ETHNIC
SUSTAINABLE TOURISM
Our proposal
Responsible and Sustainable Tourism .
When we travel, we leave a mark. This mark can be positive, benefiting local communities, or negative, damaging natural spaces, traditional cultures and the living conditions of local people.
Since 2006, we have been working to change the conventional tourism model and to transform the negative impacts of tourism into positive externalities for destinations and their communities. At Aethnic, we promote Responsible and Sustainable Tourism (RST), a model that respects the environment, promotes sustainable development and is committed to global justice.
Responsible and Sustainable Tourism Network (TRS)
In Catalonia, we promote the Responsible and Sustainable Tourism Network (TRS), a space for collaboration and exchange between public administration, social entities, tourism companies, academics and tourism scholars. This network aims to promote debate and the implementation of initiatives that align tourism with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the UN 2030 Agenda.
Transforming Tourism for a Better Future
“Together we can transform tourism to improve our ecosystem and our quality of life. To achieve this, it is essential to change the current model, orienting it towards the SDGs and promoting the principles of Responsible and Sustainable Tourism.”
These commitments are at the core of our actions and guide all the projects we lead at Aethnic.
Responsible and Sustainable Tourism (RST):
The Key to a Sustainable Future in Tourism
Since its creation, Aethnic has been committed to transforming tourism into a socio-economic activity capable of generating sustainable benefits on a small and large scale. Knowing the positive impacts of tourism, we work to enhance them, extend them and guarantee their long-term sustainability.
According to the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), sustainable tourism is tourism that takes into account current and future economic, social and environmental impacts to meet the needs of visitors, the industry, the environment and local communities (UNWTO, 2005). The fundamental objective of sustainable tourism is to ensure economic profitability while protecting natural resources and respecting the local population (Pérez de las Heras, 2004).
Due to its transversality and environmental impact, tourism is at the center of the debate on sustainability. It is a sector that can generate both negative externalities and a positive contribution to global sustainability.
For all this, Aethnic works to promote a responsible and sustainable tourism model that generates well-being, prosperity, equity and social justice, with a focus on sustainable development and respect for local communities and the environment.
The Concept of "Sustainability" in Tourism
Far from being a recent concept, sustainability has a long history. During the 1970s, several scholars warned about the excessive pressure of consumerism and economic growth on the planet. Some pointed to the risks of ecological imbalance and the possible disastrous consequences derived from this growth model.
During the 1970s, economists and humanists met to debate the limits of economic growth and published the book The Limits to Growth (1972), which questioned an economic system based on unlimited growth and proposed a balanced and sustainable socioeconomic model.
What does the TRS provide? (some examples)
- Promotes heritage conservation.
- Respect and preserve socio-cultural authenticity.
- It promotes and strengthens local economic development.
- Promotes responsible consumption.
- Minimizes environmental impacts.
- Minimizes environmental impacts.
The Negative Impacts of Tourism and the Need for Sustainable Management
When tourism is not planned and managed in a sustainable way, it can generate negative externalities that are very harmful to the environment, the local economy and social cohesion, both in the short and long term.
Sustainable tourism is based on three main axes: the economic axis, the social axis and the environmental axis. Thus, the negative impacts of tourism can affect any of these areas, with consequences that can be very diverse. However, given that tourism is a transversal and transdisciplinary sector, the externalities derived from this activity can affect the destination in a comprehensive way, having an impact on the quality of life of local communities and the sustainability of natural resources.
Some impacts of "Unsustainable" tourism
- Loss of one's identity.
- Disappearance of small local businesses.
- Price rise of basic products.
- Increase in housing prices.
- Increased pollution.
- Exploitation of resources.
- Massification of spaces and gentrification.
- Unequal distribution of economic benefits.
- Emergence of attitudes of tourismophobia and xenophobia.
- Loss of biodiversity.
- Acceleration of climate change.
- Privatization and trivialization of public spaces.
What are the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
The United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio de Janeiro, 2012) resulted in the agreement of all Member States of the United Nations to develop a road map to address the planet’s urgent challenges. Later, in 2015, the 193 Member States of the UN signed the 2030 Agenda and committed to take measures to face the social, economic and environmental challenges of globalization, while putting people, the planet, at the center , prosperity and peace.
Today, the 2030 Agenda is constituted as a comprehensive, multidimensional and universally applicable roadmap that marks global action for development until the year 2030. At the epicenter of the Agenda are 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) “through which it is proposed to address major global challenges, from the fight against poverty or climate change to education, health, gender equality, peace or sustainable cities”. However, all the SDGs add up to a total of 169 specific goals that contribute to the achievement of the general objectives.
The SDGs and tourism
The 2030 Agenda mentions the sector on 3 very specific occasions: in Objective 8 , on decent work and economic growth; to Objective 12 , on responsible production and consumption; and Objective 14 , on underwater life. Despite everything, the scope and transversality of the tourism sector means that it has a contribution , both direct and indirect, in the fulfillment of any of the 17 objectives.
For example, tourism can make an important contribution to: poverty reduction (Goal 1), gender equality (Goal 5), affordable and non-polluting energy (Goal 7), sustainable cities and communities (Goal 11), climate action (Goal 13) and the life of terrestrial ecosystems (Goal 15).
The World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) leads the monitoring work and promotes the development of the objectives related to the transformation of tourism.
“The UNWTO is responsible for the promotion of responsible, sustainable and accessible tourism for everyone, aiming at the fulfillment of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the scope of the which is universal”.
Currently, the UNWTO is integrated by 156 countries among which it promotes the application of the World Code of Ethics in order to maximize the socio-economic contribution of tourism and, at the same time, minimize its negative impacts.
National Plan for the implementation of the 2030 Agenda
On September 25, 2019, the Government of Catalonia approved the National Plan for the implementation of the 2030 Agenda in Catalonia.
Most of the commitments have an internal dimension and are aimed at Catalonia.
There are also commitments on a global scale, which reaffirm Catalonia’s commitment to the international community.
It includes 696 unique commitments which at the same time become 920 as some of them are included in several SDGs or in more than one milestone of the same objectives.
The 2030 Agenda in Barcelona
- Location: Determine what specific objectives and goals the 2030 Agenda for Barcelona entails.
- Evaluation: Use data to find out the situation and the evolution of the city with respect to the established goals.
- Innovation: Launching new policy approaches that are necessary to achieve the goals.
- Alliances: Working together with public administrations, companies, social organizations and citizens.
- Awareness: Spread knowledge of the agenda and stimulate public debate.
- Leadership: Promote the 2030 Agenda on the national and international stage, together with other cities.
