Europe goes to work on holidays

Policymakers are seeking ways to boost tourism that is both economically and environmentally sustainable, says Lorraine Mallinder.

The European Commission will return to work after this year’s summer-break full of good resolutions about the future development of Europe’s travel and tourism industry. Recent growth in the sector, which currently accounts for 4% of the EU’s gross domestic product, has raised a number of social and environmental concerns that the Commission is keen to address in one overarching package.

Tourism helps to sustain around two million businesses, generating an estimated eight million jobs, but its recent expansion comes at a cost.

The EU package, set to be unveiled in September by Günter Verheugen, the European commissioner for enterprise and industry, will attempt to find ways of promoting the economic value of the sector without sacrificing social and environmental values.

The package is being drafted under the Agenda 21 programme, an international sustainability initiative adopted at the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Agenda 21 was developed further with specific emphasis on public-private partnerships at the 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg, South Africa.

A 22-member expert group set up two years ago by the Commission recommended approaches combining mutually-reinforcing economic, social and environmental objectives. In a report released in February, the expert group proposed ways of moving towards a more sustainable tourism policy including mechanisms for national reporting and web-based networking, and research, education and training programmes.

Sustainable development of the travel and tourism sector under the Commission’s forthcoming framework will embrace environmental protection issues, cultural diversity and employment patterns, as well as the promotion of EU destinations. The package will be presented in October at the European Tourism Forum, an annual event organised by the Commis-sion and the EU presidency. This year’s forum will be held in the Algarve, a popular tourist destination in the south of Portugal.

EU countries are becoming increasingly popular destinations among tourists from the rest of the world - according to the Commission, foreign tourists booked 860 million nights in EU accommodation in 2004. A significant proportion of the industry’s potential for growth lies in generating more interest outside the EU’s borders. The European Travel Commission (ETC), a membership organisation bringing together the 33 national tourism organisations of Europe, has created a website that aims to attract more international market-share by making Europe seem more accessible.

By acting as a shop window of sorts for EU holiday destinations, providing central access to national and regional tourist offices, www.visiteurope.com aims to make it easier for consumers to choose from an often-baffling array of destinations.

Potted information on anything from accommodation to median temperatures is provided for a variety of destinations from the tundra of Scandinavia to the golden beaches of the Mediterranean coastline.

Policymakers are seeking ways to boost tourism that is both economically and environmentally sustainable, says Lorraine Mallinder.