UN Speaking As One – Supporting the Transformation to a Green Economy
Madrid, Spain, 29 June 2009
Ahead
of the UN Conference on Climate Change in Copenhagen, Denmark (December
2009), UNWTO has joined several UN agencies to release an Interagency
Statement of the United Nations System: ‘Green Economy: A
Transformation to Address Multiple Crises’. This statement underlines
the necessity for leading economies to come together and strengthen the
coordination of their respective stimulus programs to both revive
economic growth and begin the transformation towards a Green Economy.
Tourism is among the sectors singled out in the statement following
UNWTO’s awareness raising efforts regarding tourism’s potential to play
an integral role in both economic recovery and the shift towards a
Green Economy.
The
joint statement highlights tourism as one of the industries in which
investments for development would be most welcome. The industry’s
carbon emissions, at 5% of the total, are significant but manageable
with adaptation and new technology. Developing countries are
particularly dependant on revenues from international tourism to
finance their development agenda and will need special financial
support to help them make the changes necessary to become climate
neutral.
UNWTO Secretary-General ad interim, Taleb Rifai has underscored
that “Tourism can contribute through carbon-clean operations, jobs in
environment management and energy-efficient construction, whilst aiding
countries to restore their damaged economies in line with the Davos
Declaration Process.”
UNWTO’s action oriented Davos Declaration Process - produced with
the input from the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) and the World
Meteorological Organization (WMO) - is a landmark in the Organization’s
longstanding campaign to raise the profile of this issue and lead a
concerted industry response. The Declaration stresses the need for the
sector to ‘
rapidly respond to climate change, within the evolving UN framework if it is to grow in a sustainable manner”.
The current economic crisis should be viewed as an opportunity to
make the changes needed to improve the industry. These changes are
necessary for the industry to remain healthy and must be undertaken
with the shift towards a Green Economy and sustainability in mind. This
multi-target approach will ensure the sustainable development of our
industry.
UNWTO promotes tourism and travel as a leader in the
transformation towards a Green Economy and encouraging investment in
green infrastructure –airports, high speed rail, roads and ports.
A new climate deal is expected to be reached at the UN Climate
Change Conference this December in Copenhagen. The key objective is to
lower emissions to tolerable levels, through use of clean energy and
shared responsibility and benefits by all states.
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