White Paper: Ten Principles for Sustainable Destinations

World Economic Forum published a new manual that highlights what considers to be the 10 basic principles for tourism to contribute positively and effectively to the sustainability of destinations, framed by the goals of sustainable development.

For each of the 10 principles chosen, a uniform approach was adopted in order to facilitate access and allow greater systematization of the information provided. Thus, and in all cases, the approach begins with a definition of the principle, followed by the justification of the need for its adoption, the path forward, changes in behavior and ends with the presentation of cases of best practices.

While there are positive signs of post-pandemic recovery, companies and tourists have become more discerning and more cautious about the impact of their travel choices on the climate, environment and host communities. With governments and companies cautiously reconsidering investment strategies, mitigating risk and how to manage the ongoing volatility of demand, there is no better time for destinations to inventory their assets and make plans to restore and shape the conditions and management of each, place for the long term.

The exponential growth of tourism in the last 50 years has contributed substantially to global job creation and economic development, but as in many sectors, it has not been neutral in terms of impact on the global climate crisis, biodiversity and traditional ways of preserving ecosystems maintained by communities around the world. With proper governance and careful redesign, tourism can be an effective vehicle for biodiversity conservation and climate action and help meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The World Economic Forum's Global Future Council on Sustainable Tourism has developed these 10 Principles for Sustainable Destinations to guide policymakers, companies and destinations to enable tourism development planning with positive consequences on visitor behavior to restore destinations and optimize their offers for a sustainable future. The principles are aligned with the SDGs so that they can be meaningfully integrated into complementary initiatives or planning processes that seek to achieve the Global Goals.

Full report: Ten Principles for Sustainable Destinations