What steps can tourism take after COP26?

The COP26 climate change conference may have finally been the wake-up call that the planet needs.

After decades of warnings and the continued release of scientific evidence to illustrate society's impact on the planet, many governments, campaigners and experts are perhaps taking a positive - rather than negative - view that binding actions have emerged that will address some of the challenges that everyone will face in the future.

Many will say that the policies created at the Glasgow, Scotland-hosted event are not enough, but it is still some achievement to say that a global agreement on many areas were put in place.

Cajoling governments, with competiting ambitions and issues, to agree on some standards and actions is no mean feat.

Implementation is another matter entirely, so the next few years will be critical.

Sir David Attenborough, the British broadcaster and campaigner, is right when he says that "never before have we had such an awareness of what we are doing to the planet, and never before have we had the power to do something about that."

Travel's important role in addressing climate change

Some argue that the travel, tourism and hospitality industry has, for the most part, avoided tackling the issue in a meaningful way.

But the inconvenient truth of what the sector should be doing is upon it, with pressure likely to come from travelers to change its ways and play a proactive and holistic role, rather than lazily noting initiatives as part of a box-ticking exercise in a company's Corporate Social Responsibility page.

In particular is the role of the Destination Marketing Organization, whether it is a commercial or state-funded agency.

Chris Adams, head of research and analytics at the Miles Partnership, which has produced a white paper that details some of steps destinations and tourism organizations can take, says: "We believe DMOs can play a critical role in leading this effort.

"In addition to advocating for tourism, DMOs need to contribute practical suggestions and specific actions—and work to bring the public and private sectors together. DMOs can also help direct money collected from tourism towards addressing climate change."

The Miles Partnership has produced a number of recommendations for the sector to consider and implement, beginning with areas around sustainable marketing, public transportation and community infrastructure (with more in the upcoming second part of the report).

Sustainable marketing

DMOs should emphasize more sustainable types of travel in their communications, such as fewer but longer trips.

They should also actively promote sustainable businesses and those with low carbon strategies at their core.

A flexible approach to visitor taxes is also encouraged, with visitors notified that if they travel in an off-season they will pay less - allowing destinations to accommodate travelers in a more sustainable way.

And, finally, there should be the development of sustainable loyalty programs, meaning that hotels and airlines should move away from frequency of travel to rewarding more responsible types of trips.

Adams says: "Hundreds of billions of dollars are collected globally from visitor taxes and levies. Whether it is redirecting part of this existing funding from tourism or developing new dedicated taxes or assessments focused on sustainability and regenerative tourism - DMOs need to be a voice in how funding and resources can be used as solutions."

Sustainable transportation and infrastructure

It is far too easy and inevitably unachievable in the short-term to propose building more public transportation - rail, light rail and other mass transit systems are expensive and take years to complete.

But digitalization of the travel sector and how consumers can quickly use other types of services to get around has led to a major uptick in the use of e-bikes and scooters, for example.

Encouraging destinations to integrate such services into wider public transport strategies is an important part of shifting the getting around part of visiting a location to greener choices.

DMOs should partner with public and private sector organizations to, once again, encourage public transit options at the outset of a trip, through marketing and other methods.

The report says: "Declare your commitment to addressing climate change with a credible plan for action. Identify specific steps on climate change within a broader focus on sustainability and regenerative tourism.

"These should be included in a long-term master plan and/or sustainable tourism strategy for your destination. Your plan should have specific, practical and measurable objectives against which progress can be assessed."

* Other action points will be tackled in the upcoming second part of the white paper.