ABSTRACT

Since the United Nations Rio Earth Summit in 1992, national and supranational government organizations, businesses, local communities, and civil society initiatives have made signifi cant efforts to steer the tourism industry towards more social and environmental sustainability. The outcome is a host of agreements and action programmes including the WTTC/ WTO Agenda 21 for the Travel and Tourism Industry (1996), the WTO Manila Declaration on the Social Impact of Tourism (1997); the UN CSD Working Programme for Sustainable Tourism (1999); the WTO Global Code of Ethics for Tourism (1999); the Quebec Declaration on Ecotourism (UN International Year of Ecotourism, 2002); the CBD’s Guidelines on Biodiversity and Tourism Development (COP7, 2004), the UNWTO Djerba Declaration (2003), and Davos Declaration (2007) on Climate Change and Tourism (UNWTO, UNEP, CBD web sites).