Dossiers

Digital booking platforms are rapidly changing the tourism industry and the way people travel - with serious implications especially for micro and small sized operators in the Global South.

Helping with an aid project or teaching English - many people want to do good on holiday. More and more providers are discovering the lucrative business of travel and "helping". But often these short-term, commercial offers do more harm than good.

Human rights violations in tourism are commonplace. Be it through exploitative working conditions in hotels, the displacement of entire villages for the construction of airports or the sexual exploitation of children by travelers. Governments and tourism companies must fully respect, protect and guarantee human rights.

Sustainable tourism is mentioned a total of four times in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The explicit mention of the sector not only emphasises its global importance, but at the same time commits it to fundamentally changing the tourism model that is so widespread today.

Eight percent of global emissions of climate-damaging greenhouse gases - i.e. almost every 12th ton – come from tourism. The lion's share of this is generated when travelling to and from the destination, especially when flying.