Climate Change and Tourism Policy in OECD Countries

Faced with the challenge of climate change, tourism needs to adapt to its effects. It must also significantly de-carbonise its operations. While the sector’s overall current contribution to the global anthropogenic climate impact, is estimated to be 5%, in a business-as-usual scenario, global greenhouse gas emissions from tourism could more than double in the next 25 years. Despite some ambitious mitigation pledges, however, the tourism sector lacks strong climate policies. Policy-makers must now develop effective strategies, regulations and incentives that focus on its main sources of current and future emissions. These are among the central conclusions of the report jointly undertaken by the OECD and the United National Environment Programme (UNEP) entitled Climate Change and Tourism Policy in OECD Countries.

Table of contents

Chapter 1. Conclusions and policy recommendations

• Mitigation
• Adaptation
  

Chapter 2. Climate change: A challenge for tourism 

• Introduction: climate change and the need to reduce emissions 
• Mitigation: tourism as a contributor to GHG emissions 
• Adaptation: anticipated impacts of climate change 
• Tourism, water and climate change 
• Conclusions
  

Chapter 3. Mitigation 

• Introduction: global climate policy 
• Regional climate policy 
• National tourism-related climate policy 
• Priority areas identified by the tourism industry, industry organisations and the private sector 
• Action by international organisations 
• Analysis and conclusions: Climate stabilisation objectives and action in OECD countries
  

Chapter 4. Adaptation 

• Introduction 
• Regional climate change adaptation policy 
• National climate change adaptation policy 
• Priority areas identified by the tourism industry 
• Action by international organisations 
• Analysis and conclusions: Climate adaptation objectives and action in OECD countries
  

Chapter 5. Proposed agenda for further research and development

Annex A. OECD Country Pledges to UNFCCC

Annex B. National Documentation

Annex C. UNEP Biofuel Documents and Tools 97

For more information: Factsheet

To download the report on PDF: Climate Change and Tourism Policy in OECD Countries

For more information on OECD work on climate change, please visit www.oecd.org/env/cc.