NEW YORK, 19 April 1999 -- On the track of similar initiatives, such as the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Financial Institutions Initiative, UNEP, in cooperation with the World Tourism Organization (WTO), is commencing a Tour Operator Initiative for Sustainable Tourism Development.

Tour operators have been major players in creating the volume of tourism that exists today's and will play an important part in the industry's future growth. With mor than 260 million employees and annual capital investments of more than $800 billion, the tourism industry accounts for 10.5 per cent of the world gross domestic product (GDP) and ranks as one of the world's largest industries. Tour operators determine where many tourist go and which facilities they use, and they act in some ways as a catalyst that brings other tourism sectors together.

Most tour operators recognize that a clean environment is critical to their success, but few have so far moved to the stage of introducing an environmental management policy into their business activities. In introducing sustainable practice in the management of their operations and in the design of tours, tour operators can make a valuable contribution to sustainable e tourism by reducing the negative environmental and social impacts of tourism and optimizing its favourable ones.

The UNEP-WTO Tour Operator Initiative on Sustainable Tourism Development will serve as the starting point of a change in this particularly important segment of the tourism industry by raising awareness and facilitating the exchange of experience.

The founding members of the Tour Operator Initiative on Sustainable Tourism Development will contribute directly to the design and content of the Initiative. The first meeting of the founding members will take place in June 1999, and the Initiative will be launched in December 1999.

The following companies have already made statements of intent to be founding members of the Initiative:

British Airways Holidays (UK) Premier Tours (USA)

Diethelm Travel (Thailand) Scandinavian Leisure Group (Sweden)

Dynamic Tours (Morocco) Settemari (Italy)

ITS Reisen (Germany) SITA World Travel (India)

Japan Travel Bureau (Japan) Thomas Cook Ltd (UK)

Nomad Tourizm (Turkey) Touristik Union International

(Germany)

Orizzonti (Italy)

The Initiative will be introduced on 20 April, on the occasion of a special lunch-time event hosted by the German Government on "Sustainable Development - Made by Tourism?" during the seventh session of the UN Commission on Sustainable Development, which is beginning a two-week session on Monday, 19 April, in New York. The presentation will take place in the UN Delegates Dining Rooms 5-8, from 1:15 to 2:45 pm.

About the UNEP Division of Technology, Industry and Economics

The mission of the UNEP Division of Technology, Industry and Economics is to help decision-makers in government, local authorities, and industry develop and adopt policies and practices that:

  • are cleaner and safer;
  • make efficient use of natural resources;
  • ensure adequate management of chemicals;
  • incorporate environmental costs;
  • reduce pollution and risks for humans and the environment.

The UNEP Division of Technology, Industry and Economics (UNEP TIE), located in Paris, is composed of one centre and four units:

  • The International Environmental Technology Centre (Osaka), which promotes the adoption and use of environmentally sound technologies with a focus on the environmental management of cities and freshwater basins, in developing countries and countries in transition.
  • Production and Consumption (Paris), which fosters the development of cleaner and safer production and consumption patterns that lead to increased efficiency in the use of natural resources and reductions in pollution.
  • Chemicals (Geneva), which promotes sustainable development by catalyzing global actions and building national capacities for the sound management of chemicals and the improvement of chemical safety world-wide, with a priority on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) and Prior Informed Consent (PIC, jointly with FAO)
  • Energy and OzonAction (Paris), which supports the phase-out of ozone-depleting substances in developing countries and countries with economies in transition, and promotes good management practices and use of energy, with a focus on atmospheric impacts. The UNEP/RISO Collaborating Centre on Energy and Environment supports the work of the Unit.
  • Economics and Trade (Geneva), which promotes the use and application of assessment and incentive tools for environmental policy and helps improve the understanding of linkages between trade and environment and the role of financial institutions in promoting sustainable development.

UNEP TIE activities focus on raising awareness, improving the transfer of information, building capacity, fostering technology cooperation, partnerships and transfer, improving understanding of environmental impacts of trade issues, promoting integration of environmental considerations into economic policies, and catalyzing global chemical safety.