Significant Reduction in Travel and Tourism’s Climate Footprint Emissions, Reveals WTTC

The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) reports a significant decrease in the climate footprint emissions of travel and tourism – Despite this positive development, the WTTC urges the sector to continue to innovate and invest in green technologies

The World Travel & Tourism Council’s (WTTC) 24th Global Summit in Perth (Boorloo), Western Australia, kicked off today with an update to its ground-breaking environmental footprint data. 

WTTC’s latest Environmental & Social Research (ESR), created in partnership with the Ministry of Tourism of Saudi Arabia, reveals that in 2023 Travel & Tourism accounted for 6.7% of all emissions globally, down from 7.8% in 2019, when Travel & Tourism was at its peak.

The research showcases a important achievement with the sector’s economic contribution growing faster than its environmental impact. 

Last year, Travel & Tourism’s contribution to global GDP almost reached pre-pandemic levels at US$9.9TN, just 4% shy of the sector’s peak. 

However, in 2023 global GHG emissions were 12% below the 2019 peak, with GHG intensity (emissions per unit of GDP) falling 8.4% during this period. This demonstrates the sector’s growth is becoming cleaner.  

“Our sector is proving that we can grow responsibly,” said Julia Simpson, WTTC President & CEO. “We’re decoupling growth from emissions – Travel & Tourism is expanding economically while lowering its environmental footprint.  

“This is a defining moment, proving that innovation and sustainability go hand in hand in shaping the future of global tourism. However, while we are decoupling our sector’s growth from the increase in GHG, our aim is absolute reductions. We must accelerate this progress significantly to meet the Paris climate targets. We’re on the right track, but we need to up our game.” 

A key driver of Travel & Tourism’s emissions is the energy used to power its operations.  
Although 2023 showed positive trends compared to 2019, it’s clear that there are still significant opportunities to accelerate the green transition.  

The increases in renewable energy use and reductions in fossil fuel reliance remain relatively modest, highlighting the need for more decisive action. 

In 2023, the sector’s reliance on fossil fuel energy sources (oil, coal, and natural gas) dropped to 88.2% from 90% in 2019.  

The share of low-carbon energy sources (nuclear and renewables) increased from 5.1% in 2019 to 5.9% in 2023, reflecting ongoing efforts to reduce dependence on fossil fuels. 

The resurgence of the global Travel & Tourism sector is also mirrored in tax revenues that accrue to Governments from the direct taxes paid by our businesses.

In 2023, total Travel & Tourism tax revenues amounted to US$3.32TN. This equates to 9.6% of total global tax revenues. 

Governments must use these additional revenues to reinvest in decarbonising infrastructure, expanding renewable energies and supporting businesses in their green transition. 
 
Due to the availability of new data and improvements in the methodology, the sector’s share of all GHG emissions in 2019 have been revised down from 8.1% to 7.8% in the latest update.