Paper short abstract:

The COP21 Paris agreement offers major opportunities for a climate resilient global economy. Given that travel and tourism accounts for over 10% of global emissions, new policies and models are needed to enable the industry to meet the carbon challenge and politico-societal obligations

Paper long abstract:

Leisure-travel and tourism (LT&T) suffers from the simplistic supposition that it leads to economic growth. This belief needs to be unwrapped within the context of climate change. To illustrate, whilst travel is deeply embedded in the social culture of the global middle classes, and the economies of the majority of developing countries rely heavily on it, environmental concerns - especially those about climate change - suggest this 'culture' ought to be changed. However, change may negatively impact the wellbeing and welfare of both tourists (seeking novel experiences leisure and wellbeing) and dependent communities (seeking environmental and socio-economic benefits) in the developing countries.

LT&T is an important yet complex topic in economic, environmental and socio-cultural terms. LT&T received some attention in the IPCC AR5, but comments were somewhat obvious (such as coral bleaching, risk to beaches and ski resorts etc.). Given its likely position as the world's largest industry, it deserves more nuanced consideration.

The paper argues for a better governance and policy frameworks that reflect the new realities of a post-COP21 world, and proposes a new model that approaches LT&T as a system with three primary elements: macro influences on tourism; supply and demand dynamics, ownership, oversight, and governance.