The message came from Abta head of sustainability Carol Rose, who spoke during a panel discussion at TTG’s Sustainability Forum as part of Fairer Travel Week on Tuesday (4 July).
“We don’t want travel and tourism to go through a disaster for rapid implementation to happen and for people to stand up and take notice when it comes to sustainability,” Rose said.
“At Abta we have identified nine core principles which are aligned with the UN’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It is not just about climate – it’s about our duty of care to the human race.”
Also on the panel was director of customer and operations for easyJet holidays Matt Callaghan, who outlined operator’s aim to define an environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) framework for the tourism industry in partnership with the UN World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) and the University of Oxford.
“We need a clear set of well-defined measures across the industry,” he said. “I’m really keen on rapid implementation – we have to start doing things now and not just talk about them.
“We have got to start taking small steps forward, for example we have started work with accommodation providers to draft the ECG framework to see their feedback.”
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