All around the world, for nearly a decade tourism, has expanded consistently and grown faster than the global gross domestic product. It only took one microscopic virus to destroy the entire travel industry: 121 million people in tourism jobs are unemployed, $3.4 trillion have been lost. With the reopening of schools in September 2020, and a general movement to begin planning a post-corona reality, many in the industry are looking for ways to make travel smarter, greener, and better.
Sustainable tourism, which seeks to offset the social and environmental impacts of travel used to be the goal. Now the focus is on regenerative travel—a visitor’s aim to leave a place better than it was before.
Six nonprofit organizations, including the Center for Responsible Travel and Sustainable Travel International, have formed an umbrella coalition, the Future of Tourism, offering benchmark suggestions for regenerative travelers. The recommendations include favoring local businesses over international chains, staying at resorts that source foods from local farmers, and participating in immersive community-based programs like beach clean-ups, school volunteering, etc. Neither sustainable nor regenerative travel solve the carbon emission problem; people will still need to get to these destinations, presumably by air. But the newly formed coalition encourages tourists to opt for boat, train, bike or foot excursions when exploring a new venue.
