The strategy to reduce the carbon footprint in the tourism sector
As chief adviser to the Saudi Ministry of Tourism, Guevara seeks to expand this project with an eye not only on all the players in the tourism industry, mainly small businesses.
“Our sector is 80% MSMEs (…) Large companies are making great progress towards net zero, but with SMEs the issue is not that they are small; rather, a restaurant or a small hotel does not even know how to start measuring its carbon footprint. We want to offer the best practices, suppliers and the money to move towards clean energy”, says Guevara to Expansion.
The STGC estimates to invest around 200 million dollars in the first years of this initiative. Part of the resources will be used to have consolidated information so that small and medium-sized entrepreneurs can document themselves regarding actions to make their businesses more sustainable in their local language, which constitutes one of the biggest barriers to promoting this practice.
This is in line with the travel intentions of tourists, who, since the pandemic, are looking for a journey with less and less environmental impact.
We need public policies that help us move towards this sustainable initiative
Gloria Guevara, president of the STGC
Customers seek to travel sustainably
According to a study by the World Travel and Tourism Council, 69% of a sample of respondents after covid-19 expect the industry to have more sustainable travel options, and 61% report that the pandemic has led them to seek a minor environmental impact.
Among the industries related to travel and tourism, the food, beverage and services segment concentrated 17% of the greenhouse gases of the tourism sector before the pandemic, while air and land transport concentrated around 31%. Similarly, the airline and lodging sector issued the most. carbon emissions in 2019.
Guevara refers that several countries were invited to the initiative, including Mexico, to a process that is still advancing. “We need public policies that help us move towards this sustainable initiative,” he concluded.