Climate change is the focus of several on-going initiatives at the international level. Director of International Relations & Industry Affairs Elizabeth Carroll Simon attended the recent Technical Seminar on Tourism & Climate Change convened by UNESCO with the participation of UNEP, UNWTO and OECD. The meeting, which brough together some 40 participants from the international agencies, private sector bodies and research institutes, was designed to bridge the gap between researchers and travel and tourism stakeholders.

There is now compelling scientific evidence indicating that climate change poses a serious challenge to social and economic development in all countries.

Tourism is both affected by climate change - and a contributor to this major phenomenon. Climate change impacts may vary, from decrease in snowfall and loss of glaciers to increased tropical cyclone activity and ever more frequent heatwaves, but no part of the globe will be spared. For tourism, the impact will be felt directly on the livelihood of people working or staying in coastal and mountain areas, on tourism infrastructure, and indirectly on employment, development and investment in these zones.

Under scrutiny at UNESCO were such questions as : to what extent will climate change modify the features of tourism destinations? what is the current contribution of tourism to greenhouse emissions? What mitigation options are available? The papers presented at the UNESCO meeting can be accessed via the following link. http://www.ih-ra.com/advocacy/issues/climate_change/intro.php. Of particular interest is the presentation on Climate Change and Coastal and Small Island Destinations.

The Stern Review, commissioned by the British Government, claims that global warming could cost the world's economies up to 20% of their GDP through the increased incidence of natural disasters. It argues that the benefits of strong, early action on climate change outweigh the costs. According to this Review "ignoring climate change will eventually damage economic growth". Tourism is no exception to this rule. Taking action to reduce carbon emissions now must be viewed as an investment. Rising energy costs are driving the move towards "greener" hotels - buildings that are "environmentally-friendly" in terms of water savings, energy efficiency and materials selected but also in terms of operations. IH&RA has long promoted the message that "Going Green Makes Good Business Sense" - the time has come for the hospitality operators to take to heart the message that it is to their business advantage to start gearing up NOW for a low-carbon economy.