© Good Travel Guide, November 2021
In the last seven days, there have been many relevant events taking place. Starting with G20 last Saturday, moving on to the opening of COP26 and the Minsters’ Summit during the World Travel Market in London. These events have seen government representatives gather to discuss sustainable and inclusive development, and the future of tourism was part of the discussion.
The G20 is the annual summit of the world’s largest economies, namely 19 nations plus the European Union who account for more than 80% of world GDP and generate80% of global greenhouse emissions. The main themes of this year’s meeting were the economic recovery after the pandemic, the global vaccination campaign and sustainable development.
The commitments made by G20 leaders to limit climate change have been criticized for being weak. They recognized the need to contain global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above preindustrial levels; however, their pledges are not ambitious enough. In their final communiqué, they pledged to target net-zero carbon emissions “by or around mid-century” instead of setting 2050 as the deadline. They also said they would firm up their emissions reductions plans and take further action “where necessary” within this decade to limit global heating to 1.5 degrees. However, scientists observed that emissions should be halved by 2030 and many countries are not on a trajectory to hit the goal.
The future of the tourism industry was also a subject of discussion as the G20 leaders endorsed the G20 Rome Guidelines for the Future of Tourism. The Guidelines offer guidance towards tackling issues such as recovery from the pandemic and green transformation. In their final communique, they stated: “We will continue to support a rapid, resilient, inclusive and sustainable recovery of the tourism sector”.
The sustainable development of the tourism industry was instead the main subject at the Ministers’ Summit 2021 held during the World Travel Market in London. This event brings together tourism ministers and public and private sector representatives. Attendees met to share best practices and discuss how to facilitate and promote investments in tourism’s sustainable development and its inclusive recovery after the pandemic.
Meanwhile, during the first week of COP26 government representatives and climate experts discussed ending deforestation, cutting global methane emissions, and making clean electricity and electric vehicles more accessible among other topics.
Check out our news article next week, we will look closely at COP26 and its outcomes after its conclusion on November 12th.
