Sustainable tourism, also known as responsible tourism or eco-tourism, is an approach to travel and tourism that seeks to minimize the negative impact on the environment, local communities, and cultural heritage while promoting positive contributions to these elements. The primary goal of sustainable tourism is to ensure that tourism activities are conducted in a way that preserves natural and cultural resources for future generations, fosters social inclusivity, and provides economic benefits to local communities.
Sustainable tourism aims to create a balance between economic growth, environmental protection, and cultural preservation, ensuring that tourism can be a positive force for all stakeholders involved. Travelers, businesses, and local communities all play crucial roles in fostering and promoting sustainable tourism practices.
In the context of sustainable tourism, the concept of a circular economy is gaining prominence as a framework for minimizing waste and maximizing the efficient use of resources. A circular economy in tourism involves rethinking the traditional linear model of “take, make, dispose” and instead focuses on reducing, reusing, and recycling materials to create a closed-loop system. This approach aligns with the principles of sustainability by promoting economic, social, and environmental benefits.
By integrating circular economy principles into sustainable tourism practices, the industry can move towards a more regenerative and restorative model. This not only contributes to the long-term health of ecosystems and local communities but also ensures that tourism remains a positive force for the environment and society.
SUSTAINABLE TOURISM
| TYPE | NAME | SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES | DURATION |
| Video | Circular Economy | In this whiteboard animation video, I explain what we mean by circular economy, I go through all the things we can do to go from our current economy to a circular economy and I use many examples | 7 min |
| Video | How to design a circular economy? | All forms of tourism touch the environment in which it takes place. The effects of this contact between tourists and the environment must be carefully managed for tourism to remain sustainable. But what exactly is sustainable tourism? In this video, we will try to explain. | 4 min |
| Video | How to design a circular economy? | TED talks contain ideas worth sharing, and when it comes to the sustainability crisis we need great ideas – fast. Today our economy works against the environment by creating pollution and waste, which we need to change. Small change, like doing the same thing but a bit less bad, won’t work. For a fundamentally different outcome, the solution needs to be something fundamentally different from business as usual. | 15 min |
| Article | Sustainable Development Goals | Set forward by the United Nations (UN) in 2015, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) are a collection of 17 global goals aimed at improving the planet and the quality of human life around the world by the year 2030. Their description can be found in this article. | 5 min |
| Article | What is circular economy and why does it matter? | Circular economy aims to minimize waste and promote a sustainable use of natural resources, through smarter product design, longer use, recycling and more, as well as regenerate nature. | 5 min |
| Article | Circular economy | World Economic Forum: 8 videos that explain the circular economy | |
| Materials | Best practices: Finland – Sustainable Tourism Destination | Practical documents and approaches, strategies, plans, 100% pure inspiration | |
| Video | Sustainable Tourism as a Force for Good | 11min | |
| Article | Sustainable cities and tourism: 9 European Capitals compared | The article examines the unique features of the nine cities and the strategies they’ve adopted in recent years to tackle the climate emergency and align with the new standards set by the United Nations. | |
| Animated video | Explaining the Circular Economy and How Society Can Re-think Progress | How through a change in perspective we can re-design the way our economy works and also questions whether, with creativity and innovation, we can build a restorative economy. | 4 min |
| Article | New Products and experiences: an opportunity for mountain tourism | The article proposes how mountain areas can focus on tourism as a tool for the sustainble development of the area.. It proposes key insights and suggests tourism products to address the challenges | 3 min |
| Report | Nature Positive. Travel & Tourism in Action | This report explores the relationship between Travel and Tourism and Nature and how tourism practices can play a role in protecting the natural environment. It provides valuable insights on how to build back on nature by sharing best practices and case studies. | 15 min |
| Article | 52 Places for a Changed World | An inspirational collection of case studies from all over the worls where travellers played a role in the development of local territories | 7 min |
| Article | SLO CAL – Building a Business with Sustainability at the Core | This article provides a best practice on how a tourism destination manages to improve the overall sustainability of the tourism sector by incentivising local businesses to commit to applying sustainable practices in their operations | 4 min |
| Website | Visit the Faroe Island – Tourism Strategy | The new tourism strategy of the Faroe Islands focuses on developing a sustainable visitor ecosystem and, at the same time, protects the destination preserving and valuing the local culture. | 10 min |
| Website | Tourism & Sustainable Development Goals | This section of the website Tourism for SGDs provides clear and simple info about each and every SGD related to the tourism sector. Explore the insights related to the goals by clicking on the spinning wheel. | 10 min |
| Report | Intrepid Travel Alignment with the Sustainable Development Goals | In this short report, you will find the approach Intrepid Travel adopts to align its activities to meet some of the SDGs | 2 min |
| Article | The future of tourism is sustainable and regenerative | In this article, you will explore tips and suggestions on how to make sustainable and regenerative tourism a reality | 9 min |
| Article | How travel and tourism can reach net zero | The article provides interesting insights into the environmental impact of hospitality, aviation and other travel and tourism sectors and the actions they can implement to reach net zero. | 7 min |
| Article | 3 ways hotels and tourists can work together to decarbonize travel | This article gives practical information on how travellers can play a role in meetings. 2030 agenda and how hotels can become more sustainable. | 9 min |