A number of prominent organizations, including Green Globe International, United Nations Foundation, Rainforest Alliance, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) have decided to launch the Global Sustainable Tourism Criteria (GSTC).
Ted Turner, the CEO of the United Nations Foundation announced the first-ever globally relevant sustainable tourism criteria at the IUCN World Conservation Congress.
The new criteria will be based on best practices culled from the existing standards currently in use around the world. It will offer a common framework to guide the emerging practice of sustainable tourism. All that we know so far is that some of the key criteria will be energy usage, potable water consumption and waste to landfill.
It is certainly a great news. Lets just hope that the outcome be simple, efficient, and readable for both tourism providers and clients.