Sustainable Tourism Pledges: Effective or PR Noise?
The Palau Pledge as a model
Welcome back to Clickable Insights – where the Clickable Impact team shares our perspectives on green and inclusive growth. Happy Year of the Snake to all those who celebrated the recent Lunar New Year!
Today’s newsletter examines how sustainable tourism pledges fall far short of being effective when adopted in isolation, yet – like the fascinating example of Palau – can drive real impact when part of a holistic, sustainable policy and destination management mix.
At the conclusion of the COP29 summit in Baku last November, 62 countries signed a UN declaration to make tourism more climate-friendly.
Titled the ‘COP29 Declaration on Enhanced Climate Action in Tourism,’ the signatories pledged to “promote and champion sustainable tourism practices, and efforts to reduce GHG emissions in the tourism sector and strengthen adaptation and resilience efforts within the tourism sector.”
Notable global tourism experts have expressed sharp skepticism of the declaration.
Håvard Utheim in Transparency Travel uses the Tourism Declares initiative as an example of declarations not creating significant change.
Launched in January 2020, Tourism Declares includes signatories from across the global tourism industry. However, to quote Utheim, “years after its launch, there’s little concrete evidence to show that these organizations have made substantial progress.”
Rafat Ali, the CEO/founder of Skift, chimed in on LinkedIn, writing: “These tourism ‘declarations’ are, how should I put it mildly...problematic. Run by nonprofits and bureaucrats in an attempt to prop up their relevance — hint, they are not— they amount to very little and are forgotten pretty quickly after.”
Tourism Declarations & Pledges – Effective, or Institutional Noise?
On the other side of the pledge debate, some researchers argue that these can be an effective means of inducing sustainable behavior.
In a 2024 study titled ‘Can Travel Pledges Influence Tourists’ Sustainable Travel Behavior?,’ three University of South Florida researchers found that pledges can be effective if they foster “collaboration with local communities and conservation organizations...”
This would advance “sustainable tourism practices, ensuring a positive impact on both the environment and the tourism industry's long-term viability.”
Another 2024 study assessing pledge-based tourist behavior in Greenland found that pledges are “a cheap and easy-to-implement intervention – [that] can be effective in producing significant behaviour change. This means that changing tourist behaviour is possible even in contexts that lack the human and financial resources required to introduce infrastructural or policy interventions.”
Pledges are effective when part of a broader sustainability management plan
We agree that pledges are not, and should never be seen as, a substitute for genuine policy and coordinated public-private action against climate change. At their worst, they risk being dismissed as weak PR to mask a lack of action. However, we firmly believe they can be a powerful component of a more holistic approach to sustainable tourism, especially when they complement broader policy measures, community partnerships, and system infrastructure improvements.
To ensure their effectiveness, sustainability pledges must:
Be tied to clear, measurable outcomes and transparent reporting mechanisms
Foster collaboration with local communities and stakeholders.
Align with broader policies that address structural barriers to sustainability.
By leveraging pledges' strengths as part of a broader, multi-faceted strategy, the tourism industry can advance environmental stewardship and its own resilience in the face of a changing climate.
The Palau Pledge Case Study
One pledge that can serve as a model for other efforts on the positive impact tourism pledges can have comes from Palau, the Pacific Island nation with a population of about 18,000.
Under the Palau Pledge, arriving visitors must sign a pledge stamped into passports to act responsibly, both ecologically and culturally, while in the country. Thus far over 1 million people have taken this pledge, which was partially drafted by young Palauans – the people who will be most impacted by future climate change.
This initiative uniquely engages both visitors and local businesses, emphasizing individual responsibility through statements including ‘Don’t collect marine life souvenirs,’ ‘Do learn about the culture and people,’ and ‘Don’t feed the fish and sharks.’
The innovative nature of this pledge was highlighted in a 2020 paper by Ismael Lopez Model published by Westminster Papers in Communication and Culture: “The Palau Pledge is an excellent case to illustrate the importance of trust in the communication process. It introduced a never-before-seen requirement from the audience, a commitment to support the philosophy of the island, the value of protecting the environment, and the fight to support the local culture. In other words, it is an extreme example of trust: it only works if the visitors are willing to submit their entry to the island to the pledge signature, a signature that will serve as the official visa to enter the country.”
The Palau Sustainable Tourism Guide
Continuing with our Palau example, individuals within the country are adding to the sustainability conversation in additional complementary ways.
Ivory Vogt is the country’s first sustainable tourism consultant. She recently created the Palau Sustainable Travel Guide, a 14-page document that covers Palauan identity, values, and biodiversity, in addition to the traditional travel guide items of where to stay and eat, in addition to what to do.
At a time when many countries with huge tourism industries are worried about the sector’s impact on local ways of life, Vogt explicitly links the importance of Palauan culture to sustainable tourism.
She writes: “Respecting Palauan culture and embracing Palauan values of conservation and sustainability are essential for visitors to Palau, as these principles lie at the heart of our island’s identity and environmental stewardship. Palauans have long held a deep respect for nature, rooted in traditions that view the land and sea as interconnected sources of life that must be protected for future generations. By aligning with these values, visitors not only support the preservation of Palau’s abundant ecosystems but also honor the island's rich cultural heritage.”
The guide also features a Sustainable Travel Checklist, which includes steps such as packing reef-safe sunscreen (Palau is a pioneer by banning sunscreen that is toxic to reefs), choosing reusable items, observing wildlife responsibly, and supporting Palauan businesses.
Each point on the list addresses issues seen in many other tourist destinations around the world. While Palau’s small size gives it an advantage in terms of tourism management, these steps can serve as inspiration for other locations.
The need for action
The example of Palau is even more important given the pressing need for greater transparency – and real action – when it comes to sustainable tourism. According to NASA, all future emission scenarios show that Palau will likely experience more than 100 days of flooding due to sea level rise every year by the end of the century.
As more countries enter critical fragility like Palau, and as 98% of surveyed consumers in Asia Pacific want a more sustainable lifestyle – yet only 17% were actively changing their behavior to attain that – thoughtful, integrated sustainability pledges may have a place in driving actual travel behavior. However, without such integration, pledges may do very little besides generating short-lived press.
Special thanks to Clickable Impact consultants Trevor Weltman and Graham Harper for their contributions to this newsletter. Join us next month for more updates on climate action, transformative innovation, and sustainable tourism.
Clickable Insights is brought to you by Clickable Impact
Clickable Impact is an Asia-based consultancy committed to climate action and sustainable development. We have three practice areas: public affairs and communications, sustainable tourism, and transformative innovation. Across our work, Clickable Impact favors projects that urgently mobilize private sector engagement, policy action, and investment.
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