UN Tourism returned to ITB Berlin, bringing its new name and look to the leading travel trade fair and uniting the sector around its focus on sustainability, investments, and collaboration.
Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili joined the Governing Mayor of Berlin, Kai Wenger, and other public and private sector leaders in officially opening the 2024 event. He said: “Tourism’s return means so much to many people. Tourism is a great uniting force. Together, we are growing new areas of our sector to build greater resilience and spread the benefits of tourism even wider.” At the opening, the event’s host, Messe Berlin, was recognized for its 40 years as a UN Tourism Affiliate Member for its key role in advancing international meetings and events tourism and fostering partnerships in the German capital.
Under its new look and name, UN Tourism returned to ITB Berlin, bringing its new name and look to the leading travel trade fair and uniting the sector around its focus on sustainability, investments, and collaboration.
once again made ITB Berlin a top platform for high-level collaboration and for advancing several of its key priorities for the sector:
Better data for deeper transformation
UN Tourism and the World Tourism Cities Federation (WCTF) launched a joint report highlighting the need to measure tourism’s social and environmental impacts in urban destinations more effectively and harmonized. The report stresses the importance of embracing big data and other forms of technology and looks ahead to the creation of the first global urban tourism database.
The publication’s launch comes in the same week all 193 UN members adopted the Statistical Framework for Measuring the Sustainability of Tourism (MST).
The guide, which also contains examples of best practices, was developed after consultations with Member States’ Ministries of Tourism. The guidance is complemented by a Glasgow Declaration Engagement Pack, which provides practical recommendations on how to get started on climate action in tourism.
Accelerating Climate Action
The organization launched Policy Guidance to Support Climate Action by National Tourism Administrations (NTAs), continuing its leading role in the One Planet Tourism Network and the Glasgow Declaration. The guide will assist NTAs everywhere in developing policies and initiatives to accelerate the shift towards a low-carbon sector.
Also, UN Tourism officials at ITB Berlin participated in a roundtable event on reconciling safety and sustainability. Additionally, bringing together its focus on rural development, gender equality, and sustainability, UN Tourism participated in a special side event, Sustainable Rural Tourism: A Foundation for Biodiversity Preservation and Gender Equality – Potentials and Interactions, providing insights and best practice recommendations.
Working closely with Member States
Within the framework of ITB 2024, UN Tourism Secretary-General Pololikashvili held a series of high-level bilateral meetings with Ministers of Tourism and other high-level representatives from Member States worldwide. The meetings served to advance plans for joint projects and key upcoming UN tourism events.
Related Links
UN Adopts Global Standard to Measure the Sustainability of Tourism
UN Tourism and WTCF Advance Data-Driven Approach to City Tourism
