2. Disaster prevention, climate change and tourism
as a follow-up of the Tsunami 2004 in Southeast
Asia
accompanying lobby and advocacy activities on
ECOTs
„Disaster prevention, protection and management
programme
on behalf of
German Church Development Service (EED)
- TOURISM WATCH -
and their partner the
ECUMENICAL COALITION ON TOURISM
3. Climate change and tourism
• Tourism is not just a potential victim of climate change. It
also contributes to its causes.
4. Climate impact of tourism
• UNWTO: 5% of global emissions caused by tourism, calculating that
aviation causes 3% of global emissions
• Scientific evidence points towards more serious impacts. Aviation
causes up to 14 % of global emissions (Lee et al, 2009)
• On long-haul trips: 97% emissions are caused only by the flight
• Air travel has massive growth rates: By 2050 air travel is expected to
contribute 25% of global emissions if business as usual
• Massive expansion of airports and low-cost carrier
6. Global Tourism Emissions
in 2005: CO2
Sub-Sectors CO2 (Mt)
Air transport * 522 40% Transportation
Car transport 418 32%
of Tourists = 75%
of Sector Emissions
Other transport 39 3%
Accommodation 274 21%
Activities 52 4%
* - does not include
TOTAL 1,307
non-CO2 emissions
Total World and impact on climate
(IPCC 2007) 26,400
Tourism
Contribution 4.95%
Source: UNWTO-UNEP-WMO 2008
7. ‘Business as Usual’ Projection of
Future CO2 Emissions from Tourism
3500
3000
2500 Air Transport
52% Car Transport
Mt CO2
2000
Other Transport
1500
16% Accommodation
1000 40% Activities
32% 25%
500
21% 4% 7%
0
2005 2035
* Excluding same-day visitors Source: UNWTO-UNEP-WMO 2008
8. The impact of climate change
on developing countries
Developing countries do not have the possibilities and funds to adapt
to climate change
We are drifting into a world of 'adaptation apartheid'.
(Desmond Tutu, Archbishop Emeritus of Cape Town, South Africa.)
Climate Justice in Numbers:
• Oxfam estimates: Developing countries need 50 billion US-Dollars p/a
only for adaptation if emissions are not reduced
• NGO Treaty Group: To help developing countries adapt to climate
change, the 'treaty' calls for new and additional finance of the
magnitude of at least $160 billion p/a (between 2013-2017)
• Copenhagen Accord: kick off with $US10 billion p/a (2010-2012) 2012
-2020 climbing up to $US100 billion
9. The injustice of climate change and tourism
• 98% of the world population
does not fly
• Most flights are taken for holiday
reasons
• Our concerns:
– the sector becomes
increasingly more energy
intense.
– Tourism might increase
conflicts in developing
countries re land use, water
consumption etc (small
islands, arid areas)
10. Actions taken by the industry
„Much will eventually come from the private sector with its appetite for
innovation“ UNWTO
• Mitigation → no change in travel behaviour, growing flight numbers
• Adaptation → tourism adapts to new climate
• Inventing new technologies → new technology will not reduce carbon
emissions
• Carbon offsetting in tourism → on a voluntary market, air passengers
pay the equivalent money to compensate the emissions caused by a
flight by donating into renewable energy projects (less than 1 % of all
air travellers)
Conclusion:
Industry did not show much appetite up to now on voluntary basis
11. Tackling emissions on policy level
• Global emissions are addressed by the UNFCCC
• Emissions from global tourism are not addressed, but only
from aviation and shipping (so called bunker fuels,
account for approx. 10% of global emissions)
• While the largest carbon emissions are legaly regulated in
the Kyoto Protocol, the bunker emissions do not underlie
legal regulations
• Under the Kyoto Protocol, responsibility for bunker
emissions handed to ICAO and IMO, Article 2.2.
• Miserable failure of IMO and ICAO
12. Tourism and the UNFCCC
• Tourism within the UNFCCC process
• Appears when negotiating the bunkers (emission from
aviation and shipping)
• ´Spill-over effects` – binding climate policies have not
to derogate tourism as a development motor for poor
countries (argument by UNWTO and tourism
depending countries)
→ undifferentiated debate about the
profit of poor countries from international
tourism
→ reason for tourism critical groups to
get involved into the UNFCCC process
13. Myths spill-over effects
• If growth rate of British air travel till 2025 would
stagnate on 2009 level, it would mean eg for
Kenya a lost of 0,09% of GNP p/a.
(Plane truths - Do the economic arguments for aviation growth really fly? (2008)
World Development Movements)
14. UNWTO within UNFCCC
• Official position: Tourism will be at the leading edge of the global
response to climate change, coherent with the Millennium
Development Goals.
• UNWTO is taking questionable role within UNFCCC
• UNWTOs main argument and focus is to avoid „spill over effects“
• Critical debate is missing:
→Tourism - a development motor for poor countries?
• New concerns about UNWTOs climate policies and requests:
“Some Clean Development Mechanism and Emissions Trading
projects and trading revenues to be earmarked for specified allotment
to related aviation and tourism projects, including financial and other
incentives for the earliest possible global introduction of sustainable
aviation biofuels”
15. About sustainable aviation biofuels
If tourism uses agrofuels
on high commercial
level, new problems will
occur re land use, water
shortage, food security
16. Tourism critical groups involved
• 09/2008, World
Tourism Day, Lima
workshop
„changing the
atmosphere in
tourism“
• 04/2009 –
Mailinggroup:
"climate change,
tourism and
development"
<tourismclimate@li
sten.jpberlin.de>
17. Tourism critical groups involved
Copenhagen process
• 07/2009, Berlin, meeting
with a working group
from the North
• 10/2009, South
Consultative Meeting by
Ecumenical Coalition On
Tourism during the
UNFCCC Climate Talks,
Bangkok
• 12/2009, Side event
„Climate justice and
tourism“ during
UNFCCC, COP 15,
Copenhagen
18. NGOs demand..
• Continue the process with tourism critical groups and voices
• Enhance the debate around climate protection in tourism
beyond CO2-reduction measures
• No increasing growth rates, but fair distribution of revenues
• Reducing flow of foreign exchange, diversified economies etc.
• Binding regulations for emissions from aviation and shipping
• Avoid that tourism is used as an excuse against climate
protection measures!
• Beyond binding regulations, promote climate protection
measures as part of holistic CSR strategies
Conclusion:
→ Tourism is debated on a very low level
→ It is essential to bring tourism critical groups into
the UNFCCC process
19. Other groups and networks
• Climate Action Network is a worldwide network of roughly 500 Non-
Governmental Organizations (NGOs) working to promote government
and individual action
• Third World Network (not part of CAN)- is an independent non-profit
international network of organisations and individuals involved in issues
relating to development, Third World and North-South affairs.
• GenderCC - Women for Climate Justice is a global network of women
and gender activists and experts from all world regions working for
gender and climate justice
• The Climate Alliance of European Cities with the Indigenous Rainforest
Peoples / Alianza del Clima e. V. is Europe's largest city network
• Climate Justice Now - A network of organisations and movements from
across the globe committed to the fight for social, ecological and gender
justice (part of CAN)
• Climate Justice Action - is a new global network of people and groups
committed to take the urgent actions needed to avoid catastrophic
climate change (open network, not CAN).
