London, United Kingdom, December 21, 2020 / TRAVELINDEX / Gloria Guevara, President & CEO, WTTC said: “WTTC is encouraged by the commitments put forward from the UN Climate Ambition Summit which included many new measures, policies and plans all aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and ensuring that the warming of the planet is limited to 1.5C.
“In New York in September 2019 and during its first ever Climate & Environment Action Forum, the WTTC announced its ambition for the Travel & Tourism sector to be climate neutral by 2050, and we are delighted to see that this type of commitment reflected in the pledges that have come out of the meeting.
“Though the Travel & Tourism sector has been hit incredibly hard by the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, with our research showing 174 million jobs at risk, WTTC has shown a continued commitment to sustainability initiatives throughout the year. Most recently, the WTTC Executive Committee appointed Darrell Wade as its Vice Chair of Sustainability and Chair of the Sustainability Committee, to ensure tangible actions and progress on issues such as carbon neutrality, science-based targets, waste reduction, and sustainable destination management, among others.
“As one of the world’s largest industrial sectors, the Travel & Tourism sector supports one in 10 jobs around the world and contributes 10.3% of global GDP. However, it is also responsible for 5% of global greenhouse gas emissions. This underpins WTTC’s commitment to unify the sector to move faster to make Travel & Tourism part of the solution.”
