GBTA Foundation Unveils Step-by-Step Transition Pathway to Accelerate Business Travel’s Action Towards Net Zero

New roadmap for sustainable business travel takes corporate travel programs from ‘no action’ to ‘leading practice’

The GBTA Foundation, the cause-led arm of the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA), just unveiled its Sustainable Business Travel Transition Pathway yesterday at the GBTA Sustainability Summit, which gathered over a hundred travel leaders and sustainability experts from all sides of the industry in Washington, D.C.

Business travel is a $1.48 trillion industry, playing a critical role in the global economy. However, it also contributes significantly to greenhouse gas emissions, making it a key focus area for corporate sustainability efforts. As regulations change and companies commit to emissions reduction goals, integrating sustainability into business travel is no longer optional – it’s a necessity.

The transition pathway, developed in collaboration with Accenture, aims to support efforts by organizations of all sizes and in all geographies, to start, advance and accelerate their sustainable travel practices. It will also directly help companies participating in the GBTA Sustainability Acceleration Challenge improve their travel program’s maturity levels and sustainability score with a 2030 horizon.

For each of the four categories of action and fifteen practices outlined in the toolbox (section 1), the pathway details iterative steps organizations can take to advance from wherever they stand in their journey to ‘leading practice’ (section 2). Organizations can understand how their progress is being measured by reviewing the scoring methodology developed by Accenture (section 3). They can also benchmark themselves based on the current state of the industry (section 4). Finally, next steps highlight how to get leaders invested despite the variety of headwinds facing travel sustainability in 2025 (section 5).

“Even in times of economic uncertainty and a changing political climate, one thing remains certain: sustainable business is good business,” said Delphine Millot, Senior Vice President, Advocacy and Sustainability, GBTA, and Managing Director at the GBTA Foundation. “The transition pathway provides companies across the world with the insights and tools needed to embed sustainable travel practices at every level of their operating model.” 

To coordinate action globally to tackle business travel emissions, the GBTA Foundation launched the Sustainability Acceleration Challenge in 2024. Over 240 companies participated, representing $14 billion in annual business travel spend. The overall global sustainability maturity score – which ranks the current state of climate action from 0 denoting “no activity” to 5 denoting “leading practice” – stands at 1.3 out of 5. This demonstrates that while some action is being taken and planned, there is an urgent need to turn commitments into real impact.

The transition pathway now highlights the biggest opportunities to advance climate action in business travel: 1) sending a stronger, more harmonized demand signal for sustainability to travel suppliers; 2) scaling the market for Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF); and 3) enabling travelers to book lower-emissions trips.

“The road to decarbonization is a generational challenge, and the business travel sector can help lead the way,” said Dr. Jesko-Philipp Neuenburg, Global Travel and Aviation Sustainability Lead at Accenture. “Through our work with GBTA and insights from over 240 companies, we’ve built a practical and adaptable pathway to give businesses at any stage the toolkit to help decarbonize their travel. Securing the sustainability results we need will require action and momentum from all players through the rest of this decade.”

How will GBTA Foundation support companies along the Transition Pathway? 

• PROGRESS TRACKING: GBTA will track progress by inviting companies to participate in the Acceleration Challenge global assessment for a limited period every year. The 2025 global assessment is now open until September 23, 2025. All companies that rely on business travel are invited to participate.
• COMPANIES SPOTLIGHT: In addition to revealing the global results in November 2025, GBTA Foundation will spotlight regional leaders and changemakers in a new sustainability awards program. Companies must participate in the 2025 Acceleration Challenge global assessment to be eligible. 
• ADDITIONAL TOOLS: GBTA Foundation will continue to provide complimentary tools and resources to help companies in their journey, including SAF purchasing guidance and case studies, sustainable procurement training, and supplier sustainability scorecards to be released in the coming months.

The complimentary Transition Pathway to Sustainable Business Travel whitepaper is available to download. To participate in the 2025 Acceleration Challenge global assessment, visit the GBTA Foundation website.