New sustainability ambition for Dutch travel sector developed under the leadership of Ko Koens
ANVR presented its new and far-reaching sustainability ambition on 22 November. With this vision, the trade association of the Dutch tavel sector aims to meet the goals of the Glasgow Declaration that the organization signed in 2021. The new ambition was developed together with experts from the Centre of Expertise Leisure, Tourism and Hospitality (CELTH), and Inholland University of Applied Sciences. Ko Koens, professor of New Urban Tourism at Inholland University of Applied Sciences, was involved in the development process as project leader.
According to Frank Radstake of ANVR, developing a new sustainability ambition for the travel sector is important and urgent: “There is a political and social reality that we as travel companies have to deal with such as the Paris Climate Agreement, the blending obligations for airlines in 2030 and the UNWTO Glasgow Declaration. In addition, there are also moral and ethical reasons why we will have to work on this. Above all, there is also an economic necessity; if we want to continue to have a 'license to operate' in the future, we will have to undergo a transformation to a sector where intrinsic sustainability, equality and inclusiveness are the norm.”
| By 2050, ANVR aims to have achieved the following ambition: "The Dutch travel industry has a positive impact. We create social, ecological and economic value and contribute to improving the quality of the places we visit. We work completely transparently and show leadership through the chain." |
The vision came about from an active collaboration between and with travel organizations and the ANVR. This was not always easy. After all, the vision goes a lot further than what is currently common in the international travel industry. That is why it is so important that the vision is there now, and that it will be implemented in the coming years. In this way, Dutch travel companies can become an international leading example of a future-proof travel industry.
Read the entire news release here.