ABOUT USWelcome to Tourism Panel On Climate Change

The TPCC is an independent science-based international collaboration bringing together thought leaders around the world to inform and rapidly advance climate action across the global tourism system.

The TPCC is committed to changing the way we think about tourism and to strengthen the collaboration between the scientific and stakeholder communities to catalyse climate action in line with required emissions reductions pathways .

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What We Do

Foundation
2022

The TPCC was established as an independent, stand alone body of for research and analysis of the critical interface between the code red climate crisis and the tourism sector.

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Stocktake
2023

The TPCC will identify indicators with reliable and open data sources to track important aspects of the relationship between climate change and tourism, including progress on sector commitments in support of Paris Climate Agreement goals. TPCC will publish an update of these metrics every 3 years.

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Science Assessment
2024

The TPCC will undertake the first comprehensive synthesis in over 15 years, of the current state of tourism relevant knowledge about climate change emission trends, impacts, future risks, plus options for mitigation and adaptation. This assessment will include an open and transparent review process.

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Horizon Papers

The TPCC will identify strategic knowledge gaps to meet the sector’s Paris Climate Agreement obligations and commission expert reviews or new analysis to support related policy and decision-making. The papers will be stand-alone and reflect the interpretation of science by the authors.

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Code Red

climate-crisis

Climate Crisis

The IPCC 6th Assessment states that all pathways that limit global warming to 1.5°C with no or limited overshoot, and those that limit warming to 2°C involve rapid and deep GHG emission reductions in all sectors. It calls for GHG emissions to peak by 2025...

tourism-transformation

Tourism Transformation

Climate change will transform tourism destinations, demand patterns, and investment for decades to come. TPCC brings together tourism thought leaders from around the world to meet this grand challenge and accelerate the evidence-based transition...

decarbonizing-tourism

Decarbonizing Tourism

Tourism contributes between 5-8% to global emissions. An increasing number of organisations are committing to a net-zero target for 2050. Rapid emission reduction must start now and involve all sub-sectors. An immediate priority is mobility...

adapting-to-climate-risk

Adapting To Climate Risk

Tourism is a highly climate-exposed system and proactive adaptation is required to manage diverse physical climate risks. Assessing these & responding to these complex climate risks, is the focus of a Horizon Paper on evolving climate risk assessment.

TPCC Structure

TPCC Structure

Global leaders emphasize that solutions to climate change cannot be developed in silos. The TPCC represents a new era of collaboration to support climate action in tourism. The TPCC has convened over 60 of the world’s thought leaders on tourism and climate change from across academia, business, and civil society.

Lead Experts will bring unique and world-leading scientific expertise and knowledge, identify strategic topics and deliver Horizon Briefs. They will also provide input into indicators and data for the Stocktake, as well as undertake analysis and rigorous review to deliver the best-available knowledge through the science assessment. Three quarters (75%) of the top 20 contributors to the climate change and tourism scientific literature are part of the TPCC Lead Expert team.

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Key Findings

Except during COVID-19 disruptions, tourism is growing faster than the global economy, trending toward longer distance and more emission intensive travel.

Eight to ten per cent of global emissions are from tourism with emissions concentrated mainly in high-income countries acting both as traveller residences and destinations.

Tourism, air travel, and cruise tourism will fall short of their 2030 emission reduction goals.

Air travel remains the most difficult component of global tourism to realise deep emission reductions.

The greenhouse gas emission intensity of hotel operations is gradually improving in some regional markets but without acceleration and expansion globally, will fall short of their 2030 emission reduction target.

Consumer behaviour and tourism marketing needs to shift away from the highest-emitting forms of tourism, a necessary step to achieve GHG reduction targets.

Global tourism emissions are heavily concentrated in high-income outbound markets and destinations.

Compounding climate hazards are anticipated to curtail tourism to many climate vulnerable countries where tourism represents a large part of the economy.

Current forms of tourism, such as ski tourism at low elevations, beach tourism in highly erodible coastlines, and some nature-based tourism will not be viable at some destinations because of accelerating climate hazards and limits to adaptation measures.

The unequal distribution of tourism emissions and potential impacts of climate hazards have important climate justice implications.

In low-income countries, climate and tourism risks overlay with many other factors, such as poverty and public sector debt, requiring climate resilient policy making and climate finance.

Tourism policy is not yet integrated with global or national climate change frameworks, despite an increase in sectoral climate pledges. Most national tourism policies or plans give limited consideration to climate change.

Governments and international development assistance continue to invest in tourism infrastructure that is climate vulnerable and linked to high GHG emission intensity.

Research and scientific capacity to inform evidence-based climate action in tourism has increased substantially, but training in industry and tourism education programs remains very limited.