UNWTO convened observatories from around the world to discuss advances in effectively monitoring sustainability in tourism at destination level. The 2017 Global International Network of Sustainable Tourism Observatories (INSTO) Meeting was held on the 13th and 14th of December at UNWTO Headquarters in Madrid,

The event started with an Observatory Mentoring Breakfast, in which INSTO Members shared experiences with interested destinations. It was followed by two days of experience sharing on regular monitoring of tourism impacts; opportunities deriving from geospatial analysis for tourism measurement; the importance of fostering catalytic areas; and the circular economy in tourism.

Further to these thematic blocks, participants shared information on different operational and technical structures of destination monitoring systems; geospatial analysis and opportunities deriving from location intelligence for more accurate and timely trend analysis; participatory approaches and local community satisfaction; efforts and links between local monitoring efforts and global development goals; as well as shared consumption and interconnected value chains and the role of circular business models for improving resource management in tourism.

"The UNWTO Network of Observatories is one of the contributions of the tourism community to express its commitment with the global cause of sustainable tourism that will guide the development of the sector in the years to come," said UNWTO Secretary-General, Taleb Rifai, closing the event.

The measurement of tourism impacts at the destination level has been a key area within the 2017 International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development.

UNWTO has been promoting the measurement of tourism through sustainable tourism indicators since the early 1990s. In order to support destinations to jointly learn and further advance the monitoring of tourism impacts at the destination level, the UNWTO International Network of Tourism Observatories was created in 2004. As of December 2017, INSTO includes 21 Observatories worldwide committed to regular and timely measurement of tourism at the destination level.

About UN Tourism

The World Tourism Organization (UN Tourism) is the United Nations agency responsible for the promotion of responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism.

As the leading international organization in the field of tourism, UN Tourism promotes tourism as a driver of economic growth, inclusive development and environmental sustainability and offers leadership and support to the sector in advancing knowledge and tourism policies worldwide.

Our Priorities

Mainstreaming tourism in the global agenda: Advocating the value of tourism as a driver of socio-economic growth and development, its inclusion as a priority in national and international policies and the need to create a level playing field for the sector to develop and prosper.

Promoting sustainable tourism development: Supporting sustainable tourism policies and practices: policies which make optimal use of environmental resources, respect the socio-cultural authenticity of host communities and provide socio-economic benefits for all.

Fostering knowledge, education and capacity building: Supporting countries to assess and address their needs in education and training, as well as providing networks for knowledge creation and exchange.

Improving tourism competitiveness: Improving UN Tourism Members' competitiveness through knowledge creation and exchange, human resources development and the promotion of excellence in areas such as policy planning, statistics and market trends, sustainable tourism development, marketing and promotion, product development and risk and crisis management.

Advancing tourism's contribution to poverty reduction and development: Maximizing the contribution of tourism to poverty reduction and achieving the SDGs by making tourism work as a tool for development and promoting the inclusion of tourism in the development agenda.

Building partnerships: Engaging with the private sector, regional and local tourism organizations, academia and research institutions, civil society and the UN system to build a more sustainable, responsible and competitive tourism sector.

Our Structure

Members: An intergovernmental organization, UN Tourism has 160 Member States, 6 Associate Members, 2 Observers and over 500 Affiliate Members.

Organs: The General Assembly is the supreme organ of the Organization. The Executive Council take all measures, in consultation with the Secretary-General, for the implementation of the decisions and recommendations of the General Assembly and reports to the Assembly.

Secretariat: UN Tourism headquarters are based in Madrid, Spain. The Secretariat is led by the Secretary-General and organized into departments covering issues such as sustainability, education, tourism trends and marketing, sustainable development, statistics and the Tourism Satellite Account (TSA), destination management, ethics and risk and crisis management. The Technical Cooperation and Silk Road Department carries out development projects in over 100 countries worldwide, while the Regional Departments for Africa, the Americas, Asia and the Pacific, Europe and the Middle East serve as the link between UN Tourism and its 160 Member States. The Affiliate Members Department represents UN Tourism's 500 plus Affiliate members.

Rut Gómez Sobrino
Principal Media Officer
(+34) 91 567 81 60
UN Tourism