degree or with the same speed, and the ability to limit the impact of these changes through snow production also varies greatly. We have measured the impact of climate change on winter sports resorts based on the level of global warming, using the graphical representation, commonly used in IPCC reports, of “burning embers”.

At 2°C of global warming above pre-industrial levels, 53% of European resorts are at very high risk of low snowfall. We assess the risk of low snowfall on the basis of the frequency of snow conditions considered to be the most unfavourable, those encountered on average one season in five between 1961 and 1990, the golden age of resort development.

However, the picture varies at a national level: in the French Alps, this proportion concerns a third of resorts, while in the Pyrenees and in the Franco-Swiss mid-mountain massifs, 89% and 80% respectively of resorts are affected by a very high level of risk of low snowfall.

At 4°C of global warming, 98% of European resorts are at very high risk of low snowfall. With this level of warming, the climate leaves winter sports resorts little margin for adaptation.

Changes in the use of snow production

One of the most popular solutions to adapt to scarcer snow is snowmaking, also known as “artificial snow”. Snow production involves projecting micro-droplets of water into the atmosphere so that they freeze before falling back to the ground. The resulting snow, made up of small balls of ice, is a suitable material for making an underlay.

In the past, snow was produced mainly to limit the impact of natural fluctuations in snow cover from one season to the next. Snow is now mainly produced in the pre-season, without any knowledge of the weather conditions for the coming winter, and then on a more ad hoc basis if necessary between the Christmas and winter holidays.

Snow production also affected by rising temperatures

Like natural snow, snow production is affected by rising temperatures, because snow production requires sufficiently cold weather conditions. This dual pressure is leading to increased investment to ensure that sufficient snow can be produced, thereby increasing the dependency of mountain resorts on snow tourism.

Not all ski resorts will equally be able to adapt to rising temperatures by producing snow. At +2°C global warming, snowmaking, if applied to 50% of the ski area, would reduce the proportion of resorts exposed to a very high risk of low snowfall in the Alps and Pyrenees to 7% and 9% respectively, while in the mid-range mountain ranges the proportion would be 56%. These differences are even more marked at higher levels of warming.

However, it should be remembered that while the level of snow cover is critical to ensuring resorts’ long-term socio-economic viability, other criteria are just as fundamental, such as the state of the ski lift network, promotion/marketing methods, or accommodation capacity and its attractiveness. It is therefore not possible to draw any direct conclusions from the figures for the risk of low snowfall as to the proportion or number of resorts likely to cease skiing.

The carbon footprint of snow production

What’s more, snow production is not carbon-neutral, so it’s important to bear this in mind before setting this technique up as the ultimate answer to reducing snow cover.

We have therefore also calculated the water requirements, production and energy demand involved, and the carbon footprint of the electricity used to produce snow. Over the reference period (1961-1990), the total quantity of snow produced on the slopes covered by the installations represents 13% of the total precipitation that falls annually on these same slopes. Assuming that 50% of the slopes are covered by snowmaking facilities, the total volume should increase by between 8% and 25%, depending on the country, for a warming of +2°C, and even more for a more marked warming.

This demand also tends to stagger over time, with lower production in November due to fewer cold spells favourable to production at the start of winter. It is therefore likely that the services provided by snow production will not be the same as in the past, which could make snow cover even more fragile over the high season.

In any case, the total volume of water that could be needed remains moderate, and a large part of this water is returned to the rivers as it melts. This is not to say complications can’t occur at a local scale further down the line, depending on how the water is drawn and of the makeup of affected ecosystems.

Similarly, at around 80 kt eq CO₂, the carbon footprint of the electricity used to produce snow remains limited, even if it varies greatly depending on countries’ energy mix.

Skiers’ transport and accommodation still emit a lot of CO₂

Finally, it is impossible to dissociate snow production from the tourism activity that calls for it. In reality, it is responsible for only a fraction of the carbon footprint of a winter sports tourist destination, with skiers’ transport and accommodation proving most polluting. Carbon emissions could nevertheless rise as people travel further and further afield to find snow.

Would the economic benefits be worth it? Our study calls on the tourism sector to craft a strategy based on climate adaptation and decarbonisation as resorts look to the future.

Authored by National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food and the Environment tourism and information system research engineer Hugues François, Meteo France climatology and climate services engineer Raphaëlle Samacoïts, and National Meteorological Research Center researcher and director Samuel Morin.

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On the same day last week that Air New Zealand announced the purchase of its first fully electric aircraft, Christchurch Airport announced it had reached “a new standard for decarbonisation”. On the face of it, great news for reducing aviation emissions in Aotearoa.

The reality is a little more complex – and risky. As the climate warms, so too is the temperature in boardrooms and courtrooms. The aviation industry is under increasing scrutiny for its sustainability claims, and climate litigation is on the rise.

At the same time, “net zero” strategies in general are being challenged. The United Nations High-Level Expert Group was established at last year’s COP27 summit, as Secretary General António Guterres explained, because “net zero suffers from a surplus of confusion and a deficit of credibility”.

The expert group has put forward a set of net-zero guidelines to put a “red line through greenwashing”. The guidelines underpin the UN’s approach to net zero, which requires corporate entities to advance ambitious climate mitigation actions based on rigorous and comprehensive science-based targets.

Among other things, the targets must include emissions reductions from the entity’s full value chain and activities. These include emissions from sources the entity owns and controls directly (known as scope 1); emissions the entity causes indirectly (scope 2); and emissions not produced by the entity itself, but arising up and down its value chain (scope 3).

The expert group also notes that voluntary carbon credits (offsets) cannot be counted towards interim emissions reductions required on the pathway to Net Zero 2050. This is because carbon offsetting has been shown to be troublesome at best, and in many cases a scam.

Airlines in the firing line

Key players in the global aviation industry that make unsupportable claims have become targets for climate litigation.

A recent greenwashing complaint to the European Commission, for example, was filed by consumer groups in 19 countries against 17 airlines. Virgin Atlantic and British Airways are facing formal complaints filed by a climate charity and law firm over sustainable flight claims.

Advertisements for Air France, Lufthansa and Etihad have been banned in the UK for greenwashing, following complaints to the UK Advertising Standards Board that phrases such as “protecting the future”, “sustainable avitaion” and “low-emissions airline” are misleading consumers.

Delta faces a class action lawsuit for claiming to be “the first carbon neutral airline on a global basis” in a case brought by a California resident claiming the airline has grossly misrepresented its climate impact.

And KLM is being sued for greenwashing by law firm Client Earth, which successfully argued the Dutch airline’s “Fly Responsibly” campaign consitutes misleading advertising under EU law while KLM is growing its number of flights rather than reducing emissions.

Long-haul growth versus decarbonisation

Cases like these raise questions about Air New Zealand’s “Flight NZ0” strategy and marketing, which focuses on sustainable aviation fuel and next-generation aircraft (including its recently bought electric Beta Alia), complemented by carbon offsetting and operational efficiency.

The focus on sustainable fuel will have to overcome significant scientific, energy, scalability and cost barriers. Solutions to these complex problems are likely to be decades away at least.

While Air New Zealand promotes the Beta Alia – with its inherent altitude, payload and range limitations – it also aims to significantly increase its long haul network, and is setting its sights on the “ultra long haul experience”.

The contradiction between long-haul growth and decarbonisation strategies is expressed in the airline’s own 2017 sustainability report, in which the sustainability advisory panel chair wrote:

“And that’s the dilemma for anyone who cares passionately about addressing the multiple threats of climate change: either stop flying altogether (the logical but somewhat unworldly idealist’s position), or fly as little and as discriminatingly and responsibly as possible (the often uncomfortable pragmatist’s position).”

As consumers and environmentalists focus more on the validity of climate claims and the viability of carbon reduction strategies, Air New Zealand may find it harder to defend its net zero pathway.

Airports on the radar

The environmental claims of other players in the wider aviation system – notably airports – are also likely to attract critical attention.

Airports Council International (ACI) is the global industry body for airports, with over 550 airports taking part in its Airport Carbon Accreditation programme, including many in New Zealand (most recently Invercargill Airport).

Christchurch Airport has been in the program for longer, and makes significant climate claims. In April 2022, it announced “another world class sustainability achievement”, going “beyond carbon neutral, to become climate positive”.

But this doesn’t account for scope 3 emissions, mainly associated with flights in and out of the airport, which make up 95.39% of total emissions. Airports can only appear to be climate-neutral by not accounting for the high and growing emissions of the planes that are their core business.

Stakeholder reputations on the line

Key stakeholders are also exposed to any potential accusations of greenwashing. Christchurch City Council own 75% of the airport through a holding company, and the government owns 25%. Both have declared climate emergencies and made emissions reduction commitments.

Industry groups are involved, too. Tourism Industry Aotearoa, which represents businesses across the tourism industry, last month announced Christchurch Airport the winner of its Tourism Environment Award.

It cited the airport’s “climate positive” status and hailed it as being “at the forefront of airport environmental initiatives globally”. Such claims can be technically true if one accepts the limited parameters used to measure them.

But Tourism Industry Aotearoa will need to ensure its environmental awards keep pace with developments in this rapidly changing field – including the increasing risk of litigation over unsustainable claims about sustainability.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here.

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Winter hasn’t arrived yet, but French ski resorts are already resorting to snowmaking. Milder temperatures as a result of climate change have effectively led to its use becoming entrenched in recent years, with 29% of French ski slopes area equipped with snowmaking machines, such as snow propeller canons or snow lances. Snow is manufactured by spraying micro-droplets of water in a cold atmosphere, which solidify before they hit the ground. The consistency is close to that of compacted snow.

There has been no shortage of criticism of this production method, which started to be aired in the mid-2000s. In September 2023, the mayor of La Clusaz, a commune to the west of Chamonix, decided to suspend the construction of a reservoir that would have largely supplied water for snow manufacture, following years of opposition from environmental organisations. As the climate crisis worsens, the suitability of this adaptive technology is likely to inspire more debate.

In a journal article, we uncovered the ways the winter sports industry is locked in a state of dependency around snowmaking.

Freedom from bad winters

Snowmaking has been developed by the French winter sports industry since trials began in 1973. The technology is increasingly deployed as a regular tool to improve conditions on the slopes. From 2005-2016, snowmaking accounted for 20% of spending by ski resort managers – the second biggest area behind buying new ski lifts.

Today, this industry doesn’t only absorb the attentions of ski operators, but all players in the winter sports sector. Estate agents for apartments offering ‘ski-in, ski-out’ facilities; tour operators seeking guarantees for their package deals; alpine communities hoping for skiing to come back to their village – all pray that snowmaking blesses their projects.

Despite the rise of this technology and technical advances being made, changing weather conditions under climate change is a limiting factor. The snowmaking process doesn’t free operators from constraints such as the need for sub-zero temperatures and dependence on a plentiful water supply. Now, the effects of climate change are reducing the snow cover depth as well as opportunities to produce snow.

Even though future climate factors risk limiting the effectiveness of snowmaking, moving away from it seems difficult for the winter sports sector. This situation has only recently been analysed.

A classic ‘path dependence’

We show in our research that snowmaking has driven the winter sports industry down an unquestionable “path dependence”. Prior choices of investing in this technology and the increases in snow cover achieved in the past encourage continued spending, starving other activities of resources, whether economic or natural, like water supply.

This path dependence is as likely to lead ski tourism down an expansionary route as one of contraction, with markedly different consequences for mountain regions.

To take the expansionary scenario – investing in snowmaking has shored up a seasonal, weather-dependent activity which displays the characteristics of a heavy industry. Essentially, developing a ski resort relies on significant capital investment, notably for the renewal of ski lift infrastructure, with fixed costs which reinforce a business’s exposure to economic risks linked to the natural variability of the weather. On top of this now comes expertise and increasingly sophisticated techniques for snowmaking, plus the growth of dedicated services.

Ultimately, snowmaking secures a tourism offer for France within the mature and competitive European ski market. Generating snow helps retain France’s market share – the third biggest in the world for winter sports behind the US and Austria with 50 million ski days a year and 27% of international ski tourists.

An estimated 10% of French people take part in winter sports each year, corresponding to 7% of domestic visitors’ overnight stays in metropolitan France. Moreover, France’s 250 ski resorts are estimated to sustain more than 120,000 jobs.

Some much-needed, but overdue changes

However, snowmaking could also go down a route of contraction. Outlays of investment in snowmaking only really benefit the ski industry – maintaining a sectoral specialisation of the economy in winter sports tourism. This risk of over-specialisation can have knock-on effects on mountain regions as a whole. This may delay the inevitable changes and lessen the impact of steps aimed at diversifying Alpine economies.

Thus a vicious circle forms – the bias toward investment in snowmaking equipment captures resources which could be used to start the ball rolling toward eventual transition. This requires a co-ordinated economic and institutional response. It may be that the state has a role to play now, to help these areas break free from a dependence on skiing – indeed from tourism altogether – amid the reality of climatic and environmental change.

Lucas Berard-Chenu is a teacher and researcher of geography at the University of Ningbo and University of Angers joint institute in France, Emmanuelle George is a researcher in tourism development at Inrae in France, Hugues François is a tourism and system information research engineer at Inrae, and Samuel Morin is a researcher and director of the National Centre for Metereological Research in France.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here.

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Despite travel and tourism supporting an estimated 10% of global gross domestic product and roughly one in 10 jobs worldwide, consumers are increasingly aware of the environmental impacts of their wanderlust. 

While many tourists are aware of sustainable travel and tourism, research conducted by Visa and Oxford Economics found that 41% feel they lack information about sustainable travel options, and 36% feel that available information is not credible.

As a global network facilitating payments across these journeys, Visa has a unique view of travellers’ consumption choices and patterns – and an incredibly powerful data set that can help transform the future of travel. But it will take more than the private sector alone to successfully implement change. 

As the world’s leaders gather in Dubai this week at the United Nations Climate Change Conference, also known as COP28, here are four ways that the private and public sectors can think about teaming up in their effort to slow the impact of travel and tourism and protect local communities and ecosystems:

1. Speak the same language

I’m not suggesting that the Tower of Babel could solve the issue of sustainable travel, but the public and private sectors need to come together to agree on a framework for measuring trends in sustainability. Having access to and agreed parameters about how to collect and use high-quality data is a vital resource, allowing policy-makers and businesses to set targets and gauge progress.

Frameworks such as the World Economic Forum’s Travel and Tourism Development Index and the European Commission’s European Tourism Indicators System have proliferated, yet there remains a lack of clarity regarding what constitutes a sustainable travel choice. The private sector can help the public sector close that gap by leveraging the power of alternative sources such as payment transaction data, AI and more.

2. Help close the ‘say-do’ gap

There has long been a notable “say-do” gap in travellers’ stated preferences versus their actual consumption patterns. Visa’s research finds that this gap is largely driven by information barriers: both informational gaps like a lack of accessible information and credibility gaps where information is available but not trusted. 

In the payments industry, offering sustainability-focused benefits to cardholder products can enable cardholders to understand the environmental impact of their spending, potentially helping to narrow the say-do gap by encouraging sustainable consumption. How much change we can drive depends on how successful the public and private sectors are at coming together to ensure that consumers have easy access to credible information about sustainable choices.

3. Make local transit truly accessible

Whenever someone visits me in London for the first time, their knee-jerk (and jet-lagged) response to landing at Heathrow is to hop in a taxi. Not only is that a carbon-intensive means of getting around – it’s just not that efficient given traffic and other delays. Tap your phone to ride on the Heathrow Express and you’ll get into the city much quicker, or those on a budget can take the London Underground.

The public and private sectors need to continue to come together to make public transit a simpler way to get around as a tourist. Removing entry barriers with contactless payments is one important way – but there’s even more innovation to be done as new hyper-customised trip-planning apps and technology become available that can tell tourists the fastest or most sustainable way to get around town.

4. Realize that sometimes it is about the destination

When too many people visit an attraction at one time, it may have negative repercussions for local communities and ecosystems. The public and private sectors must come together to encourage attractions and destination management in order to prevent overtourism.

Beaches are a prime example of destinations that are often overcrowded, to the detriment of the local ecosystem. Some national parks in the US, on the other hand, are good examples of places that have successfully implemented reasonable limits on visitors. For example, Muir Woods National Monument in Marin County, California requires visitors to book a reservation in advance.

By taking steps such as imposing reasonable limits on the number of visitors, promoting off-season travel, and introducing dynamic pricing, attractions can limit the likelihood and negative impacts of overtourism. 

For example, Visa Destination Insights helped the Lake Tahoe Visitors Authority manage both overcrowding and seasonal lulls at the ski and holiday hotspot on the California/Nevada border. Ultimately, sustainable management of attractions will require careful stewardship and close collaboration between the public and private sectors.

There’s a lot of work ahead – but by bringing together the strength of the public and private sectors, we can strive towards meaningful change.

This article is republished from the World Economic Forum under a Creative Commons licence. Read the original article here.

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We are still getting used to a “new normal” of devastating summer heatwaves. But the effects of a warming climate are being felt throughout the year, and recent autumn months have been further off the charts than ever.

In fact, climate change and an El Niño have both contributed to the world in 2023 having its hottest [Northern Hemisphere] autumn since records began in 1850. September was 0.93°C above the 1991-2020 average, and a whole 1.75°C above the 1850-1900 pre-industrial reference period. October was also the hottest on record, at 0.85°C above the recent average.

This hot autumn has already meant stronger storms and more intense rainfall and droughts. And this in turn affects farming, energy, tourism and other sectors that depend on reliable seasons.

A global system but local effects

Warmer oceans have been linked to intensification of storms in the Atlantic. One of these, Storm Babet, recently broke UK rainfall records dating back to 1881. Babet was soon followed by Storm Ciarán, bringing more extreme winds and heavy rainfall to still-saturated lands.

The UK is no stranger to Atlantic storm systems, but they primarily occur during the winter months. The fact that these severe storms are occurring in autumn is unusual.

Partly this is because an abnormally warm Atlantic Ocean is generating stronger storms (in 174 years of data, August and September 2023 were the two months where sea surface temperatures were furthest above the long-term average). Warmer oceans release more moisture into the atmosphere and carry more energy which effectively acts as fuel for storms.

When the tropical Atlantic is warm, storms generated there also change direction, tending to track northward across the ocean before bending to the east. In future, warmer autumns are likely to mean more of these storms sustaining themselves across the Atlantic to hit Western Europe.

Storms are getting stronger elsewhere too. Hurricane Otis recently devastated the Mexican city of Acapulco, for instance. Otis developed from a regular storm into a huge hurricane in record time, and was the first time in history that a hurricane in the Eastern Pacific made landfall and sustained itself as the strongest “Category 5” storm. Tropical Cyclone Tej hit the Arabian Peninsula the week before with 480mm of rainfall in the Al–Ghaydah region in Yemen – eight times the annual average.

Problems for farms and energy generation

In unusually warm autumns, extended periods of heat and low rainfall can impact late-season crops such as apples, pears, berries and brassicas. In November 2022, warm and dry weather resulted in the early emergence of some winter crops across many European regions. In 2022, China experienced a shock to its autumn yields of wheat and some vegetables following an extended period of drought and elevated temperatures into the Autumn harvesting season.

Energy generation is also increasingly vulnerable to autumn heat. In 2022, a warm autumn meant Europeans used less natural gas for heating, and instead used electricity for cooling. Drought adds a compounding challenge, as less power can be generated through hydroelectric dams, while less reliable reservoir levels make it harder to schedule generation in advance to coincide with periods of peak demand. In late summer and autumn last year in France, rivers became so warm they were less able to cool down nuclear reactors.

Autumn as the new summer?

Tourism is just as vulnerable to unseasonal temperatures. While numbers are often dictated by external factors such as school holidays, extreme summer temperatures will increasingly see people going away in spring and autumn instead.

Yet even autumn destinations are finding things are changing. New England in the US is known for its spectacular colourful trees at this time of year, yet warming conditions are changing the timing and vibrancy of its leaf fall. Autumn heat variation could impact the volume of visitors, threatening a billion dollar tourism industry.

Something similar is being observed in Japan, where leaves are staying on trees until later in the year. This can create further hazards, as when trees have more leaf surface area they’re more exposed to destructive wind storms.

These are just some of the effects of an unusually warm autumn, even by current standards. But with summers being extended and more storms and extreme weather in the autumn months seemingly the new norm, we need to start rethinking what weather we can expect at this time of year.

Scott McGrane is a senior lecturer in environmental change in the department of economics and Christopher J White is head of the centre for water, environment, sustainability and public health, both at Glasgow’s University of Strathclyde.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here.

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Commercial companies are increasingly becoming involved in transporting astronauts to the International Space Station (ISS), as well as other activities in orbit. Some, such as Houston-based Axiom Space, eventually want to build their own space stations in orbit, where commercial astronauts could make extended stays.

This could also provide more money and opportunities for science to be carried out in low Earth orbit. But it also raises a host of safety concerns, because it will add to the already troublesome issue of space junk. There are also implications for the environment, because rockets produce greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change.

Axiom, which was founded in 2016, was the first company to conduct privately funded missions to the ISS. Under Axiom’s Space Access Program, it has been offering different countries the opportunity to design customised missions to orbit aboard SpaceX’s Crew Dragon spacecraft. As such, it recently signed an agreement with the UK Space Agency for an all-UK astronaut mission to the ISS.

Nasa is increasingly partnering with private companies to accomplish its space missions. However, initiatives such as the one with Axiom to fly multiple tourist missions to the ISS mark a new kind of commercialisation of space.

Axiom’s planned commercial space station will first be built as an add-on to the ISS. It will then be detached so that it becomes independent. Space tourism is a key part of its business model.

Axiom is not alone in its aims. Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin, aerospace giant Northop Grumman, and smaller companies such as Nanoracks and Sierra Space are all developing their own space station designs. These are aimed at operating in low Earth orbit within the next decade.

Blue Origin, Northrop Grumman and Nanoracks have been awarded US$415m (£335m) by Nasa under the agency’s Low Earth Economy strategy to develop their space station concepts. In effect, the Nasa strategy uses public money to enable private companies to bring in commercial money. This private investment then helps provide the infrastructure needed for science and operations in low Earth orbit.

The scientific case for putting humans in space has historically been very weak – though not non-existent. Modern robotics and remote-control systems are now so good that the case is even weaker today than it ever was.

To most scientists, human space missions are vanity projects to do with national prestige. However, most will concede that there are huge benefits in terms of public engagement and inspiration. If they were fully costed, though, it’s unlikely that some experiments would be funded by the peer review panels of the science funding agencies.

Space junk concerns

There are also major concerns about risks posed by the increase in the general number of space missions, particularly because space junk is already a major problem in low Earth orbit. In 1978, Nasa scientist Donald J Kessler described the “Kessler syndrome” – a potential runaway effect where a collision in space could spark many more debris impacts, leading to the destruction of multiple spacecraft, or even the majority of low Earth orbit spacecraft.

Since 1999, the ISS has had to manoeuvre to avoid large pieces of space junk 32 times. Recently, the risk has been raised by a huge increase in the number of craft in low Earth orbit. In particular, since 2019, SpaceX and its competitors, such as OneWeb and Amazon Kuiper have embarked on programmes of launching tens of thousands of satellites into low Earth orbit to provide internet access.

However, less than 0.5% of internet traffic is currently carried by satellite communications. Despite the potential benefits to unconnected people in rural areas, upfront and subscription costs mean that Starlink’s current subscribers, make up less than 0.02% of the global population. They include many cruise ships, private jets, and luxury yachts.

Environmental concerns

The other area of great concern is the environmental effect of sending more people to space. It would increase the climate impacts of space activities by an order of magnitude. This would exacerbate the problems society is already experiencing.

At present, the richest 1% of humans are emitting about 100 times more CO₂ than the poorest 10%. Internationally, policymakers are increasingly aware of the way that certain populations around the world may be affected more harshly by climate change than others. They are also aware of the pressures and instability generated by mass migration caused by climate change. Space tourism adds to this inequality.

There are other serious environmental concerns. Launches, particularly with solid rocket boosters, cause stratospheric ozone depletion. There are also worrying levels of atmospheric pollution by metals caused by so many launches and so much, re-entering debris.

This is an area that is moving forward with astounding speed. At first sight, it seems that we can harness the excitement and wonder of space travel to fund new opportunities for science and develop technology that’s of great benefit to humankind.

However, it would be wise to take the time to think through the potential consequences carefully. The human, or crewed, element means that the financial model of commercial human spaceflight is vulnerable to just a single failure, as the recent Titan submersible implosion proved.

Even more importantly, activities in low Earth orbit are a hugely valuable, yet vulnerable resource. They provide us with environmental and disaster monitoring systems, weather and climate monitoring, vegetation and crop growth measurements, geolocation and navigation (such as GPS) as well as communications.

Despite my previous comments about their main rationale not being scientific, space stations such as the ISS have provided some unique opportunities for working in zero gravity. There have been some remarkable impacts in, for example, medical and materials research.

We must not destroy the vital resource of low Earth orbit with space junk. And we cannot just ignore the implications for the climate and environmental justice.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here.

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The [northern hemisphere] summer of 2023 has been very significant for the travel industry. By the end of July, international tourist arrivals globally reached 84% of pre-pandemic levels. In some European countries, such as France, Denmark and Ireland, tourism demand even surpassed its pre-pandemic level.

This may be great news economically, but there’s concern that a return to the status quo is already showing dire environmental and social consequences.

The summer saw record-breaking heatwaves across many parts of the world. People were forced to flee wildfires in Greece and Hawaii, and extreme weather warnings were issued in many popular holiday destinations like Portugal, Spain and Turkey. Experts attributed these extreme conditions to climate change.

Tourism is part of the problem. The tourism sector generates around one-tenth of the greenhouse gas emissions that are driving the climate crisis.

The negative impacts of tourism on the environment have become so severe that some are suggesting drastic changes to our travel habits are inevitable. In a report from 2023 that analysed the future of sustainable travel, tour operator Intrepid Travel proposed that “carbon passports” will soon become a reality if the tourism industry hopes to survive.

What is a carbon passport?

The idea of a carbon passport centres on each traveller being assigned a yearly carbon allowance that they cannot exceed. These allowances can then “ration” travel.

This concept may seem extreme. But the idea of personal carbon allowances is not new. A similar concept (called “personal carbon trading”) was discussed in the [UK’s] House of Commons in 2008, before being shut down due to its perceived complexity and the possibility of public resistance.

The average annual carbon footprint for a person in the US is 16 tonnes – one of the highest rates in the world. In the UK this figure sits at 11.7 tonnes, still more than five times the figure recommended by the Paris Agreement to keep global temperature rise below 1.5°C.

Globally, the average annual carbon footprint of a person is closer to 4 tonnes. But, to have the best chance of preventing temperature rise from overshooting 2°C, the average global carbon footprint needs to drop to under 2 tonnes by 2050. This figure equates to around two return flights between London and New York.

Intrepid Travel’s report predicts that we will see carbon passports in action by 2040. However, several laws and restrictions have been put in place over the past year that suggest our travel habits may already be on the verge of change.

Targeting air travel

Between 2013 and 2018, the amount of CO₂ emitted by commercial aircrafts worldwide increased by 32%. Improvements in fuel efficiency are slowly reducing per passenger emissions. But research from 2014 found that whatever the industry’s efforts to reduce its carbon emissions, they will be outweighed by the growth in air traffic.

For emission reductions to have any meaningful effect, ticket prices would have to rise by 1.4% each year, discouraging some people from flying. However, in reality, ticket prices are falling.

Some European countries are beginning to take measures to reduce air travel. As of 1 April 2023, passengers on short-haul flights and older aircraft in Belgium have been subject to increased taxes to encourage alternative forms of travel.

Less than two months later, France banned short-haul domestic flights where the same trip can be made by train in two-and-a-half hours or less. Spain is expected to follow suit.

A similar scheme could also be on the horizon for Germany. In 2021, a YouGov poll found that 70% of Germans would support such measures to fight climate change if alternative transport routes like trains or ships were available.

Cruises and carbon

It’s not just air travel that’s being criticised. An investigation by the European Federation for Transport and Environment in 2023 found that cruise ships pump four times as many sulphuric gases (which are proven to cause acid rain and several respiratory conditions) into the atmosphere than all of Europe’s 291 million cars combined.

Statistics like these have forced European destinations to take action against the cruise industry. In July, Amsterdam’s council banned cruise ships from docking in the city centre in a bid to reduce tourism and pollution – an initiative that has shown success elsewhere.

In 2019, Venice was the most polluted European port, due to large numbers of cruise ship visits. But it dropped to 41st place in 2022 after a ban on large cruise ships entering the city’s waters reduced air pollutants from ships in Venice by 80%.

Changing destinations

Intrepid Travel’s report also highlights that not only how we travel, but where we travel will soon be impacted by climate change. Boiling temperatures will probably diminish the allure of traditional beach destinations, prompting European tourists to search for cooler destinations such as Belgium, Slovenia and Poland for their summer holidays.

Several travel agencies reported seeing noticeable increases in holiday bookings to cooler European destinations like Scandinavia, Ireland and the UK during 2023’s peak summer travel months.

Whatever the solution may be, changes to our travel habits look inevitable. Destinations across the globe, from Barcelona to the Italian riveria and even Mount Everest are already calling for limits on tourist numbers as they struggle to cope with crowds and pollution.

Holidaymakers should prepare to change their travel habits now, before this change is forced upon them.

Ross Bennett-Cook is a visiting lecturer at the University of Westminster’s school of architecture and cities.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here.

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An Auckland court has found Whakaari Management Limited (WML) guilty of breaching workplace safety laws relating to the Whakaari White Island eruption in 2019. This decision could have implications for anyone involved in adventure tourism in New Zealand.

When Whakaari erupted on December 9 2019 there were 47 people on the island. The eruption killed 22 of them and injured 25, some severely. The island was at alert level VAL 2 (moderate to heightened volcanic unrest) when it erupted.

As owner of the island, WML was charged with failing to adequately minimise the risks to tourists.

The court’s guilty verdict will likely result in significant changes to the $26.5bn tourism industry. So how did we get here and what is likely to change?

New Zealand’s most active volcano

The Buttle family has owned Whakaari since 1936. Brothers Peter, James and Andrew Buttle inherited the island in 2012 and own it through a family trust. The trust leased Whakaari to WML (with the Buttles as the company’s directors).

WML had licensing agreements with tour companies to run commercial walking tours.

Of the 47 people on the island when it erupted, 38 were part of a tour organised through the Royal Caribbean cruise ship Ovation of the Seas. Questions quickly arose about how aware tourists were of the risks and who might be held responsible.

WorkSafe New Zealand originally charged 13 parties under the Health and Safety at Work Act. Six eventually pleaded guilty to the charges and six, including the three Buttle brothers, had their cases dismissed.

The case against WML

WML was charged with breaching two sections of the act. The company was found guilty of one charge while the other was dismissed.

A key question in the court case was what responsibility WML bore when it licensed others to run the tour operations on the island.

WML argued it was only a landowner and not responsible for tourists’ safety. The company also claimed it had no physical presence on Whakaari or involvement in day-to-day tourism operations.

However, Judge Evangelos Thomas did not accept WML’s “passive owner” argument. The judge pointed to several factors as evidence, including:

• its business was to generate income through the enabling of commercial walking tours on Whakaari
• it entered into the licence agreements and had termination rights for breaches
• it maintained a direct and continuing relationship with tour operators
• it engaged with tour operators and other relevant entities, including Geological and Nuclear Sciences (GNS), civil defence and various agencies interested and involved in increasing tourist numbers to Whakaari
• it had occasional direct engagement with WorkSafe and GNS.

The judge also noted an earlier eruption in 2016 should have had all Whakaari stakeholders on notice for sound risk assessment. This eruption occurred when Whakaari was at VAL 1 (minor volcanic unrest). Fortunately, it occurred at night when there were no visitors on the island.

Judge Thomas argued this showed the volcano “could erupt at any time and without warning, with the risk of death or serious injury to tourists or tour guides who may be there at that time”.

WML should have engaged experts in volcanology and health and safety to advise on risks presented by tours to Whakaari, the judge found.

Sentencing will happen in February with a maximum possible penalty of a $1.5m fine.

Adventure tourism rules have already changed

This tragedy has already impacted the adventure tourism sector of New Zealand.

In August, the workplace relations and safety minister announced government changes to the rules for adventure tourism operations.

Minister Carmel Sepuloni said: “Adventure activity operators will now be required by law to communicate serious risks to customers, meaning prospective participants can be fully informed of risks before buying a ticket, in the time before the activity begins and throughout the activity, including if the risks change.”

WorkSafe was also given expanded powers to suspend, cancel or refuse registrations for adventure operators who cannot provide activities safely.

It is clear more rigorous risk assessments are required in New Zealand’s tourism industry. Responsibility for safety will no longer fall on tour operators alone.

All facets of the tourism supply chain, from land owners to tour operators to transport providers, will need to fulfil certain responsibilities to ensure the safety of their customers and workers. This will include careful consideration of the definition of “serious risk” and the many possible sources of risk.

Agencies such as the Meteorological Service and GNS will need to update adventure tour operators on a day-to-day basis. Natural hazards and risks such as extreme weather events, as well as volcanic and seismic risks, will need to be understood, factored into the planning of tour operations, and clearly communicated.

Reducing the risk in adventure tourism

Risk is an exciting attraction of adventure experiences for tourists in New Zealand. But public perception of risk is not the same as actual risk.

Some adventure tourism businesses offer experiences, such as bungy jumping, based on high perceived risk. But in reality these are low risk due to long-standing safety protocols.

Others, such as tours to geologically active locations, offer low perceived risk but there is the potential for periodic and unpredictable high actual risk.

Operators providing such experiences will now be obligated to shoulder greater responsibilities in ensuring such risks do not cause real harm.

All aspects of risk associated with the full spectrum of tourism businesses and tour operations, including but not limited to adventure tourism activities, will now need to be considered more carefully in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Freya Higgins-Desbiolles is adjunct senior lecturer in tourism management and adjunct associate professor at the University of South Australia and James Higham is professor of tourism at Griffith University.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here.

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The term ‘overtourism’ has re-emerged as tourism recovery has surged around the globe. But already in 2019, angst over excessive tourism growth was so high that the UN World Tourism Organization called for “such growth to be managed responsibly so as to best seize the opportunities tourism can generate for communities around the world”.

This was especially evident in cities like Barcelona, where anti-tourism sentiment built up in response to pent-up frustration about rapid and unyielding tourism growth. Similar local frustration emerged in other famous cities, including Amsterdam, Venice, London, Kyoto and Dubrovnik.

While the pandemic was expected to usher in a new normal where responsible and sustainable travel would emerge, this shift was evidently short-lived, as demand surged in 2022 and 2023 after travel restrictions eased.

This has been witnessed over the recent Northern Hemisphere summer season, during which popular destinations heaved under the pressure of pent-up post-pandemic demand, with grassroots communities articulating over-tourism concerns.

Concerns over excess tourism have not only been seen in popular cities but also on the islands of Hawaii and Greece, beaches in Spain, national parks in the United States and Africa, and places off the beaten track like Japan’s less explored regions.

What is overtourism?

The term overtourism was employed by Freya Petersen in 2001, who lamented the excesses of tourism development and governance deficits in the city of Pompei. Her sentiments are increasingly familiar among tourists in other top tourism destinations more than 20 years later.

Overtourism is more than a journalistic device to arouse host community anxiety or demonise tourists through anti-tourism activism. It is also more than simply being a question of management – although poor or lax governance most definitely accentuates the problem.

Governments at all levels must be decisive and firm about policy responses that control the nature of tourist demand and not merely give in to profits that flow from tourist expenditure and investment.

Overtourism is often oversimplified as being a problem of too many tourists. While that may well be an underlying symptom of excess, it fails to acknowledge the myriad factors at play.

In its simplest iteration, overtourism results from tourist demand exceeding the carrying capacity of host communities in a destination. Too often, the tourism supply chain stimulates demand, giving little thought to the capacity of destinations and the ripple effects on the well-being of local communities.

Overtourism is arguably a social phenomenon too. In China and India, two of the most populated countries where space is a premium, crowded places are socially accepted and overtourism concerns are rarely articulated, if at all. This suggests that cultural expectations of personal space and expectations of exclusivity differ.

We also tend not to associate ‘overtourism’ with Africa. But uncontrolled growth in tourist numbers is unsustainable anywhere, whether in an ancient European city or the savannah of a sub-Saharan context.

Overtourism must also have cultural drivers that are intensified when tourists’ culture is at odds with that of host communities – this might manifest as breaching of public norms, irritating habits, unacceptable behaviours, place-based displacement and inconsiderate occupation of space.

The issue also comes about when the economic drivers of tourism mean that those who stand to benefit from growth are instead those who pay the price of it, particularly where gentrification and capital accumulation driven from outside results in local resident displacement and marginalisation.

Overcoming overtourism excesses

Radical policy measures that break the overtourism cycle are becoming more common. For example, Amsterdam has moved to ban cruise ships by closing the city’s cruise terminal.

Tourism degrowth has long been posited as a remedy to overtourism. While simply cutting back on tourist numbers seems like a logical response, whether the economic trade-offs of fewer tourists will be tolerated is another thing altogether.

The Spanish island of Lanzarote moved to desaturate the island by calling the industry to focus on quality tourism rather than quantity. This shift to quality, or higher yielding, tourists has been mirrored in many other destinations, like Bali, for example.

Dispersing tourists outside hotspots is commonly seen as a means of dealing with too much tourism. However, whether sufficient interest to go off the beaten track can be stimulated might be an immoveable constraint, or simply result in problem shifting.

Demarketing destinations has been applied with varying degrees of success. However, whether it can address the underlying factors in the long run is questioned, particularly as social media influencers and travel writers continue to give attention to touristic hotspots. In France, asking visitors to avoid Mont Saint-Michelle and instead recommending they go elsewhere is evidence of this.

Introducing entry fees and gates to over-tourist places like Venice is another deterrent. This assumes visitors won’t object to paying and that revenues generated are spent on finding solutions rather than getting lost in authorities’ consolidated revenue.

Advocacy and awareness campaigns against overtourism have also been prominent, but whether appeals to tourists asking them to curb irresponsible behaviours have had any impact remains questionable as incidents continue—for example, the Palau Pledge and New Zealand’s Tiaki Promise appeal for more responsible behaviours.

Curtailing the use of the word overtourism is also posited – in the interest of avoiding the rise of moral panics and the swell of anti-tourism social movements, but pretending the phenomenon does not exist, or dwelling on semantics won’t solve the problem.

Solutions to address overtourism

The solutions to dealing adequately with the effects of overtourism are likely to be many and varied and must be tailored to the unique, relevant destination.

The tourism supply chain must also bear its fair share of responsibility. While popular destinations are understandably an easier sell, redirecting tourism beyond popular honeypots like urban heritage sites or overcrowded beaches needs greater impetus to avoid shifting the problem elsewhere.

Local authorities must exercise policy measures that establish capacity limits, then ensure they are upheld, and if not, be held responsible for their inaction.

Meanwhile, tourists themselves should take responsibility for their behaviour and decisions while travelling, as this can make a big difference to the impact on local residents.

Those investing in tourism should support initiatives that elevate local priorities and needs, and not simply exercise a model of maximum extraction for shareholders in the supply chain.

National tourist offices and destination management organisations must support development that is nuanced and in tune with the local backdrop rather than simply mimicking mass-produced products and experiences.

The way tourist experiences are developed and shaped must be transformed to move away from outright consumerist fantasies to responsible consumption.

The overtourism problem will be solved through a clear-headed, collaborative and case-specific assessment of the many drivers in action. Finally, ignoring historical precedents that have led to the current predicament of overtourism and pinning this on oversimplified prescriptions abandons any chance of more sustainable and equitable tourism futures.

Joseph Martin Cheer is professor of sustainable tourism and heritage at Western Sydney University and Marina Novelli is professor of marketing and tourism at the University of Nottingham.

Republished from the World Economic Forum in accordance with Creative Commons Attribution. Read the original article here.

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A change of government creates the opportunity for much better dialogue between industry and policymakers. It’s a fresh start, which is what tourism desperately needs. The real tourism experts are on the private sector side, so unless policymakers are prepared to listen and learn, it’s hard to make progress.

Key tourism voices have been calling for wholesale reform of governance and funding for some time now. Platitudes such as “value over volume” or “don’t forget domestic travellers” won’t cut it without a genuine roadmap for progress. Local communities must in future see the benefits of tourism and share in the economic upside. This is a problem that’s been solved in lots of destinations around the world, but not in New Zealand.

The previous government had a lot to deal with during Covid, which made it difficult to get genuine engagement. Post-Covid tourism planning lacked substance and the recovery has been slower than ideal. The incoming government also has a heavy work program and many election promises to fulfil.

The tourism industry will need to set priorities and work collaboratively with central and local government if we want change. Hotel Council Aotearoa has been working on the funding problem for three years now, including modelling new funding regimes that would give local authorities an ongoing “tourism dividend” every year.

Hotel Council Aotearoa has relationships with all sides of the House, and we will of course continue to foster those relationships. But relationships are only part of the puzzle. What tourism really needs is a willingness to have a contest of ideas, and for stakeholders to rally behind the best solutions for New Zealand.

HCA’s vision is that tourism reform is done in a bipartisan manner, drawing upon international best practice. Who doesn’t want local communities to get real and tangible benefits from increasing tourist arrivals? Who would disagree with the idea of modelling the best funding regimes from overseas (rather than reinventing the wheel)? At some point in the next three years, new tourism legislation should pass through parliament in New Zealand with near-unanimous support of all MPs and all of industry celebrating together.

A wise man once said: “Follow the money”. An enduring solution to New Zealand’s tourism funding problem requires real mahi and goodwill from all stakeholders. HCA’s overriding priority is for that work to begin in earnest with realistic but firm timelines.

The second priority is for New Zealand to get real about a national regulatory framework for short-term rental accommodation providers (or “STRA”), such as Airbnbs. Nobody is calling for STRA to be banned, but it’s naïve of policymakers to pretend that a regulatory response isn’t desperately needed. STRA is contributing to a massive worker accommodation problem in Queenstown.

STRA is making it much harder for New Zealand’s smaller towns to attract genuine hotel investment. STRA properties have much lower fire and life safety standards than traditional hotels, meaning we are gambling with the safety of our guests. STRA creates minimal employment and offers no public amenity such as lobbies, bars, restaurants and meeting space.

Once again, New Zealand should start with best practice overseas because numerous destinations have implemented well-designed regimes to manage STRA. Local authorities shouldn’t be left to design their own local regimes. It would be a terrible guest experience and, frankly, it’s also unfair on Airbnb as a business.

HCA would have no concern at all if a smaller party – ACT or New Zealand First – ended up with the tourism portfolio, so long as the new minister and government is prepared to work in partnership with industry. Unfortunately, the portfolio changed hands regularly under the previous administration and HCA was itself a newly-formed organisation, which made it hard to drive change. This is a moment in time for tourism.

The next minister of tourism can help drive real and meaningful reform that will benefit all New Zealanders for generations to come. The word “legacy” is sometimes overused, but I can understand why the chance to create a legacy in tourism might be attractive for any and all MPs, including leaders of the minor parties.

Once again, HCA’s vision is that tourism is reformed in a bipartisan manner – all the MPs elected to power last weekend need to be stakeholders in the future sustainable growth and success of tourism. After all, tourism is not some economic sideshow – it’s set to become New Zealand’s largest export earner and one of our largest employers again.

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When the New Zealand branch of the Youth Hostel Association (YHA) collapsed in 2021 and the country’s 11 hostels were forced to close, staff and punters alike were shocked. General manager Simon Cartwright cited the pandemic as the primary cause of the downturn in tourism revenues and the association’s financial woes. “YHA,” he said, “has been a cornerstone of youth travel in New Zealand for 89 years”.

Similar feelings of nostalgia and sadness have beset generations of intrepid domestic travellers in the UK, since the England and Wales branch of the association announced, in June 2023, that it would be selling off 20 of its remaining 150 hostels. “Is there any map symbol more reassuring to a wet and weary walker,” asked one journalist bemoaning this news, than the YHA’s “red triangle?” What will those weary walkers do without them, was their worry.

YHA hostels were once celebrated as the very antithesis of the hotel. They were communal spaces catering to young people on small budgets.

My research shows that a thriving backpacking hostel ignites authentic, spontaneous interactions between strangers. A genuine sense of camaraderie – that transcends backgrounds, borders and cultures – can be fostered within its bounds.

A potted history of the youth hostel

Two Germans, Richard Shirrmann, a teacher, and Wilhelm Münker, a conservationist, are credited with founding the first youth hostel, in Germany, in 1912. Shirrmann had been taking his students on hiking trips, as part of the long-standing German tradition of Wanderlust, along the Rhine river, organising temporary local accommodation along the way.

The Hungarian tourism scholar Gabriella Nagy recounts how during one particular eight-day excursion, his group got caught in a storm and were refused shelter by a farmer. Spending the night in a school, instead, Shirrmann dreamed up the idea of every village having “a friendly youth hostel”, as he later wrote, to “welcome all young Germans who loved walking”.

Several experiments later, Shirrmann opened a permanent facility in the Burg Altena, in North Rhine-Westphalia. Rooms in this 12th-century castle were furnished with triple bunk beds. You could wash and cook on site. You could also gather in the common rooms to sing and talk and play. This system pioneered the principles of self-help and cooperation that would go on to characterise the youth hostel movement.

Several experiments later, Shirrmann opened a permanent facility in the Burg Altena, in North Rhine-Westphalia. Rooms in this 12th-century castle were furnished with triple bunk beds. You could wash and cook on site. You could also gather in the common rooms to sing and talk and play. This system pioneered the principles of self-help and cooperation that would go on to characterise the youth hostel movement.

Schirrmann’s concept of creating a network of safe and welcoming places for young travellers led to the establishment of the Deutsches Jugendherbergswerk (German Youth Hostel Association) in 1919. The idea made its way across Europe and the Channel. And in 1930, the Youth Hostel Association (YHA) was established in England and Wales. The stated purpose was: “To help all, but especially young people, to a greater knowledge, use and love of the countryside, particularly by providing hostels or other accommodation for them on their travels.”

Research has shown how the movement’s romantic, anti-urban ideals found echoes within British walking and back-to-the-land traditions. In 1939, the England and Wales branch of the YHA had expanded to 300 hostels. And after the Second World War, support from the Ministry of Education saw it grow to over 200,000 members by 1950.

1960s counterculture: a challenge for the movement

During what British cultural historian Arthur Marwick has called the “long sixties”, the profound shifts that reshaped western European and north American societal attitudes led to an explosion of youth travel across the world. YHA hostels, though, could not keep up.

With hostel stays largely structured around booze bans, curfews and chores, the YHA appeared old-fashioned and out of date. By contrast, a new, more commercially focused breed of hostels was emerging that understood young travellers’ changing needs.

Independent guesthouses and hostels emerged on the hippie trail, including the Pudding Shop in Istanbul and Mumbai’s New Vasantashram. They offered visitors greater freedom and more privacy, with longer opening hours and more flexible sleeping arrangements. On site, travellers could buy cheap food, bus tickets, packaged trips and tours, alcohol and even hashish.

The independent hostel continued to evolve. During the 1980s, Australian establishments started catering specifically to international budget backpackers. These were designed to provide a more relaxed stay – with communal areas, bars, cinema rooms and spaces for working, eating and hanging out together. The concept then made its way across Europe, Asia, South America and the UK.

The YHA, however, continued to struggle to keep up with the times. Today, it faces considerable financial and market pressure. The brand remains largely invisible to many travellers, as entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, hotel groups and hostel chains drive innovation and development.

Unlike hotels, which prioritise convenience and comfort, a hostel is what sociologist Ray Oldenburg terms a “third place”. It is designed to be fun, to foster connection and interaction, to offer both escape and sociability. Oldenburg suggests that in order to facilitate this kind of conviviality and playfulness – a space for community and conversations without purpose – you need an “appreciation of human personality and individuality”.

For the YHA to find relevance, it could renew its focus on the outdoors. It could better cater to wild campers, solo travellers, touring cyclists and “van-lifers” – those who share a deep passion for exploration and adventure. Crucially, its hostels could play a key role in blurring class lines and connecting us to both each other and the places we visit.

Michael O’Regan is a lecturer in tourism and events at Glasgow Caledonian University.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here.

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Once upon a time – in 2019 – tourists from China were among the best-traveled in the world. They collectively spent more than US$250bn abroad – nearly twice as much as their nearest competitors, the Americans – and logged more than 150 million departures on international flights that year.

The Covid-19 pandemic shook the Chinese travel industry, as it did the world’s. But despite the easing of pandemic restrictions – and a global tourism rebound – Chinese tourists have been slow to return to the global skies. The reason, interestingly enough, could be found in the very land and houses Chinese planes fly over.

As a professor of marketing who specialises in consumer psychology, I’m interested in how China’s struggling real estate sector is dragging down consumer spending – and having an effect on tourist destinations around the world.

Real property, real problems

To understand the issue, first you need to understand China’s current real estate crisis. Just how bad is it? China’s largest developer, Country Garden, lost US$7.1bn in the first six months of 2023; investors concerned about potential debt default have sent its stock plummeting.

Another major developer, the troubled China Evergrande Group, posted a US$4.5bn loss over the same period and sought bankruptcy protection in the U.S. last month. It gained international attention in 2021 after it defaulted on $300 billion of debt, sparking the current crisis.

One major – if indirect – reason China’s real estate industry is so shaky is that local governments are heavily dependent on tax revenue from land sales, as well as property taxes and real estate development fees. At the same time, about 70% of the general population’s assets are invested in real estate.

Those facts enticed developers and local governments alike to borrow excessively to fund new development. When the central government started to implement more stringent regulations to curb speculation and control prices, the market predictably cooled – and has kept cooling. In July 2023, new home sales from China’s top 100 developers were down 33% from the previous year. Prices are slumping, too.

This has had a cascade of effects on the Chinese economy. Most immediately, as demand for construction materials and labour has fallen, hiring has cooled and consumers are tightening their belts. Local governments are also struggling to stay afloat with less revenue, with some provinces being forced to slash government salaries and benefits.

Why staycations suddenly appeal

The situation is especially challenging for homeowners, who are burdened with shrinking wealth as housing prices fall. This has had a ripple effect on spending, as cautious consumers increasingly prioritise their savings – worsening the economic challenge for businesses across the country.

Unsurprisingly – at least to anyone who’s paid attention to the world economy – what happens in China doesn’t stay in China. And the global tourism industry has been hit particularly hard as newly budget-conscious Chinese homeowners pare back their spending.

As of April 2023, Chinese tourism to Japan was down some 85% since 2019, even though overall visits to Japan had rebounded to 70% of pre-pandemic levels. Chinese tourism to popular European destinations such as France, Switzerland, Greece and Spain has also fallen sharply. All in all, China’s outbound travel spending is forecast to be down nearly 70% this year from its pre-pandemic peak.

To be fair, tourism within China is bouncing back – to a degree – as frugal travellers increasingly opt to vacation closer to home. The China Tourism Academy predicts that domestic tourism will hit 90% of pre-pandemic levels in 2023. But that alone won’t offset the impact of lower consumer confidence. Part of the reason is that the amount of money travellers are willing to spend is down.

And faced with demand challenges as well as the effects of Covid-19 and geopolitical strife, Chinese travel agencies have been shuttering en masse in recent years. From January to April 2022, some 8,500 tourism agents and firms declared bankruptcy. Even assuming some reopen, that churn and disruption bode ill for the sector.

Global tourism has faced a challenging few years, with the pandemic and increased fuel costs putting off would-be travellers. With Chinese consumers feeling down in the dumps over the economy and opting for modest vacations, a recovery will be that much harder.

Zhiyong Yang is a professor of marketing at Miami University.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here.

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Christchurch Airport is spending tens of millions of dollars just to ‘explore a problem’ with no fixed outcome in sight. In my view, it is pitching a solution in search of a problem. We can all agree that New Zealand is facing infrastructure challenges, but a shortage of airports is not one of them.

Christchurch Airport proposes to build an international airport operating 24 hours a day on farmland it has bought in Tarras – 10 minutes from Wānaka Airport and over an hour from Queenstown Airport. Its justification is that there is an unmet need in the Southern Lakes region.

Christchurch Airport is a majority Christchurch City Council-owned asset and is a commercial organisation, not an altruistic one. Its motive is to make a profit, so why not be honest about that?

The people of this region, who have few means to influence the project, have made it clear they do not want a flood of extra visitors. They want sustainable tourism, not over-tourism. The Queenstown Lakes and Central Otago district councils have destination management plans to deliver exactly that.

Meanwhile, Christchurch City Council, like many councils across the country, has a series of infrastructure challenges of its own and is strapped for cash. Rates are rising and the sale of community assets is being openly discussed. Rather than spending money on its nebulous Tarras project, Christchurch Airport could support Christchurch ratepayers through greater dividends.

In trying to build a case for its Tarras project, Christchurch Airport has made many false and unsubstantiated claims about Queenstown Airport, including that we do not have room to expand. We have plenty of land and our capacity constraints are the result of community consultation, not physical constraints. We are in the process of finalising a Master Plan that will allow passenger numbers to increase by a third by 2032 and allocates space for further expansion in the decades beyond that. However, that will only happen with the support of our shareholders and the residents of our region. We are listening to them, unlike Christchurch Airport, which seems to be ignoring the widespread rejection of the proposed airport at Tarras.

If this project is foisted upon Tarras, it is the communities of Central Otago, Upper Clutha and Queenstown that will bear the brunt of the environmental costs and additional strain on infrastructure.

Another fallacy promoted by Christchurch Airport is that no one else is planning for the lower South Island. Dunedin Airport will complete its 2050 Master Plan by the end of next year. It serves a larger population base than all of Central Otago and Dunedin residents are very keen to see the return of international services. Queenstown Lakes District Council has said it will be consulting on the future of Wānaka Airport soon. Similarly, Invercargill Airport is undertaking long-term planning and will soon be consulting the public on its planned terminal expansion.

Christchurch Airport is strangely silent on the international airport it already owns, which is set on a substantial landholding and has surplus capacity. What it is planning 400km away in Tarras is not a small regional airfield; it is a large-scale airport capable of handling widebody long-haul jets from Asia and beyond, operating around the clock. Inevitably, passengers flying into Tarras would bypass Christchurch, which has successfully rebuilt a vibrant business community and tourism industry after the 2010-11 earthquakes.

Christchurch Airport’s briefing to Treasury states 70% of passengers to the proposed Tarras airport would come from overseas. By comparison, about 30% of Queenstown Airport’s passengers arrive on international flights from Australia.

The focus is ramping up visitor numbers dramatically, which is plainly at odds with community sentiment. The communities of the Southern Lakes do not want their home to become an alpine version of Venice.

This is a spectacular part of the world. We know people want to come here, but the idea that we need to submit to limitless growth and fuel turbo-charged tourism is outdated. The conversation has moved on.

Queenstown Airport plays a crucial role in enabling the economic and social wellbeing of this region. Our recent community consultation confirmed residents value its location and contribution. We are concentrating on creating a resilient airport to be proud of and enabling lower-emission aviation. That won’t change.

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The travel and tourism sector entered 2023 like a marathon runner hitting the last six miles of a race. It fought its way through almost two years of the Covid-19 pandemic — only to be overwhelmed, as the disease waned, by an unprecedented surge in travel by people tired of quarantines and lockdowns.

With many in the sector still struggling to fill their workforces to handle this significant uptake of travel, big and small companies alike now face their next challenge — the accelerating transition from voluntary to mandatory sustainability reporting. Are they ready for it?

In 2024, the first wave of tougher mandatory regulation on sustainability disclosure takes effect as new European Union sustainability rules start to compel the largest companies operating in the bloc to begin gathering data on greenhouse gas emissions.

These new rules — including the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive — also require companies to submit annual transition plans for reducing emissions. Plans must be compliant with limiting the rise in Earth’s temperature to 1.5 degrees Celsius — a target set by the 2015 Paris climate agreement — with the progress on meeting those goals available to corporate stakeholders and the public annually.

But the last couple of years have been busy when it came to sustainability. Not only did the EU impose new mandatory regulations, so did the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, India, and Singapore.

The Securities and Exchange Commission in the United States is also expected to move in the next few months to adopt similar Climate Disclosure Requirements that would make formerly voluntary emissions disclosures mandatory for US publicly registered companies.

Most recently, the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) — affiliated with the influential International Accounting Standards Board — released what will eventually become the international norm for sustainability accounting. All the new standards require disclosure of Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions under the Greenhouse Gas Protocol for corporate accounting.

New report and survey

Given the deluge of new mandatory standards, it’s time for travel and tourism to assess how prepared the sector is. After surveying sector members for a report expected to be released in the fourth quarter, the WTTC and Oliver Wyman have concluded there is still considerable work to be done before the sector will be up to the task.

According to WTTC’s groundbreaking research, travel and tourism is currently responsible for 8.1% of global greenhouse gas emissions. While many of the sector’s biggest companies have set 2050 emission-reduction targets, just as many have just started to consider how to address climate change in their business. Thus, there is a wide range of understanding and readiness in travel and tourism when it comes to the upcoming reporting requirements.

Navigating the compliance landscape will be no easy task — especially for a sector with operations spanning multiple countries and enterprises that run from a few employees to thousands. Even in a single jurisdiction, the complexities of managing multiple subsidiaries, suppliers, and partnerships will be daunting.

These hurdles become even higher, considering that 80% of sector members are small and midsize companies with limited resources to invest in new personnel and technology. Recognising this, WTTC and Oliver Wyman will be including in the upcoming report a tool to help the sector navigate the requirements.

Company trepidations

One concern raised by most participants in our survey was the sector’s lack of resources, capabilities, and expertise to tackle the demands of the new regulations. In the past at many travel and tourism companies, sustainability personnel were more likely to deal with branding and marketing or operational issues than with accounting or data collection.

But compliance with these kinds of rigorous sustainability disclosures rises above a mere accounting exercise to become more of an organisation-wide shift in culture, and sustainability teams will not be able to tackle the upcoming challenge alone. More education and internal expertise on sustainability will be needed across organisations.

Another challenge facing the sector is data collection. The broad and fragmented value chains of many companies in the sector, make it not only difficult to ensure that data is assembled in a timely manner, but also that the information on emissions — especially Scope 3 emissions, which are produced by a company’s upstream suppliers and downstream users — is in fact accurate. With the absence of sector-specific guidance, some form of sector collaboration may be needed for the first few years.

Generally, companies are struggling to reconcile the investment needed in new data collection capabilities with investment already being made in initiatives to reduce emissions and meet other environmental, social, and governance goals.

Of course, at the same time, additional spending on new personnel and operations has been required across most organisations to meet the rising demand.

But ready or not, the regulations have arrived, and especially for the biggest companies and networks, the time to act is now.

The good news for the sector is the potential benefit travel and tourism enjoys from any efforts to preserve nature and the planet’s hospitable climate. Few sectors will be challenged more by the rise in severe weather and environmental crises as well as the disappearance of Earth’s biodiversity, which should provide adequate incentive for companies to go beyond mere compliance.

Christopher Imbsen is director of sustainability at WTTC, and Dan Darcy is principal of transportation and services practice at Oliver Wyman.

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Venice’s history, art and architecture attract an estimated 20 million visitors every year. The city, a Unesco World Heritage site, is often crammed with tourists in search of special memories.

But for the people who actually live there, this level of tourism has become unsustainable. So from 2024, day-trippers will be charged a €5 fee as part of an attempt to better manage the flow of visitors.

The city’s mayor has described the charge – which will be implemented on 30 particularly busy days in the spring and summer – as an attempt to “protect the city from mass tourism”. It comes after cruise ships were banned from entering the fragile Venice lagoon in 2021.

Both policies are designed to respond to the particular problem facing Venice, which is that around 80% of its tourists come just for the day. Research has shown that such a high proportion of day-trippers – who tend to spend little – pushes a tourist destination towards decline.

So from next year, all travellers to Venice will have to register their visit in advance and obtain a QR code online. Day trippers will then have to pay the fee; visitors staying overnight will not.

Other exemptions include children under 14, as well as people who travel to the city for work and study, or to visit family members. To enforce the policy, the municipal police and authorised inspectors will carry out random checks. Anyone without the proper QR code will face a fine of up to €300.

But some have expressed doubts about whether the €5 fee – the price of a coffee or an ice cream – will be enough to dissuade tourists from travelling to this iconic ancient city. One city politician commented that the charge means Venice has become “a theme park, a Disneyland,” where “you get in by paying an entrance fee”.

Certainly, the charge is a lot less than Bhutan’s (recently reduced) “sustainable development fee” of US$100 per night, which applies to all tourists and was introduced to encourage “high value, low impact” tourism. Research also indicates that strategies aiming at persuading tourists to come at less crowded times do not reduce numbers at peak periods, but actually end up increasing overall demand.

‘Veniceland’

But Venice has to try something. For researchers, Venice is the embodiment of overtourism, and residents clearly suffer from the consequences – living with the congestion, environmental damage and effects on their lifestyle and culture that 20 million visitors can cause.

This can then lead to a negative response, known as “tourismphobia”. Another term, “Venice Syndrome” has been used to describe the decline of the city’s permanent population, as citizens feel forced to leave.

Venice’s population is around 50,000 and has been consistently falling from a peak of 175,000. If the population falls below 40,000, there is concern that Venice will cease to be a viable living city.

Those who remain have often expressed their discontent. Well-publicised protests have included the “Funeral of Venice” in 2009, a mock funeral to mourn the sharp drop in population, and “Welcome to Veniceland” in 2010, which claimed that Venice was becoming more of a theme park.

And while “tourist taxes” remain popular strategies to address overtourism, their effectiveness remains debatable. Instead, research suggests that a combination of specific economic measures (like fees and variable pricing) and non-economic policies (such as educating visitors) is the best option.

That combination needs to be specially designed for each destination. There can be no one-size-fits-all solution. A report by the World Tourism Organization on overtourism identifies 11 different strategies and 68 measures to manage visitors’ growth in urban destinations.

Barcelona, often seen as a city which has done well in handling mass tourism, has successfully used a well-targeted approach. This has included harnessing new technology to develop a data-driven management system to control visitor flows and overcrowding. It also deliberately engaged with the public when deciding on policies, and came up with specific strategies like limiting the number of new souvenir shops.

But it did not resort to charging an entrance fee. Venice will be the first city in the world to do so – and other locations struggling with mass tourism will be keeping a close eye on whether such a bold move turns out to be a success.

Professor Sameer Hosany is head of the marketing department at the Royal Holloway University of London.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here.

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As a former competitive snowboarder and instructor, and later a researcher of snow sports, I’ve been lucky to enjoy ski resorts around the world. But nothing compares to Mt Ruapehu on a good day.

Holidaying with my family last week, we fell in love with the natural terrain of both the Whakapapa and Tūroa fields – the latter enjoying the biggest snow base in the world at the time.

We were not alone. A strong winter season has seen many thousands making the most of the great conditions: 5,614 guests on Whakapapa’s busiest day of July 15, and 3,500 at Tūroa on July 28.

But this apparently positive picture makes it easy to overlook the fact that both ski fields on the North Island volcano have faced huge economic uncertainty over the past year. And one great season does not necessarily mean long-term recovery.

Sustainability amid uncertainty

After difficult pandemic years and a poor 2022 snow season, Ruapehu Alpine Lifts (RAL), which operates both Tūroa and Whakapapa, went into receivership. Ski resorts everywhere are facing an uncertain future, with climate change making seasons hard to predict.

After months of uncertainty and debate about its future, the government eventually offered a $5m lifeline for the 2023 winter season.

Despite various longer-term rescue proposals, including a (now dropped) buyout bid by Ngāti Tūwharetoa (one of several iwi shareholders), the future of skiing and snowboarding on Mt Ruapehu remains uncertain.

Understandably, this is causing anxiety among those whose livelihoods – and favourite sporting and leisure pursuits – are at risk. Beyond those immediate concerns, however, lies the place of the maunga (mountain) itself in the historical and cultural fabric of Aotearoa New Zealand.

Cultural and geological significance

Ruapehu is much more than a place for leisure tourism. Located in the heart of the 80,000-hectare Tongariro National Park, one of three world heritage sites in New Zealand, it is a unique and special place.

In fact, Tongariro has dual world heritage status for its important Māori cultural and spiritual associations, as well as its distinctive volcanic features.

Ruapehu is particularly significant to Māori, being part of the origin story of te Ika-a-Māui (the North Island). And the ski fields are bound up in the unresolved Treaty of Waitangi claim to Tongariro National Park.

The scale of that claim, which involves cultural redress more than the return of land, puts the future of the ski fields in a much wider perspective. Added to that is the question of environmental sustainability, with ski resorts increasingly reliant on snow-making for their survival.

Behind the human activity, of course, sits Ruapehu’s great geological significance. As my nine-year-old son proudly explained upon arrival, it is a stratovolcano (also called a composite cone volcano), built up by successive layers of andesite lava and ash deposits.

Rising impressively from the ancient native forest on one side and the beautiful tussock on the other, the maunga is a striking presence in the landscape. Light and clouds constantly change its appearance as they dance off its jagged peaks.

Ruapehu is also New Zealand’s largest active volcano. There are frequent minor eruptions and more significant events every 20 to 30 years. This makes it an unusual skiing experience, to say the least, with a lahar alarm and warning system in place, and signs everywhere reminding skiers and snowboarders of the lively nature of this powerful mountain.

The people’s mountain

Over my many years researching snow sport cultures around the world, I’ve witnessed their unique social dynamics. Unlike many sports that separate people based on gender, ability and age, the slopes offer a space for shared experiences. And they can be a wonderful place for families.

But skiing and snowboarding have long been highly privileged activities. Often they are available only to those with the free time and disposable income. Travel, accommodation, lift tickets and equipment are expensive.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the clientele of ski resorts in New Zealand and around the world have been described as “white as the snow”.

And yet I am struck by the diversity on Ruapehu. At $84 for an adult mid-week day pass, and $54 for a child day pass, it’s much more accessible than the more expensive South Island experience ($160 for an adult day pass at the Remarkables or Cardrona).

RAL also offers heavily discounted or free season passes and day passes to local iwi, schools, defence force staff and emergency services, among other groups. In contrast to the often international staff of most ski resorts, RAL workers are predominantly local, with 53% identifying as New Zealand European and 16% Māori.

Reimagining Ruapehu

While more can be done to ensure ski resorts are more inclusive and accessible for all, the various innovations by RAL to respond to the pandemic, seasonal disruption and ongoing economic uncertainty are a good start.

But its great cultural, social and geological significance makes Ruapehu a taonga (treasure) for all New Zealanders. Personally, I hope to enjoy riding with my family on Ruapehu for many years to come, but the issue is bigger than that.

With or without skiing, Ruapehu offers New Zealanders an opportunity to know mountain places as culturally significant landscapes, to learn about their histories and to reimagine their collective futures.

There is untapped potential in using the existing resort facilities as educational spaces for future generations to learn about the cultural and geographical significance of this special place.

And while relationships with the mountain (and views on its future) will vary based on people’s different cultural, social and economic perspectives, acknowledging Ruapehu’s place in the Māori experience of colonisation and dispossession must be central too.

As the economic modelling continues, and various parties seek financial sustainability for the ski fields, it’s important we don’t lose sight of this bigger picture of a remarkable maunga in the heart of te Ika-a-Māui.

Holly Thorpe is a professor in sociology of sport and gender at the University of Waikato.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article here.

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The Victorian government, like many governments around the world, has announced new regulations on short-stay accommodation. The government says Victoria has more than 36,000 short-stay places, which are reducing the number of homes available for long-term rental.

Other states have capped the number of nights a dwelling can be used for short-stay accommodation. The Victorian response has been to introduce a levy set at 7.5% of the short-stay platform’s revenue.

The rationale appears simple – adding a charge to discourage landlords from converting properties from long-term rentals to tourist accommodation.

The government estimates the levy will raise about A$70m (NZ$75m) a year. State agency Homes Victoria will use this money to provide social and affordable housing, potentially compensating for losses to the short-stay sector.

How will the levy be applied?

Details of how the levy will be collected are not yet available. However, it appears the government will charge the platforms – such as Airbnb, Stayz and Booking.com – 7.5% of their total revenue. The platforms will bill the hosts.

The levy will begin in 2025. The state government says its levy will replace any local government charges on short-stay accommodation such as the one Bass Coast collects.

The platforms have voiced concern at the size of the levy and at hotels escaping the charge. The government’s response is that hotels are not removing long-term rental housing from the market.

Some commentators from the Victorian tourism sector predict the levy will lead to sharp reductions in tourism. This will depend on how many owners of second homes in tourism destinations opt to shift their properties into the long-term rental market.

Marginal operators might decide this extra cost makes the hassle of running a short-term rental business too high. Some might move to long-term rentals.

The levy might also encourage some potential short-term rental investors to focus their activities in other states that don’t charge a levy. However, it’s possible other states whose budgets are under pressure will copy the Victorian model, reducing this effect.

Indeed, the size of the Victoria government’s levy and its own budget projections imply the intention is more to raise revenue than to eliminate the state’s short-stay sector.

Short stays have boomed under a ‘light touch’ approach

We have previously described Australian approaches to regulating the short-term rental sector as very light touch.

Under this regime, the Australian short-term rental market has been growing strongly. The sector has increased by about 23% over the past year, according to a new report by the Real Estate Institute of Australia.

Platforms often claim short-term rentals have no impact on rental markets.

Covid-19 provided an excellent natural experiment to test this view. As state and national borders closed, short-term rentals returned to the long-term market. In many Australian housing markets where this happened, rents fell sharply.

In contrast to the relative lack of state government action, local governments across Australia have long sought to manage impacts of short-term rental accommodation in their municipalities.

These local responses include permit and registration systems, which allow local councils to monitor any problems. Some have imposed higher rates. This can deter conversion of long-term rental stock to short-stay accommodation but also provides important local revenue for localities with many seasonal visitors.

Ironically, the introduction of state frameworks can override local responses. Byron Council in NSW has been trying to reduce the number of nights hosts can let their properties from the default NSW total of 180 nights. Ultimately, the state’s Independent Planning Commission supported a 60-day cap. The council must now navigate a complex process to get this limit in place.

Regulations are tougher overseas

The Victorian government move mirrors an international trend of increasing regulation of short-term accommodation. These rules seek to prevent loss of permanent rental supply and to manage the amenity impacts of short-term tourism on neighours and local communities.

In Scotland, Airbnb hosts now have to register with the government. Those listing whole properties must apply for planning permission.

Cities such as New Orleans have created special zones where holiday homes can be rented. It’s another way to balance the demand for visitor accommodation with the need to preserve homes for local residents.

Many European and North American cities have blanket restrictions on short-term rentals, including caps of 30 to 90 days for unhosted properties. These time periods allow local residents to gain income by renting out their homes when they are themselves on holiday.

However, enforcing these rules can be tricky. New York City recently introduced regulations that require hosts to be present while accommodating guests – effectively banning the short-term rental of whole homes.

It will take more than a levy to fix the rental crisis

Across Australia, people have called for increased housing supply to improve rental markets. However, given the long lead times in financing and building apartment buildings, new rental supply will take a long time to deliver for tenants.

In contrast, policy changes that redirected short-term rental stock to the long-term market would have an immediate benefit. This is vital in central city locations, where new apartment supply is at risk of diversion to the short-term sector, and in regional markets, where increased population growth has coincided with increased short-term stay activity.

More widely, protecting tenants from unfair eviction and sudden excessive rental increases can help limit the impacts of short-stay platforms. Adequately subsidising low-income renters so they can afford decent housing would also help.

Generating extra revenue for Homes Victoria is a positive step, but a tourist tax won’t go far. Renters would gain more in the short term from other regulations that do more to reduce the short-stay sector’s size and growth.

Emeritus Professor Peter Phibbs and professor of urban and regional planning Nicole Gurran are at the University of Sydney. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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As the observed effects of climate change intensify, the chorus asking how a more sustainable tourism future can be achieved has amplified, and rightly so.

Contentions regarding the sustainability credentials of tourism have heightened and links between popular destinations and crises have become ever more noticeable. Summer wildfires this year in Hawaii, Italy and Greece illustrate a sector prone to external and internal shocks. Yet, it remains a sector that is critical to supporting the livelihoods of many. 

Throw into the mix the sector’s carbon intensity, the tendency for tourist demand to overwhelm local well-being, the environmental effects of inappropriate tourism developments and, on the flip side, its vital economic contributions, the urgency to optimise its potential to destination communities and minimize its shortcomings is pressing.

What then are salient issues that might lead to more sustainable tourism futures and the desire for a more benign tourism sector?

The tourism-conservation nexus

Tourism and conservation are natural allies, yet questions remain about whether they hinder or help conservation efforts. Wildlife tourism is projected to be a US$300bn global business by 2032 as the desire of travellers to get closer to nature grows. 

The Great Barrier Reef, for example, a major tourist drawcard, contributes US$4.8bn to Australia’s economy and supports 64,000 jobs. After multiple mass coral bleaching events exacerbated by climate change, its placement on the UNESCO endangered list is called for. On the upside, however, there are signs that citizen science is helping tourists contribute to conservation efforts.

In Rwanda, high-priced education programmes targeted at tourists have underwritten mountain gorilla conservation efforts. As the population of these animals have increased, it provides evidence of the potential for tourism to contribute in measurable ways to the conservation imperative.

Sustainable tourism messaging

With myriad appeals for tourists to act more responsibly, how can messaging be more impactful in driving behaviour change? Sustainable development is reinforced and the Sustainable Development Goals are prominent, but how can we strengthen the messaging?

The new normal was to have led to a heightened awareness of travelling responsibly. The 2023 Global Sustainability Research study noted that 43% of consumers would reject buying from companies that were not acting in socially or environmentally responsible ways. According to the 2022 Global Travel Trends Report, 78% of respondents desired to make positive impacts on the communities they visited. 

The appetite to be more responsible is apparent. Closing the ‘intention-action’ gap remains a challenge, however. Alas, this challenge transcends tourism.

Mitigating food waste

Food waste accounts for 8% – 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions – three times as much as aviation industry emissions. And rotting food produces methane that is evidently more environmentally harmful than carbon dioxide.

Hotels produce a staggering 79,000 tons of food waste annually and the urgency to address this wonton wastage is pressing. Operational measures to reverse this trend are overdue and myriad approaches are called for, including resizing serving portions, rethinking kitchen management and staff training, devising innovative responses to repurposing leftovers, including donating to community organizations and insisting on optimising the use of the ‘whole’ ingredient.

Carnival Corporation, for example, has installed ‘biodigesters‘ across 600 cruise ships to process organic waste. This has led to a reduction in food waste by more than 30% per person, with aggressive goals to reach 40% by 2025 and 50% by 2030. This signals that incremental change can happen.

Workforce shortages

As the tourism recovery gains momentum and 2019 tourist visitation levels are realized, the challenge to secure a stable and well-trained workforce is a drag on the sustainability of sector enterprises. The post-COVID-19-pandemic exodus of workers and their reluctance to return adds further pressure to a sector desperate to return to growth.

In 2019, the sector was estimated to comprise of nearly 1 in 10 jobs globally and of these, women accounted for more than 50%. Additionally, many tourism jobs are filled by migrants and young people. 

For a sector that is labour intensive, workforce shortages can be debilitating. Yet, just how the sector can convince people that employment and working conditions are attractive enough, remains a formidable constraint. Striving for decent work in the sector requires urgent consideration if the brain drain is to be stemmed.

Staff shortages experienced by airlines and accommodation providers have seen service standards decline and operating costs increase as cancellations or scaling back of services intensify financial pressures.

Where to for sustainable tourism?

The genesis of sustainable tourism is linked to the 1987 Brundtland Report, more commonly known as the Report of the World Commission on Environment and Development: Our Common Future. This report was a watershed that set the tone for the use of the term sustainable development, which, at its core, referenced the notion of intergenerational equity. 

Intergenerational equity rests on ensuring that what is being done today, should not compromise the planet for future generations. The emergence of regenerative tourism is a timely throwback to the Brundtland report.

Notwithstanding, climate change and its effects equivocate that evidence of an increasingly compromised planet contradicts suggestions that sustainable development is underway.

The four issues highlighted are clearly not exhaustive and comprise a sliver of broader concerns. Nonetheless, their illustration attempts to highlight the complex and diverse nature of the imperative towards more sustainable tourism futures. Buy-in towards a global compact for sustainable tourism is desperately sought. 

If the epitome of sustainable tourism is to leave nothing but footprints and take nothing but photographs, a long road lies ahead. Whither sustainable tourism?

Republished from the World Economic Forum in accordance with Creative Commons Attribution. Read the original article here.

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Holidays are making a comeback after several years of disruption caused by the Covid pandemic. Nearly 4 billion passengers boarded international flights in 2022, up from fewer than 2 billion in 2020. Recent research suggests that people are likely to continue travelling more in 2023 and beyond.

But this resurgence in travel is concerning. The tourism sector alone is responsible for an estimated 8%–10% of global greenhouse gas emissions. And conditions at traditional holiday destinations in high summer are becoming increasingly unpleasant if not downright hazardous.

During the past year, numerous climate records have been broken as heatwaves and wildfires ravaged large parts of Europe, Asia and North America. In July, both Sardinia and Sicily experienced temperatures in excess of 46°C, nearly breaking European records.

Most of what we do while on holiday, particularly on holidays abroad, releases greenhouse gases into the atmosphere and ultimately has an impact on the climate. But the way most of us get there – by flying – is potentially most damaging. UK data suggests that a single passenger on a short-haul flight, for instance, is responsible for releasing the equivalent of approximately 154g of CO₂ for every kilometre travelled.

As the effects of climate change become increasingly severe, there’s genuine concern that traditional destinations will become too hot in summer to remain appealing to visitors. This raises the question: how will tourism adapt?

Changing destinations

Researchers have been trying to predict the future of tourism for quite some time. One idea is that tourism will undergo a “poleward shift” as global warming causes temperatures to rise not only in traditionally hot regions, but also in locations further to the north and south.

A modelling study from 2007 predicted that, by 2050, hotter weather would make popular tourist hotspots like the Mediterranean less appealing in the summer. At the same time, northern destinations such as Scandinavia and the UK would experience longer holiday seasons.

Approximately half of global tourism is concentrated in coastal areas. So another concern is the potential loss of beaches due to rising sea levels. In the Caribbean, an estimated 29% of resort properties would be partially or fully inundated by one metre of sea-level rise – though many of these resorts would have lost a significant amount of their beach area before this.

Some other beach destinations are potentially even more vulnerable. Sardinia was hit by disruptive storms in 2022. Research suggests that the beaches there may struggle to accommodate tourists in the near future due to a greater risk of flooding and storms.

The impact of climate change on tourism will extend beyond just coastal areas. Many popular city break destinations, including Porto in Portugal, are expecting to endure more severe heat. Tourism in mountainous areas will be affected, too, as accelerated snow melt leads to shorter ski seasons.

The practicalities of tourism shifting

Changing conditions will affect where humans can safely travel to. But travel patterns take time to evolve. In the meantime, established destinations will need to change to withstand challenges such as extreme heat, rising sea levels and other climatic conditions.

Existing tourist destinations in areas of the world that are vulnerable to the effects of climate change, such as the Nile Delta in Egypt, are already considering ways to adapt. These include building seawalls and natural dunes to protect tourist areas from coastal flooding. Changing construction materials and reconfiguring urban spaces to improve ventilation have also been proposed as ways to reduce reliance on expensive and energy-intensive air-conditioning.

New destinations that begin to emerge in more temperate regions will require substantial infrastructure development to support the influx of visitors. This includes transport systems, accommodation, dining options and attractions. The process of establishing tourist destinations typically takes time and requires careful thought.

Barcelona, for example, has experienced a rapid surge in tourism demand since the 1992 Olympics. This has resulted in a tenfold increase in visitors over the past three decades.

Such rapid tourism development can put a strain on local people and the environment. Although Barcelona already had a transport system and some infrastructure to accommodate visitors, the rapid growth in tourism has led to strong opposition from local residents.

What will happen next year?

The current thinking among tourism academics is that those responsible for managing tourist destinations should work towards reducing carbon emissions by focusing on the domestic market.

But, as recent summers have shown, international tourism does not look set to slow down yet. Even amid crises such as the fires burning through Rhodes in summer 2023, tourists continued to arrive.

Rather than choose different destinations, the most likely scenario – at least in the short-term – is that tourists themselves will adapt to the effects of climate change. During Europe’s summer 2023 heatwave, there were reports that people were staying in their hotel rooms in the hottest part of the day and taking sightseeing trips in the evening.

Nevertheless, there are some signs that travellers may be starting to worry about more extreme weather conditions and adapt their travel plans accordingly. A survey conducted in May 2023 showed that 69% of Europeans planned to travel between June and November – a fall of 4% compared to 2022.

The heatwave of summer 2023 might mean that tourists start looking for cooler destinations as early as the coming year.

The evolving landscape of global tourism in the face of climate change is complex. What is clear, though, is that if Europe continues to experience extreme weather conditions like the summer of 2023, many people will think twice about booking their place in the sun.

Nick Davies, Lecturer and Programme Leader, BA International Tourism and Events Management, Glasgow Caledonian University. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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Since the significant easing of its pandemic border control measures last October, Japan has seen a steady return of foreign tourists.

According to the Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO), the number of visitors to Japan in July reached 2.32 million, recovering to about 80% of 2019 levels.

And Japanese people are travelling their own country more, too. According to the travel trend survey by Japan Travel Bureau (JTB), 72.5 million people in Japan travelled within their country during the summer vacation season in July and August — almost returning to pre-pandemic levels. International travel, meanwhile, was low: 1.2 million people, which is 40% of the 2019 figures.

Many people wished to travel abroad but were unable or unwilling to do so cited concerns about safety and health, the lengthy immigration procedures involved in international travel and the unfavourable exchange rates and high costs.

For the outbound recovery to gain momentum, a safe and economically enabling environment is essential.

Overtourism: a challenge to sustainability

As the influx of tourists revitalises local economies, a growing concern is emerging: the resurgence of overtourism, where popular destinations are flooded with an excessive number of visitors. In response, Prime Minister Kishida Fumio has announced plans to develop solutions this coming autumn to combat overtourism, addressing its negative impacts on local life, including congestion, traffic jams and litter.

Even before the Covid-19 pandemic, overtourism had started to plague certain Japanese tourist spots. As Japan’s tourism industry and tourist destinations hit hard by the pandemic make strides toward recovery, it essential to view these challenges as opportunities for positive change and transform tourism into something more sustainable.

Hotels across Japan are accelerating their sustainability efforts. One noteworthy example is the Tokyo Station Hotel, located within the Tokyo Station building, which is designated as a National Important Cultural Property, is implementing the “CO₂ Zero STAY” programme to virtually eliminate CO₂ emissions generated during a stay by all rooms booked through the official website.

This initiative, which uses the carbon offset system, calculates and visualises the amount of CO₂ emissions generated by guest stays and invests the equivalent amount in emissions reduction activities, thereby reducing the emissions to virtually zero. All costs are covered by the hotel itself, meaning that guests contribute to expanding forest conservation efforts and supporting renewable energy simply by staying at the hotel.

Another player in the sustainable hospitality scene is Mori Trust Hotels & Resorts. They are taking steps to preserve tourism resources by introducing eco-friendly amenities like wooden and bamboo toothbrushes and hairbrushes, as well as razors and shower caps with reduced plastic content.

They are also eliminating individual packaging for soaps and amenities while charging for these items. The company is currently reassessing the amenities used in their 18 hotels nationwide, which collectively use around 16 tons of plastic each year, and aims to cut down the plastic used in amenities by over 90% by 2024.

Traveller behaviour and tourism

As hotels and other players in the tourism industry move towards a more sustainable future, it is equally crucial that travellers, who are the main drivers of tourism, follow suit and change their attitudes and behaviours.

According to the Sustainable Travel Report 2023, which gathered insights from over 33,000 travellers across 35 countries and territories, 76% of global travellers — and 56% of Japanese travellers — express a desire to embrace more sustainable travel over the coming 12 months.

On the other hand, 76% of global travellers and 75% of Japanese travellers say that the global energy crisis and rising costs are impacting their spending plans. This has led to travellers being more budget-conscious, with only 43% of global travellers and 22% of Japanese travellers willing to pay extra for certified sustainable travel experiences.

In light of this trend, offering discounts and financial incentives by tourism providers may motivate travellers to opt for sustainable travel options. Furthermore, providing more information and choices can also promote sustainable travel, since almost half of both global and Japanese travellers feel there are not enough sustainable travel options available to them.

Regenerative tourism: the future of tourism

Guests are the key to creating a sustainable environment. To achieve sustainable tourism that considers environmental, social and economic impacts, it is essential to change the mindset of travellers, who must act responsibly in terms of their impact on local communities and the natural environment. The realisation of a future in which regenerative tourism, a further evolution of sustainable tourism, becomes mainstream depends on changing the behaviour of both hosts and travellers.

In the World Economic Forum’s Travel & Tourism Development Index 2021: Rebuilding for a Sustainable and Resilient Future, Japan took the top spot in the development index ranking.

Japan, a highly regarded tourist destination, is leading the way in the future of regenerative tourism — where the more tourists visit, the more the place changes for the better — which will have a significant impact on the transformation of the global tourism industry.

Naoko Tochibayashi is public engagement lead for the World Economic Forum Japan and Naoko Kutty is a writer for Forum Agenda. This article is republished in accordance with the Creative Commons. Read the original article here.

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