United Nations World Tourism Organization

Topic A: Child Exploitation Topic B: Climate Change and Tourism

MUNUC 32

TABLE OF CONTENTS

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Letter from the Chair………………………………………………………….. 3

Committee History…..………………………………………………………... 5

Topic A: Child Exploitation……………………………………………...... … 6 Statement of the Problem…………………………………………….. 6 History of the Problem………………………………………………… 13 Past Actions…………………………………………………………….. 17 Possible Solutions………………………………………………………. 23 Bloc Positions…………………………………………………………… 25 Glossary…………………………………………………………………. 29 Bibliography……………………………………………………………. 30

Topic B: Climate Change and Tourism……………………….…………. 33 Statement of the Problem…………………………………………….33 History of the Problem………………………………………………… 38 Past Actions…………………………………………………………….. 44 Possible Solutions………………………………………………………. 51 Bloc Positions…………………………………………………………… 55 Glossary…………………………………………………………………. 61 Bibliography……………………………………………………………. 63

2 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 LETTER FROM THE CHAIR

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Dear Delegates,

I would like to warmly welcome all of you to the United Nations World Tourism Organization at MUNUC 32. My name is Aparna Jayashankar, and I will be serving as your committee chair for this year’s conference. I cannot wait to meet all of you and work with you during MUNUC.

I am currently a second-year undergraduate student at the University of Chicago, majoring in Public Policy and Economics. Last year, I served as an Assistant Chair for the UN Human Rights Council for MUNUC 31. I am interested in international human rights and social justice and am especially passionate about women’s empowerment and criminal justice reform. On campus - apart from MUNUC - I conduct research with the Paul Douglas Institute, UChicago’s nonprofit policy think tank, and I work as a Consulting Analyst for Prism Consulting. I also work as a Research Assistant for the American Bar Foundation and intern at Shakti, an organization helping Indian women who face domestic violence gain access to justice.

I hope all of you are as excited as I am about the topics for our committee: child exploitation and climate change in the context of tourism. As delegates, you will take these two issues that you may already know quite a lot about but explore them from a lens that you have probably thought less about - tourism. Child exploitation is exacerbated by tourism because it becomes difficult to track perpetrators who commit this crime during a brief stay in a foreign country. Climate change and tourism have an interesting relationship in that both pose problems for the other, which significantly complicates this issue and will shape the way that you develop resolutions.

Over the next few months, you will be learning about these topics and hopefully discovering many new and interesting things about the world that you were not previously aware of. I hope you enjoy this process, and please reach out to me if you have any questions about MUNUC, the University of Chicago, or even something public policy related.

3 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 I look forward to seeing you all in February for MUNUC 32!

Warm regards,

Aparna Jayashankar

4 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 Committee History

The first General Assembly of the United Nations World Tourism Organization convened in May of

1975, with Robert Lonati being the first Secretary-General for the WTO.1 However, the roots of the UNWTO stem back to 1925 in the Hague during the International Congress of Official Tourist Traffic

Associations.2 Soon after, the International Union of Official Tourist Propaganda organization

(IUOTOP) was created in 1934.3 This organization was later renamed to the International Union of

Official Travel Organisation (IUOTO).4

The IUOTO had a combination of public and private sector members and was defined as a non- governmental organization. It further developed to include travel commissions for Europe, Central

Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and the Americas from 1948 to 1957.5 As the decades passed, the global community faced a growing realization of the need for tourism and its associated activities to be discussed on a much larger scale, as an intergovernmental body.

Thus, in September of 1970, the Statues of the World Tourism Organization were adopted by the

IUOTO.6 Five years later, the UNWTO’s first General Assembly was held and has been followed by various United Nations tourism conferences around the world. The UNWTO has been responsible for discussing numerous issues, including tourism education and training, the Olympics and other sports-related events, poverty elimination and sustainable tourism, and responses to the global

economic crisis of 2009.7 The modern-day UNWTO includes 158 countries, 6 Associate Members and

over 500 Affiliate Members.8

1 “History | World Tourism Organization UNWTO.” Accessed November 4, 2019. http://www2.unwto.org/content/history-0. 2 An Educational Portal. “UNWTO - The World Tourism Organization,” August 13, 2018. https://tourismnotes.com/world- tourism-organization-unwto/. 3 Ibid. 4 Ibid. 5 “History | World Tourism Organization UNWTO.” Accessed November 4, 2019. http://www2.unwto.org/content/history-0. 6 Ibid. 7 Ibid. 8 “Who We Are | World Tourism Organization UNWTO.” Accessed November 5, 2019. http://www2.unwto.org/content/who-we-are-0.

5 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 TOPIC A: CHILD EXPLOITATION

______Statement of the Problem

Introduction to the Problem

It is common knowledge that child exploitation is a serious issue in many countries, especially Southeast Asia and Latin America. However, it is easy to overlook the international-level origins of this problem and instead focus on the issue within each country. Child exploitation is an issue of global scale, and should be studied and mitigated as such. One reason why child exploitation is a global problem is that travel and tourism are major contributors to human trafficking, exacerbating the situation due to factors that make it easier to facilitate child exploitation. The tourism industry has been massively expanding in recent decades, allowing for global transportation to become more

convenient, cheaper, and frequent.9 This means that interregional and international travel are more accessible to individuals than ever before. As the tourism industry continues to expand, the prevalence of child exploitation also continues to increase, making the conversations surrounding this issue more topical and urgent than ever before. As the leading international organization in the field of tourism, the United Nations World Tourism Organization is responsible for the promotion of responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism. Thus, the United Nations World Tourism Organization aims to make the tourism industry safer, which includes minimizing the risk that tourists pose for children across the globe.

Child exploitation is defined as “using a minor child for profit, labor, sexual gratification, or some

other personal or financial advantage.”10 Within the context of tourism, child exploitation mainly includes the Sexual Exploitation of Children in Travel and Tourism (SECTT), as well as Orphanage Tourism. The former is defined as the act of, “sexual exploitation of children embedded in the

9 "Fighting the Exploitation of Children in Travel and Tourism," UNICEF USA. July 06, 2017, Accessed May 18, 2019, https://www.unicefusa.org/stories/fighting-exploitation-children-travel-and-tourism/32533. 10 "Child Exploitation - Definition, Examples, Cases, Processes," Legal Dictionary, August 07, 2015, Accessed May 20, 2019, https://legaldictionary.net/child-exploitation/.

6 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 context of travel, tourism or both.”11 Orphanage tourism occurs when visitors volunteer in

orphanages with good intentions of helping children.12 However, in order to fill these orphanages, children are removed from their families after persuading the parents that this decision is best for their child’s wellbeing. The volunteer tourists, in turn, receive a falsified sense of satisfaction for doing what they perceive as community service. Both of these types of child exploitation take place throughout the world, but especially in tourist hot spots because of the high volume of visitors.

Current Situation

Sexual Exploitation of Children in Travel and Tourism

Sexual Exploitation of Children in Travel and Tourism (SECTT) is also known as child sex tourism and involves people travelling from the the region they live to another for the purpose of

having sexual contact with children.13 Child sex tourism is facilitated by the temporary stay of tourists, helping perpetrators keep their identity and actions unknown. Typically, goods such as cash, clothes, or food will be exchanged to a third party for the sexual contact. It is also important to

note that this sexual exploitation can occur anywhere from hotels and beaches to rural settings.14

Child sexual exploitation in tourism has proven itself to be a truly global problem, with offenders and victims from all backgrounds. One problem that is encountered when attempting to mitigate the sexual exploitation of children is that as soon as the problem is resolved in one region, it can move to

a neighboring region.15 This is why one country’s efforts to stop child exploitation can result in the issue being resolved within that country but only because it is being shifted to another. Thus, when designing child protection mechanisms, it is important to view child exploitation as a global problem, taking into account how each policy will impact child exploitation internationally.

11 "Homepage – ECPAT," Protecting Children in Tourism, Accessed May 20, 2019, https://www.protectingchildrenintourism.org/child-protection-in-travel-and-tourism/. 12 "Orphanage Tourism," Save The Children, Accessed May 20, 2019, https://www.savethechildren.org.au/Our- Stories/Orphanage-tourism. 13 "Sexual Exploitation of Children in Travel and Tourism," ECPAT International, Accessed May 21, 2019, https://www.ecpat.org/what-we-do/sexual-exploitation-of-children-travel-tourism/. 14 Ibid. 15 Ibid.

7 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 There are certain factors that put some children at a higher risk of being a victim of child sex tourism.

In particular, children who are indigenous or living in poverty are more susceptible to SECTT.16 Other factors include being dependent on seasonal economies, being a working child, living on the street, or being abused or neglected at home. It is important to take into consideration how specific communities, based on the aforementioned factors, may be at a higher risk of child sex tourism so they can be afforded with the resources necessary to combat the issue. While resolving this issue, it is also vital that social, cultural, and economic differences are respected, and that any policies created are tailored to the communities which they will affect.

One obstacle that hinders the fight against SECTT is the sheer lack of research conducted on the subject. The first ever global study that has been conducted regarding SECTT was done by an

organization called ECPAT (formerly End Child Prostitution and Trafficking).17 ECPAT is a worldwide

network of organizations working to end the sexual exploitation of children.18After analyzing both regional and national studies, ECPAT provides policy recommendations based on the trends they notice. These recommendations were intended to spur political actions and provide policymakers with a concrete idea of how to approach exploitation. However, without other studies to support this data or expand upon its findings, it is difficult to identify the gaps within the policy regarding SECTT and understanding of the problem itself will be insufficient. This is why, prior to creating policy targeted towards resolving SECTT, researchers must spend time conducting more studies to produce a comprehensive collection of research on child exploitation. Another initiative is The Code of Conduct for the Protection of Children from Sexual Exploitation in Travel and Tourism, called The Code for short, which provides travel and tourism companies with a set of guidelines to follow to

prevent child exploitation.19 By joining the code, these companies obtain resources to help them demonstrate a commitment to keeping children safe.

A major reason why research on SECTT has been hard to conduct is that data on child sex tourism is difficult to gather because of the secrecy involved. Much of child sexual exploitation occurs within

16 Ibid. 17 Ibid. 18 Ibid. 19 "The Code." The Code. Accessed May 21, 2019, http://www.thecode.org/.

8 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 criminal groups whose activity is difficult to track.20 Furthermore, the actions of perpetrators are shielded by the tourism industry, as being a visitor from another region serves as a way to reduce the risk of having the crime traced back to oneself. Finally, with the victims being children, child sex tourism is highly underreported due to several reasons. The child is likely afraid, may be unsure of what they went through, may lack support, or face community stigmas due to the taboos that surround child exploitation.

The lack of awareness of SECTT also prevents solid policy research and implementation regarding this issue. First, key stakeholders deny the prevalence of child sex tourism in order to prevent economic losses that could occur if tourist numbers are reduced. These stakeholders fear that spreading awareness of SECTT could create a negative image of the tourist region and prevent

tourists from visiting.21 Second, the media, law enforcement, government, as well as general public often have misconceptions about SECTT and are confused about what qualifies as child sex tourism. Often times, incidents that fall under child sex tourism are confused with paedophilia, prostitution,

or sexual abuse of children.22 Without clear articulation of child sex tourism and proper insight into its sources, occurrences, and impacts, it will be a challenge to create policy addressing SECTT.

The problem of sexual exploitation of children in tourism is one that does not exist simply during the exploitation itself due to psychological trauma that can result from exploitation. Because the children who are exploited often face lifelong emotional, psychological, and physical consequences

as a result, it is also important to create policy addressing ways to help those have been exploited.23 Some psychological consequences include low self-esteem and depression, which can even lead to

suicide.24 The physical effects can include vulnerability to many sexually transmitted infections

(STIs), including HIV/AIDS.25 Furthermore, child victims often face stigmatization by their

20 United States, Congress, “Study on the Effects of New Information Technologies on the Abuse and Exploitation of Children,” Study on the Effects of New Information Technologies on the Abuse and Exploitation of Children, May 2015, www.unodc.org/documents/Cybercrime/Study_on_the_Effects.pdf. 21 “Child Safe Tourism: The Tourist Perspective,” Child Safe Tourism, World Vision Australia, 2012, childsafetourism.org/downloads/Tourist_Perspective_ENGLISH.pdf. 22 Ibid. 23 ECPAT International, "Combating Child Sex Tourism: Questions and Answers." ECPAT International, 2008, Accessed May 21, 2019, https://www.ecpat.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/cst_faq_eng.pdf. 24 Ibid. 25 Ibid.

9 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 communities, and they also face difficulties in obtaining an education. This prevents them from gaining skills that they need to succeed in their future careers and beyond. As those who are impoverished are more at risk of child exploitation, this only further limits the economic mobility.of poor children that have been exploited. This causes many victims to be unable to support themselves

financially later in life.26 Thus, exploited children face the repercussions of their exploiter’s actions for the rest of their lives in emotional, psychological, physical, and economic capacities.

Orphanage Tourism

According to Lumos, a charity that works to end the institutionalization of children, approximately

80% of the estimated 8 million children in orphanages are not actually orphans.27 Many times orphanages will send agents to rural villages, convincing parents that their children will have better lives in the city, that their organization will take care of them and provide their education, food, housing, and other needs. Many parents believe this and send their children with the agent, who then takes the children to the orphanage only to mistreat them. By neglecting the children, they are more likely to receive sympathy and monetary contributions from tourists from abroad.

One of the major examples of orphanage tourism is the removal of children from Cambodia to be sent to orphanages in Australia, where people provide donations and support out of intentioned

goodwill.28 There is high demand for these orphanages because people believe that they are helping orphaned children. However, they are in fact they are funneling money and time into a system that perpetuates modern-day slavery by forcing children removed from their families to work in abusive conditions while charitable donations are funneled into the fraudulent orphanage. Just as with SECTT, the recent rise in travel over the past few decades has been matched by a similar growth in the number of orphanages. Cambodia, for example, has witnessed a 75% increase in orphanages

26 Ibid. 27 Batha, Emma, “Calls Mount to Stop Orphanages Exploiting Poor Children to Lure...” Reuters, Thomson Reuters, 14 Nov, 2018, www.reuters.com/article/us-slavery-conference-orphanages/calls-mount-to-stop-orphanages-exploiting-poor- children-to-lure-money-tourists-idUSKCN1NJ0AE. 28 Guilbert, Kieran, "Australia Vows to Fight Trafficking for Orphanage Tourism In..." Reuters, April 16, 2018, Accessed May 21, 2019, https://www.reuters.com/article/us-australia-trafficking-children/australia-vows-to-fight-trafficking-for- orphanage-tourism-in-southeast-asia-idUSKBN1HN33P.

10 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 since 2005.29 Shockingly, 71% of the children placed in these orphanages are not orphans at all and still have living parents. The money poured into this industry by volunteer tourists is the reason why orphanage tourism is still thriving. Not only do orphanages receive money from the tourists, but people involved with the organizations, such as tuk tuk drivers, also receive commissions for leading people to the orphanages. The vast number of scams in this industry make it difficult to find a genuine orphanage to volunteer at or donate to, and the lack of awareness on the part of the tourists exacerbates the issue.

Another issue is how to regulate donations so they are directed to the genuine orphanages that truly need the money. A major contributor to overseas orphanages are religious organizations. In fact,

51% of all churchgoers in Australia contribute to institutional care overseas.30 In addition to religious contributions, schooling also funnels more people and money towards orphanages. Universities promote programs that connect students with volunteering opportunities at orphanages. Similarly, high schools fundraise and visit orphanages with the intention of promoting community service. Most of all, travel agencies promote “voluntourism,” through which people both travel and volunteer

to receive a sense of satisfaction.31 To stop the flow of money to orphanages that are scams, it is necessary to develop first a method of identifying which orphanages are legitimate. Then, the money must only be redirected towards the organizations that have a genuine impact. Without cutting off the flow of funding, well-intentioned people are giving their time and money to a scheme that often does harm to children.

Orphanage tourism has impacts similar to those of child sex tourism, especially because the children held in illegitimate orphanages are often sexually abused, beaten, or mistreated in other ways. Furthermore, the children face attachment disorders, abuse, and family separation as a result of

29 Walker, Morgan Hartley and Chris, "Cambodia's Booming New Industry: Orphanage Tourism," Forbes, May 30, 2013, Accessed May 21, 2019, https://www.forbes.com/sites/morganhartley/2013/05/24/cambodias-booming-new-industry- orphanage-tourism/#57dd2f4a794a. 30 Knaus, Christopher, "The Race to Rescue Cambodian Children from Orphanages Exploiting Them for Profit," The Guardian, August 18, 2017, Accessed May 21, 2019, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/aug/19/the-race-to- rescue-cambodian-children-from-orphanages-exploiting-them-for-profit. 31 Ibid.

11 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 orphanage tourism.32 Without awareness of the underlying problem or its impacts, volunteers travel abroad with the intention of helping children. In resolving this issue, it is necessary to redirect volunteers’ attention to resolving the issue of orphanage tourism instead of the current focus on volunteering within these orphanages. Research suggests that volunteers would be amenable to

spending their time on family reunification instead, and this will be expanded upon later on.33

In conclusion, the problem of child exploitation in tourism mainly centers around the sexual exploitation of children by tourists and orphanage tourism. While the two problems have different origins, their overall impacts caused by exploitation are similar and both issues should be given consideration in regards to child exploitation.

32 Columbia University Libraries, "The Harms of Orphanage Voluntourism: Misperceptions among Volunteers," Academic Commons, January 01, 1970, Accessed May 21, 2019, https://academiccommons.columbia.edu/doi/10.7916/D8C553BS. 33 Ibid.

12 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 A History of the Problem

The history of child exploitation in travel and tourism is difficult to study for two reasons. First, the issue was not brought to the public’s attention until recently, meaning that researchers have only begun to study it during the past three decades. Second, as mentioned before, the issue of child exploitation in tourism has expanded greatly in the past few decades as well as a result of easier access to traveling globally.

The issue of child exploitation in tourism was not widely recognized until the 1990s, until after

organizations like ECPAT and other NGOs showed nations that this was a significant concern.34 As a result, child exploitation in tourism is still quite a new topic for the world. This is why it is important to have more conversations surrounding this issue and spread awareness of the problem. Without individuals, communities, corporations, and nations recognizing and understanding the issues associated with child exploitation in tourism, it will be difficult both to understand the scope of the

problem and to arm people with the resources necessary to mitigate the issue.35 Thus, there has historically been a lack of awareness regarding child exploitation in tourism.

Demand for Child Sex Tourism

As the demand for child sex tourism increases, the supply of victims also increases to meet this

market demand.36 This is also associated with an increase in child trafficking. Historically, the market demand has mainly stemmed from countries that are industrialized and developed, such as the

North American, European, and Southeast Asian countries.37 As these countries tend to be wealthier, their inhabitants are also more likely to have access to the money necessary for overseas travel. Child sex tourism is tough to track because the perpetrators visit for only a short period of time

34 "Creating a United Front against the Sexual Exploitation of Children in Travel and Tourism," ECPAT International, June 2009, Accessed June 29, 2019, https://www.ecpat.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/ecpatjournaljune2009.pdf. 35 Ibid, 34. 36 Ibid, 4. 37 Hawke, Angela, and Alison Raphael, "GLOBAL STUDY ON SEXUAL EXPLOITATION OF CHILDREN IN TRAVEL AND TOURISM," ECPAT International, May 2016, http://cf.cdn.unwto.org/sites/all/files/docpdf/global-report-offenders-move- final.pdf.

13 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 before heading back to their home country. As a result, more tourists come from these countries, and are thus able to become perpetrators in child sex tourism much more easily.

This same logic also holds true for orphanage tourism. Since there are more tourists from the aforementioned industrialized and developed countries, these nations’ citizens participate in orphanage tourism at higher rates. As a result, it is more likely that citizens from the more industrialized countries are involved in child trafficking in tourism. Thus, the focus has historically been on mitigating the demand from these countries.

East Asia

South Korea, for example, has been acknowledged by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to be one of the main sources of demand for child sex tourism in Southeast Asia. According to a report by ECPAT international, Korean men are, “the primary customers of child sex tourism in

Southeast Asia and the Pacific Islands.”38

East Asia has also been known to commodify young girls and has a new trend called “compensated dating”. Compensated dating occurs when young minors, typically female high school students,

receive money or gifts in exchange for providing sexual services to adult men.39 This practice occurs frequently in Japan, China, and South Korea. Because this practice is becoming more frequent among foreign tourists, they are much more difficult to trace. It requires countries to cooperate and collaborate in order to track down perpetrators from different countries.

Another trend is that young girls who are from less affluent countries and work in the child sex

tourism industry tend to prefer tourists from Japan and South Korea.40 Being with tourists from these countries is viewed as more prestigious as a result of their image as an affluent foreigner.

38 Hawke, Angela, and Alison Raphael, "GLOBAL STUDY ON SEXUAL EXPLOITATION OF CHILDREN IN TRAVEL AND TOURISM," ECPAT International, May 2016, http://cf.cdn.unwto.org/sites/all/files/docpdf/global-report-offenders-move- final.pdf. 39 Ibid, 28. 40 Rosemary Wiss (2011), “‘No Minors Allowed’: Outsider Bar girls and Trafficking in a Philippines Sex Tourism Industry” (paper presented at Young Lives Changing Times: perspectives on social reproduction, University of Sydney, 8-9 June 2011), 18.

14 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 There is also a culture of traveling businessmen within this region being offered young girls as “entertainment” in order to boost social and business relationships.

Thus, within the East Asian region, there is a historically high occurrence of tourists from wealthier countries participating in child sex tourism in less affluent countries in the same region.

Latin America

As Latin American countries are prominent tourist destinations, they are hotspots for child sex tourism. Brazil, in particular, is set to overtake Thailand as the most popular destination for child sex

trafficking in tourism and travel.41 Two factors that make children in Latin American countries particularly vulnerable are: 1. Large child populations, and 2. High poverty rates. One report finds

that, in Latin America, about 45% of children under 18 are in poverty.42

Tourism also comprises a large portion of wealth generated in Latin American countries, accounting

for 9% of GDP in the region.43 Approximately 75% of the tourists tend to come from North American countries, namely the United States of America and Canada, while the remaining 25% mainly visit

from European countries.44 With the economy having such a great reliance on tourism, people are less likely to report incidents of child sex tourism because it could have significant repercussions for the tourism industry and hence the people’s livelihoods. The UN World Tourism Organization reports that, as a result, occurrences of child sex tourism are underreported and laws related to child sex

tourism are not as heavily enforced.45

These factors all contribute to a greater number of child sex tourism offenders.

41 "Letter: Remember the Child Victims of Sex Tourism," The Guardian, September 26, 2010, Accessed June 29, 2019, https://www.theguardian.com/society/2010/sep/27/remember-child-victims-sex-tourism. 42 “Almost Half of Latin American Children Live in Poverty,” accessed November 8, 2019, https://www.soschildrensvillages.ca/almost-half-latin-american-children-live-poverty. 43 World Travel & Tourism Council (2014), “Travel & Tourism Economic Impact 2014 - Latin America”, accessed 29 June 2019, http://www.wttc.org/-/. 44 UNWTO (2013), “Tourism in the Americas”, 2013 Edition, 13-14, accessed16 June 2015, http://dtxtq4w60xqpw.cloudfront.net/sites/all/files/pdf/tourism_in_the_americas.pdf. 45 Hawke, Angela, and Alison Raphael, 31.

15 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 Internet Technology

With the recent expansion of the Internet in the past few decades, children have become much more vulnerable to sexual exploitation since there are new technologies that have developed and continue

to develop, changing the landscape of the commercial sex sector.46 For one, there is far greater access to children as a result of the improved methods of communication, such as social media, the

Internet, and mobile phones.47 These technologies provide predators with new ways to target children, access information about their victims, and market child sex tourism. Furthermore, since parents are usually unfamiliar with these new tools used in the sector, they are unable to teach their children safe Internet practices to avoid predators. However, it is also important to keep in mind that the growth in technology has helped governments combat child exploitation as well. Governments and anti-trafficking organizations have been using technology as a tool to crack down on child

exploitation and track down perpetrators.48 This demonstrates that technology has served both positive and negative purposes in regards to child exploitation in travel and tourism.

46 Ibid, 27. 47 “Study on the Effects of New Information Technologies on the Abuse and Exploitation of Children,” n.d., 15. 48 Ibid.

16 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 Past Actions

Many countries have already begun attempting to tackle child trafficking in the travel and tourism industries. While much more work remains to be done, these efforts to resolve the issue are a start.

Orphanage Tourism

Australia

In 2018, Australia became the first country in the world to deem orphanage tourism to be a form of modern slavery. Australia is one of the key countries that sends overseas volunteers for orphanages and residential care institutions and, additionally, Australians donate a lot of funding every year to orphanages, mistakenly believing that they are helping children, when they are in fact contributing

to orphanage tourism.49 As a major step towards resolving this issue, Australia has decided to formally acknowledge orphanage tourism as a type of slavery.

In making this declaration, Australia conducted a Modern Slavery Inquiry. In one of the inquiry’s reports - “Hidden in Plain Sight” - Australia outlined suggestions as to what should be done to

remediate its status as a donor to orphanage trafficking.50 The report included 11 different recommendations, including spreading awareness of the issue and encouraging organizations to divest their money from orphanages and other residential care institutions.

In late 2018, Australia passed its Modern Slavery Bill which made the change of recognizing orphanage tourism as a form of slavery. This change went into effect on January 1, 2019 and it adjusted the definition of modern slavery to also include orphanage trafficking along with other

practices.51 Another segment of the bill impacts travel companies who still work with orphanages, forcing them to evaluate the orphanages to which they supply volunteer tourists. These companies

49 Van Doore, Kathryn E, and Rebecca Nhep, “Orphanage Trafficking and the Modern Slavery Act in Australia,” E- International Relations, 13 July 2018, www.e-ir.info/2018/07/13/orphanage-trafficking-and-the-modern-slavery-act-in- australia/. 50 Ibid. 51 Ibid.

17 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 must determine if there is a significant risk of the orphanages they serve practicing orphanage trafficking.

Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade also subsequently launched a Smart Volunteering Campaign. The campaign aims to discourage volunteers from doing unskilled or short- term work in orphanages. It also strongly recommends that volunteers travelling overseas to help in

orphanages are well-informed about orphanage trafficking and are child safe volunteers.52 Through the campaign, the Australian government hopes to prevent mislead tourists from contributing to child trafficking with their voluntourism efforts.

As a result of Australia’s actions, especially its passing of the Modern Slavery Bill, it has set a global precedent. First, it helps other countries when deciding to create legislation regarding orphanage trafficking in relation to tourism, and second, it also aids countries in which the orphanage trafficking

is occurring.53 Finally, it is causing countries to take note of the relationship between child trafficking and tourism that often goes unnoticed and is not frequently discussed.

Some have noted, however, that the legislation does not go as far as making it illegal for Australians

to volunteer at orphanages overseas.54 There is a conflict of opinions over how far the legislation should go to address orphanage trafficking. On one hand, the Australian government wants to prevent Australians from contributing to modern slavery through orphanage tourism. However, they must also consider that there are many legitimate orphanages and residential care institutions which do not participate in practices of child trafficking. These institutions could genuinely use the help of volunteers. Finding a balance between these two concerns is something that not only Australia is dealing with, but all countries looking to mitigate orphanage trafficking.

52 “New Campaign to Tackle Orphanage Tourism,” Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, 1 Mar 2018, dfat.gov.au/people-to-people/volunteers/avid-news-events/Pages/new-campaign-to-tackle-orphanage-tourism.aspx. 53 Van Doore, Kathryn E, and Rebecca Nhep, “Orphanage Trafficking and the Modern Slavery Act in Australia,” E- International Relations, 13 July 2018, www.e-ir.info/2018/07/13/orphanage-trafficking-and-the-modern-slavery-act-in- australia/. 54 Gribble, Karleen, “Does Australia's Move to Curb Orphanage Tourism Go Far Enough?” The Globe Post, 14 Dec 2018, theglobepost.com/2018/12/14/australia-orphanage-trafficking-2/.

18 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 Sexual Exploitation of Children in Travel and Tourism

Ecumenical Coalition on Third World Tourism

One of the first groups to recognize that sexual exploitation of children in tourism was an issue - the Ecumenical Coalition on Third World Tourism - was a faith-related organization in Thailand. In the 1980s and 1990s, the coalition researched the issue in an effort to discover the best methods to handle SECTT. What they found was that, in Asia, the demand for child prostitutes by foreign tourists was fairly high.

ECPAT (End Child Prostitution and Trafficking)

The first international consultation on child exploitation was held by ECPAT in 1993. Many global organizations such as INTERPOL, the World Tourism Organization, the International Labour Organization, and various European NGOs were involved. The result of this conference was that the travel and tourism sector became more aware of SECTT.

ECPAT has also written the most well-known initiative to address SECTT, titled The Code of Conduct for the Protection of Children from Sexual Exploitation in Travel and Tourism. Created by ECPAT Sweden, the Code functions as an independent organization and has been adopted by the ECPAT International network. The Code allows tourism businesses to become members as long as they meet six specified criteria -

“1. Establish a policy and procedures against sexual exploitation of children.

2. Train employees in children’s rights, prevention of sexual exploitation and reporting

suspected cases.

3. Include a clause in contracts throughout the value chain repudiating and stating a

zero-tolerance policy of sexual exploitation of children.

4. Provide relevant information to travellers.

5. Support, collaborate and engage with stakeholders to prevent sexual exploitation of

children.

19 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 6. Report annually on Code implementation.”55

The primary achievement of the Code was increasing awareness of SECTT across the world, due to its straightforward approach. It has been simple to implement due to the six criteria it outlines. The initiative also fosters communication between the various stakeholders in tourism by inviting them to become members of the Code. Over 40 organizations, including companies, travel agencies and tourism associations, have become members of the Code, and it has been adopted by institutions across the world.

The UNWTO

The UNWTO also noted that child exploitation related to travel and tourism qualifies as a violation of

Article 34 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC).56 Prior to being recognized as Sexual Exploitation of Children in Travel and Tourism, SECTT was given the term child sex tourism. The WTO strongly urged governments to implement measures to combat child sex tourism through

legal and administrative pathways.57 While there is still a lack of efforts in measuring the effectiveness of various policies to mitigate SECTT, the aforementioned efforts by ECPAT and the UNWTO have spurred the recognition of this issue by governments and NGOs.

The UNWTO has also published a Global Code of Ethics in Tourism, which outlines 10 principles that countries, communities, tourism agencies, and travelers themselves should follow. The Code aims to balance the interests of the tourism industry while also paying heed to the negative consequences that can result from tourism. To promote tourism while limiting these negative impacts, such as

SECTT, the Code guides key parties on the best practices of travel and tourism.58

55 Hawke, Angela, and Alison Raphael, 90. 56 Ibid, 86. 57 Ibid. 58 UNWTO (n.d.), “Global Code of Ethics for Tourism”, accessed 13 July 2019, http://ethics.unwto.org/en/content/global- code-ethics-tourism.

20 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 Further actions by the UNWTO to mitigate SECTT include its “Don’t Let Child Abuse Travel”

Campaign launched in 2008.59 The campaign was a joint effort between the UNWTO and other partners, such as ECPAT International, UNICEF, and various tourism stakeholders. The goal of the campaign was to emphasize that the tourism industry cannot, under any circumstances, aid or be complicit in child exploitation related to travel and tourism. The campaign was successful in spreading videos internationally about child exploitation to educate stakeholders and the general public.

UN Convention on the Rights of Child

The UN Convention on the Rights of Child (CRC) was useful in that it provided countries a legal framework they could follow to address SECTT. Importantly, Article 34 of the report detailed what specifically countries should work to prevent, such as “The inducement or coercion of a child to

engage in any unlawful sexual activity.”60 As of July 2019, the CRC was ratified by 196 countries – all

eligible states except for the United States.61

The Optional Protocol on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography (OPSC) expands upon the CRC, detailing terminology related to the following categories: sale of children, child prostitution, and child pornography. The OPSC also requires that states criminalize the violations falling under those categories, ensuring that they take adequate measures to additionally

provide support for children who are victims of these crimes.62

One critical clause in the OPSC is Clause 4, which allows those offenders to be prosecuted in their own country of nationality, as opposed to the country in which they committed the offense. This clause is helpful for prosecuting and bringing to justice offenders of SECTT due to the nature of

59 AFP (n.d.), “Launch Child Wise Don’t Let Child Abuse Travel campaign”, accessed 14 July 2019, http://www.afp.gov.au/mediacentre/speeches/2003/launch-child-wise-dont-let-child-abuse-travel-campaign. 60 United Nations (1989), “UN Convention on the Rights of the Child”, UN Doc. A/RES/54/263, accessed 12 July 2019, https://treaties.un.org/. 61 “- OHCHR Dashboard.” - OHCHR Dashboard, indicators.ohchr.org/. 62 Hawke, Angela, and Alison Raphael, 87.

21 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 typical perpetrators, who are tourists visiting countries for only a short period of time. This is known

as the principle of extraterritoriality.63

63 Ibid.

22 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 Possible Solutions

Raising Awareness

Companies and organizations can join in the fight against SECTT in several ways. First and foremost, they can spread the word about SECTT to increase awareness and encourage community members and tourists to be able to identify cases of SECTT in areas with a high prevalence of child exploitation. Governments and policymakers also tend to be quite unaware about the general connections between tourism and child exploitation, so raising awareness and educating people is an

essential primary step in the fight against child exploitation in travel and tourism.64

Specifically, these awareness-raising campaigns should be targeted towards smaller businesses and travel services. This is due to the fact that offenders of SECTT are more likely to utilize these smaller

businesses rather than using services from the high end of travel options.65 With these two approaches in awareness raising: reaching out to stakeholders and intentionally targeting the specific institutions most likely to come into contact with offenders of SECTT, the world will have a comprehensive approach towards preventing child exploitation and identifying it when it occurs.

Improving Justice

Another serious problem which is standing in the way of solutions to child exploitation in travel and tourism is the flaws in doling out justice. For one, many offenders are let go without punitive measures, preventing future offenders from being dissuaded while also disempowering victims of

SECTT.66 Furthermore, cross border investigations are necessary due to the nature of SECTT

because the perpetrators are not from the place where the crime was committed.67 As a result, there is an extensive need for cooperation between nations on identifying and tracking down the

64 “GLOBAL STUDY ON SEXUAL EXPLOITATION OF CHILDREN IN TRAVEL AND TOURISM” (Koninklijke Brill NV), accessed August 7, 2019, https://doi.org/10.1163/2210-7975_HRD-9926-2016015. 65 Ibid. 66 Ibid. 67 Ibid.

23 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 perpetrator, enforcing the specific laws that pertain to the crime in order to give the offender their appropriate punishment.

Supporting Victims

Another vital step in the process of mitigating sexual exploitation of children in travel and tourism is focusing on the healing process that victims must go through to recover from the experiences they faced. Many victims have a fear of speaking out due to societal stigmas and shame that arise as a

result of sexual exploitation.68 Furthermore, even if victims do muster up the courage to speak out about what happened to them, justice systems and law enforcement are generally not well-suited to deal with situations involving exploited children. Nations can improve this situation and support victims in their healing process by investing more money in child protection systems and ensuring

that victims receive proper services.69 These services include counseling services, legal services, and even helping victims work with law enforcement to file a complaint if they so desire.

Reporting

In conjunction with repairing the systems for helping victims and increasing awareness of SECTT, it is

also vital to repair the reporting systems.70 Once an incident of child exploitation is witnessed or occurs, it is important that the bystanders or victim(s) has the necessary resources available so the

process makes it as accessible as possible for them to speak up.71 Governments can establish better reporting systems to ensure that the various stakeholders in this issue: travel and tourism industry leaders, law enforcement and security agencies, social services, and justice system members

cooperate together to resolve cases of child exploitation.72 By using an approach that involves these various stakeholders, not only is awareness increased, but many different organizations are actively taking whatever steps they are able to for countering child exploitation in tourism.

68 Ibid. 69 Ibid. 70 “About,” The Code, accessed October 17, 2019, http://www.thecode.org/about/. 71 Ibid. 72 “GLOBAL STUDY ON SEXUAL EXPLOITATION OF CHILDREN IN TRAVEL AND TOURISM” (Koninklijke Brill NV), accessed August 7, 2019, https://doi.org/10.1163/2210-7975_HRD-9926-2016015.

24 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 Bloc Positions

Asia

Many East Asian countries have focused heavily on trafficking without also considering child sexual exploitation. Japan has created an Action Plan against Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children, which details how the country can respond to cases involving sexual exploitation. Japan has also

created a National Police unit specifically designed to handle child sexual exploitation.73 In South Korea, Sunflower Centers have been established to take care of victims of sexual exploitation who are children. The country has also worked to prevent organized “sex tours” to cut off visitors’ access

to groups of children that are being sexually exploited.74 A lot of tourism agencies in East Asian countries have also signed the Global Code.

Cambodia and Thailand are also hotspots for child sex tourism. In the past few years, both countries’ tourism industries have exploded. In 2011, 8% of all of Cambodia’s jobs were supported by the travel

and tourism sector.75 Because tourism is such a significant portion of Cambodia and Thailand’s revenue, both countries value tourism. The tourism industry is an economic priority for the

government as it continues to bring in domestic revenue.76 One move that Cambodia would look favorably upon is criminalising use of non-digital child pornography and in specific places. The government is attempting to establish a legal framework against child sex tourism and is developing this domestic framework through existing international instruments combating SECTT that

Cambodia has ratified.77

In this region, victims of SECTT are also transported across borders and are exploited in other countries. Thailand, for one, experiences this problem. UNICEF reports that 10,000 girls enter

73 National Police Agency of Japan (2015), “The Situation of Child Pornography in 2014”, https://www.npa.go.jp/safetylife/syonen/no_cp/newsrelease/news_mar31_2015.pdf. 74 Hawke, Angela, and Alison Raphael, 28. 75 Ko, Sally, “Exploitation of Children Grows in Southeast Asian Tourism Boom,” South China Morning Post, 30 July 2013, www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/1292824/exploitation-children-grows-southeast-asian-tourism-boom. 76 “United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime,” Cambodia Strengthens Legal Framework against Child Sex Tourism, www.unodc.org/southeastasiaandpacific/en/cambodia/2017/07/child-sex-tourism/story.html. 77 Ibid.

25 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 Thailand annually from surrounding countries; these girls are then employed in the sex industry.78 This statistic demonstrates that the flow of exploited children across country borders is a major part of the issue. However, apparently border police and officials are complicit to this crime of kidnapping

girls across borders.79 In order to resolve the issue of child exploitation in tourism, it is necessary to first address this issue of international child trafficking as well.

Europe

Europe’s main regional organizations, such as the European Union and the Council of Europe have taken note of child sexual exploitation - even while most of their actions do not directly address SECTT. The European Economic and Social Committee strongly recommended in 2009 that Europe develop a detailed strategy on how to help victims of SECTT and mitigate the issue itself. The Council of Europe held a comprehensive Convention on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse in 2007 and created a Resolution Against Sex Tourism in 2013, both of which work to help member states learn the best ways of combatting child sexual abuse in relation

to tourism.80

Most of the initiatives have been concentrated in Western Europe, rather than Central or Eastern

Europe.81 Many European countries have established hotlines where people can call to report offenses of SECTT. However, these hotlines have not been frequently used, and even when they are used to report an offense, they scarcely lead to perpetrators being prosecuted. The British and Dutch governments have developed Child Protection Certificates which have attempted to track SECTT by

having police check those who work at schools and other institutions abroad.82

78 Chelala, César, “Children's Trafficking and Exploitation Is a Persistent, Dreary Phenomenon,” Common Dreams, 14 July 2019, www.commondreams.org/views/2019/07/14/childrens-trafficking-and-exploitation-persistent-dreary- phenomenon. 79 Ibid. 80 Hawke, Angela, and Alison Raphael, 30. 81 Stephanie Delaney (2008), “Guide to Visiting Children’s Care Projects & Schemes: Making sense of what you see and hear”, Bangkok: ECPAT International, 15; ECPAT International, “The Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children in the Commonwealth of Independent States”, 40-41. 82 “CEOP launch a new way to prevent UK child sex offenders from abusing children overseas”, CEOP, 18 October 2012, https://www.ceop.police.uk/Media-Centre/Press-releases/2012/CEOP-launcha-new-way-to-prevent-UK-child-sex- offenders-from-abusing-children-overseas-/;

26 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 Latin America

In 2005, the organization GARA (Regional Action Group of the Americas) was formed with the aim of building a strategy to combat SECTT in the region, doing so by forging partnerships between key stakeholders like tourism operators and travel agencies. The Inter-American Children’s Institute (IIN) has also been instrumental in promoting the usage of good practices to resolve SECTT, posting them on its website called ANNAObserva. All Latin American countries have signed the CRC, and many campaigns have been launched to make tourists pay heed to the legal consequences of participating in SECTT.

Canada and the United States

Both Canada and the United States are the source of many tourist perpetrators who are involved with SECTT abroad. Many leaders in both countries’ tourism industries have signed the aforementioned Code of Conduct for the Protection of Children from Sexual Exploitation in Travel and Tourism - an initiative that works with the tourism industry to prevent SECTT. One of the main steps that the United States and Canada have taken is to work with Latin American countries, in

order to stem the flow both from source countries and to destination countries.83

Africa

The UNWTO reports that Africa’s tourism sector has more than tripled during the last 20 years, and

the number of tourists is only expected to continue increasing.84 The increase in tourism has also brought with it an increase in the demand for child sex tourism in Africa. Some major tourist destinations in Africa for child sex tourism are Ghana, Kenya, and South Africa. Another factor that has caused an increase in Africa’s SECTT rates is that foreign countries have been investing in Africa’s economy and particularly in Africa’s mining industry. For example, many cases of SECTT

83 Ibid, 37. 84 Ibid, 43.

27 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 have occurred in Zambia as a result of Chinese contractors and workers who are involved with the

mining developments.85

Voluntourism is also a growing trend in Sub-Saharan Africa, further contributing to the exploitation of children. One study by the government of Ghana estimated that 90% of the children in Ghana

orphanages are not truly orphans.86 This data demonstrates a clear need for greater regulation of volunteers, to ensure they are not sexual predators, and also of orphanages, to determine that they are legitimate.

Middle East

The Middle East does not have much data about child exploitation, and this makes it harder to analyze how frequently child exploitation occurs in the region. For the most part, countries in the Middle east are used as transit points or are destinations for SECTT; however, there are some

countries such as Iran and Lebanon which are origin countries.87 Additionally, although many countries in the region have laws against child exploitation, a few still criminalize victims of child

exploitation.88

85 Focus group discussion with child protection providers, Livingstone, Zambia, 17 April 2015. 86 IRIN (2009), West Africa: “Protection children from orphan-dealers”, ACCRA, 27 May 2009. 87 Hawke, Angela, and Alison Raphael, 34. 88 Ibid, 35.

28 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 Glossary

Destination Country - A country that tourists visit for a short period of time, during which time they are involved with an act of child exploitation.

Orphanage Tourism - Tourists funding, visiting, and donating time to orphanages, typically marketed as charitable work. Orphanage tourism schemes are often scams, exploiting and ill- treating children that are not actually orphans.

SECTT - Sexual Exploitation of Children in Travel and Tourism

Source Country - A country which tourist perpetrators of child exploitation in travel and tourism have originated from.

The Global Code of Ethics in Tourism - Developed by the UNWTO, this is a list of 10 principles that are targeted towards tourism stakeholders. It aims to guide the tourism industry’s behavior to help combat child exploitation in tourism.

Voluntourism - When tourists travel abroad with the intention of volunteering or helping others.

29 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 Bibliography

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32 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 TOPIC B: CLIMATE CHANGE AND TOURISM

______Statement of the Problem

Introduction to the Problem

Global warming and climate change are two terms that are frequently used interchangeably, although they actually have different meanings. Global warming describes the trend of increasing

temperatures across the world, which has become one of the most pressing concerns of today.89 Climate change includes the many phenomena that occur as a result of increased greenhouse gas concentrations, including the warming of the planet. If climate change continues to occur, it can have catastrophic effects for every living being on planet Earth. As humans continue to release more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, climate change will continue to expand. Tourists contribute to climate change in a variety of ways, including their modes of transportation and consumption of goods and services. The UN World Tourism Organization is focusing on the role that tourism plays in contributing to the phenomena of climate change and trying to develop solutions to reduce the harmful environmental impacts tourism is having. The aim is also to ensure that economies reliant on tourism remain stable.

To understand how modern-day tourism contributes to climate change, it is important to first have an understanding why climate change is occurring. Climate change is attributed to the greenhouse

effect, which occurs when greenhouse gases trap heat in the atmosphere.90 Greenhouse gases

include water vapor (H2O), carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), and nitrous oxide (N2O). Mankind has increased concentrations of these greenhouse gases by releasing these gases through manufacturing, transportation, burning of fossil fuels, and other human activities. As a result, the increased concentrations of these gases trap more heat within the Earth’s atmosphere, warming the planet’s surface.

89 Holly Shaftel, “What’s in a Name? Weather, Global Warming and Climate Change,” Climate Change: Vital Signs of the Planet, accessed August 12, 2019, https://climate.nasa.gov/resources/global-warming. 90 “The Causes of Climate Change,” Climate Change: Vital Signs of the Planet, accessed August 10, 2019, https://climate.nasa.gov/causes.

33 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 Tourism-related activities often contribute to climate change by increasing the concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. Airplanes, cars, and trains that tourists use to reach their

destinations use fuels in a way that releases carbon emissions.91 Tourists also indulge themselves in goods and services at the travel destinations they visit, increasing their carbon footprint - the carbon dioxide emissions that result from a certain individual or entity’s activities. Because tourists typically go on vacation with the intention of enjoying themselves, they are more likely to splurge on activities that they may not normally do, including those that are not eco-friendly, such as taking

taxis, putting hotel towels for the wash frequently, or buying plastic water bottles.92

Current Situation

Tourism is a large contributor to climate change because tourist activities tend to have a large carbon footprint. Tourists are responsible for a relatively large portion of global greenhouse gas

emissions - 8%.93 This demonstrates the great extent to which tourism exacerbates climate change. Furthermore, the impact of tourism’s carbon footprint is continuing to increase. Due to decreasing travel prices as well as a larger global middle class, the number of tourists is reportedly increasing by

3-5% each year.94 With this trend of increasing tourism, it is vital that the global community finds methods of reducing tourism’s carbon footprint.

There are a variety of activities related to tourism that contribute to a large carbon footprint. The main group of activities are transportation-related, including road, air, water, and rail transportation. Of these, air transportation is reportedly contributing to the greatest amount of carbon dioxide

emissions.95 Commodities that tourists purchase also contribute to tourism’s carbon footprint. Goods, agriculture, services, accommodations, food and beverages, and construction are a few examples of tourist commodities that cause increased greenhouse gas emissions. Of these,

91 “Tourism Responsible for 8% of Global Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Study Finds,” Carbon Brief, May 7, 2018, https://www.carbonbrief.org/tourism-responsible-for-8-of-global-greenhouse-gas-emissions-study-finds. 92 Ibid. 93 “Tourism Responsible for 8% of Global Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Study Finds,” Carbon Brief, May 7, 2018, https://www.carbonbrief.org/tourism-responsible-for-8-of-global-greenhouse-gas-emissions-study-finds. 94 Ibid. 95 “FAQ - Climate Change and Tourism | Sustainable Development of Tourism,” accessed September 9, 2019, https://sdt.unwto.org/content/faq-climate-change-and-tourism..

34 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 purchases of goods causes the greatest release of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.96 Focusing on reducing greenhouse gas emissions associated with these activities will help lower tourism’s carbon footprint.

Tourism can be divided into two categories: domestic and international tourism. Domestic tourism occurs when tourists are reaching a travel destination within their own country, while international tourism occurs when tourists travel to foreign countries for their holiday destinations. The statistics of each country’s rates of domestic and international tourism vary greatly and should be taken into consideration when determining a country’ policies regarding eco-friendly tourism.

The carbon footprint of tourism varies greatly by the tourist’s country of origin. In 2013, the United States had the highest carbon footprint from domestic travel as well as travel in general, while

Canada had the highest carbon footprint from international travel.97 Other countries topping the list of highest tourism-related carbon footprints included China, Germany, India, Mexico, and Brazil.

What is interesting to note is not only the origin countries of tourists but also their destinations. The following destination emissions were calculated as carbon emissions resulting once the tourist arrived in their destination. The international travel destinations with the highest destination emissions tended to be smaller islands such as the Maldives, Mauritius, and Cyprus. Germany, New Zealand, Australia, Canada, and the United States all had high destination emissions for domestic

tourism.98 This data implies that destinations like Maldives and Germany are places where international and domestic tourists, respectively, tend to spend more money on luxurious activities that cause higher greenhouse gas emissions.

The aforementioned 2013 study also subtracted each country’s domestic tourism emissions from their destination emissions. Canada, the Netherlands, Denmark, and Switzerland had some of the

highest number resulting from this calculation.99 This means that these countries leave a greater

96 Ibid. 97 Lenzen, M. et al. (2018) The carbon footprint of global tourism, Nature Climate Change, doi:10.1038/s41558-018-0141- x 98 Ibid. 99 “Tourism Responsible for 8% of Global Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Study Finds,” Carbon Brief, May 7, 2018, https://www.carbonbrief.org/tourism-responsible-for-8-of-global-greenhouse-gas-emissions-study-finds.

35 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 carbon footprint in other countries than they receive from foreign tourists in their countries. They are considered net travellers. In contrast, countries like Maldives, Seychelles, and Mauritius have the opposite occurrence where they bear greater greenhouse gas emissions from foreign tourists than

their own residents leave in other countries. They are termed as net hosts.100 Delegates should attempt to develop solutions with the difference between net traveller and net host countries in mind and perhaps recommend separate approaches.

Other factors to consider are how income levels can cause result in varying contributions to greenhouse gas emissions. Wealthier nations reportedly have a greater carbon footprint resulting

from tourism than poorer nations.101 The logical reasoning behind this is that people with a greater socioeconomic status are able to take more international or long-distance vacations, meaning that they also contribute greater to greenhouse gas emissions. With a stable, well-paying job, people are able to take more days off and still make a comfortable amount of money. They also have more money left after daily expenditures that they can put towards international trips, which are more expensive and use more fuel. Finally, people working at larger, more international companies may tend to take more business trips abroad, increasing their levels of tourism as well as their carbon footprints. As a result, countries with wealthier citizens leave a greater carbon footprint related to tourism.

While tourism has a large impact on the environment by exacerbating climate change, it is also important for nations to examine how climate change affects tourism. Climate change-related environmental occurrences such as snow avalanches or coral bleaching often hinder tourists from visiting specific destinations. These, in turn, can significantly dent economies that are reliant on a steady flow of tourists. Finding ways to protect these tourist destinations from the impacts of climate change is another important task for nations to undertake.

Climate change has manifold negative effects on tourism, including degrading tourist attractions, causing natural disasters and loss of biodiversity, leading to food and water shortages, and other

100 Ibid. 101 Ibid.

36 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 threats.102 This is why tourism is considered an economic sector highly sensitive to climate change.103 One main reason is because tourists often choose their vacation destinations based on the location’s temperature and climate conditions. Furthermore, climate change affects what attractions tourists are able to experience and the quality of those attractions.

Some industries and locations are particularly vulnerable to the effects of climate change. It is

predicted that tourism will move to areas of higher altitudes and higher latitudes.104 Tourist destinations that are expected to be more vulnerable are mountains, islands, and coastal

destinations.105 Attractions like the Great Barrier Reef in Australia may also become less popular with tourists due to the bleaching of coral and other forms of environmental degradation due to climate change. Tourists would also find it tough to visit destinations that are hard to reach or dangerous due to climate change-related events. For example, hurricanes, wildfires, and other natural disasters would hinder tourists from visiting areas prone to these events.

A decline in popularity would subsequently cause those tourist destinations to face reduced flows of revenue from tourists. As a result, the decline in popularity of tourist destinations holds implications for local and global economies. It is thus important to consider how nations can prepare themselves for climate change-related events, especially if there economies are heavily reliant on tourism for revenue.

In conclusion, the consideration of tourism in relation to climate change should be executed in two ways: not only should the impact of tourism-related activities be evaluated to determine their effect on climate change, but also the effects of climate change on the tourism sector should be studied in- depth.

102 “Climate Change & Tourism | Sustainable Development of Tourism,” accessed August 18, 2019, http://sdt.unwto.org/en/content/climate-change-tourism. 103 Wilbanks, T. J. et al. (2007), ‘Industry, Settlement and Society’, in M. L. Parry et al. (eds.), Climate Change 2007: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability. Contribution of Working Group II to the Fourth Assessment Report of the IPCC, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge and New York, pp. 357–390. 104 Scott, D. et al. (2004), ‘Climate Change and the Distribution of Climatic Resources for Tourism in North America’, Climate Research, 27 (2), pp. 105–117. 105 IPCC (2007b), Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability – Summary for Policymakers.

37 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 History of the Problem

The history of tourism’s relationship with climate change has been influenced by the trends in both the tourism industry and Earth’s climate. These trends include changes in the popularity of tourism, modes of transportation, main contributors to greenhouse gas emissions, and signs of climate change.

Popularity of Tourism

When considering how tourism’s impact on climate change has changed over history, it is important for nations to primarily think about how tourism itself has changed. As previously discussed, it is evident that increases in tourism negatively impact climate change. This indicates that if tourism increases in popularity and more people begin to travel, tourism’s contribution to climate change will also multiply.

The number of tourist arrivals - the count of tourists arriving in a particular region - has drastically increased over the past 50 years. International tourist arrivals refers to the tourist arrivals from foreign countries. In 1950, there were 25 million international tourist arrivals across the world, but the UNWTO estimates that this number has risen to 1.4 billion international tourist arrivals every

year.106

Another consideration is the regions which receive the highest number of tourists each year. Of the following regions - Europe, Americas, Asia & Pacific, Middle East, Africa - Europe receives the

greatest number of tourists and Africa receives the least tourists.107 An interesting trend to note is that the Asia & Pacific region has surpassed the Americas in their number of international tourist

arrivals since the early 2000s.108 Overall, however, every region has seen an increase in their international tourist arrivals since 1950.

106 Max Roser, “Tourism,” Our World in Data, April 24, 2017, https://ourworldindata.org/tourism. 107 Ibid. 108 Ibid.

38 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 In fact, tourism has expanded to the point where destinations are facing overtourism. Overtourism refers to the phenomenon of tourism being so popular that it is harming the tourist areas themselves, leading to increases in travel prices, disturbing of locals, dangerous overcrowding, and

environmental degradation.109 Overcrowding is of utmost concern in relation to climate change due to overtourism causing harm to the environment and leading to greater greenhouse gas emissions.

Modes of Transportation

The modes of transport used have drastically evolved as our technology has improved and we have gained the ability to travel long distances in a shorter span of time. The most original form of transportation would be traveling by foot or on animals such as horses and camels. Afterwards came the invention of automobiles, trains, ships, and planes, all of which tend to be the most popular forms of transportation today.

Different modes of tourist transportation rely on different fuel sources, causing some modes of tourist transportation to be more environmentally friendly than others. Some modes primarily rely on nonrenewable sources of energy, such as natural gas, coal, and oil. Others rely on renewable sources of energy and are more environmentally friendly, such as wind, water, or solar power.

In regards to international travel, air travel is the primary form of transportation.110 Airplanes use jet

fuel to run, which is typically a nonrenewable energy source.111 Air transportation has increased as

the demand for it has exponentially grown since the 1970s.112 The periods during which air traffic has declined are economic recessions, which logically follows due to international travel and tourism not being a key priority during difficult economic times. Traveling longer distances more frequently also

109 Annie Lowrey, “Too Many People Want to Travel,” The Atlantic, June 4, 2019, https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2019/06/crowds-tourists-are-ruining-popular-destinations/590767/. 110 “International Tourism and Transport,” The Geography of Transport Systems (blog), February 24, 2018, https://transportgeography.org/?page_id=9622. 111 “Use of Energy for Transportation - U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA),” accessed September 9, 2019, https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/use-of- energy/transportation.php#targetText=Distillate%20fuels%20are%20used%20mainly,and%20some%20types%20of%20he licopters.&targetText=Biofuels%20are%20added%20to%20gasoline,buses%2C%20trucks%2C%20and%20ships. 112 “World Air Travel and World Air Freight Carried, 1950-2018,” The Geography of Transport Systems (blog), November 12, 2017, https://transportgeography.org/?page_id=2368.

39 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 requires greater amounts of fuel to run the airplane, meaning that not only are the number of plane rides increasing, but also that the distances of these journeys are growing. Additionally, when flight ticket prices decrease due to competition between airlines, this encourages more people to fly and seize the good deal.

Car transport is the dominant form of transportation used by tourists.113 Used in 77% of all tourist journeys, car transport is used heavily due to the independence and convenience it affords tourists, as well as its price. Coaches and buses are also used as a form of mass road transportation and both

run on gasoline, as do cars.114 Cars are regarded by many experts as worse for their environment than planes because, on average, they consume more fuel to transport the same number of passengers the same distance. Additionally, they take up more fuel when caught in traffic jams and such that cause the cars to emit much more carbon dioxide than they typically would. Thus, for long- distance travel, planes are usually a more eco-friendly option.

Other forms of mass transportation used by tourists include metros, rail, and water transport. These public mass transit systems tend to be more environmentally friendly due to many running on

renewable forms of energy like electricity.115 As tourism and travel has become cheaper and more accessible to the middle class, mass travel has also become expanded to accommodate more

tourists.116 However, online booking has also increased usage of independent modes of travel due to

the flexibility and ease with which tourists are able to book their vacations online.117

Main Tourism Contributors to Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Among the various sectors of tourism, the transportation sector contributes the greatest to greenhouse gas emissions. The transportation sector includes air, car, and rail, of which air is the least environmentally friendly as previously mentioned. Approximately 75% of all tourism-related

113 “International Tourism and Transport,” The Geography of Transport Systems (blog), February 24, 2018, https://transportgeography.org/?page_id=9622. 114 Ibid, U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). 115 Ibid. 116 Ibid, The Geography of Transport Systems. 117 Ibid.

40 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 emissions result from transportation.118 Because tourism is based on the notion of traveling to different places, it logically results in transportation being a major part of the tourism industry. With much of transportation relying on nonrenewable energy sources, the transportation sector heavily contributes to tourism-related greenhouse gas emissions.

The accommodation sector also comprises a considerable portion of tourism-related emissions;

approximately 20%.119 The accommodation sector involves heating and cooling systems in buildings, maintenance of facilities, and other activities which lead to greenhouse gas emissions. the miniature disposable plastic toiletries that hospitality establishments offer also do harm to the environment by producing tons and tons of waste that gets sent to landfills. Each accommodation differs in its approach to the environment. For example, some hotels practice rainwater harvesting, run on

renewable sources of energy like solar power, and have efficient waste treatment.120 When tourists opt for more environmentally friendly accommodations, they reduce their carbon footprint.

Tourist attractions like museums or theme parks also contribute to approximately 3.5% of emissions because of the energy it takes to keep these facilities open and running, providing good lighting,

heating and cooling systems, restrooms, and so on.121 This holds significance because it shows that the actual entertainment for tourists tends to contribute fewer emissions than the transport and accommodations required to get the tourists to these destinations. This puts the focus on trying to shift to forms of transportation and accommodation with lesser carbon footprints, so tourists can enjoy their vacations without contributing to the greenhouse gas emissions that lead to climate change.

Signs of Climate Change

When considering tourism’s impact on climate change, it is also vital for nations to examine how serious climate change is at the moment to understand and evaluate the severity of the situation.

118 “FAQ - Climate Change and Tourism | Sustainable Development of Tourism,” accessed September 9, 2019, https://sdt.unwto.org/content/faq-climate-change-and-tourism. 119 Ibid. 120 “Have an Environmentally Friendly Vacation | WWF,” accessed September 13, 2019, https://wwf.panda.org/get_involved/live_green/travel/on_vacation/. 121 Ibid, Sustainable Development of Tourism.

41 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 This will help nations develop policies of the appropriate scope and extent in regards to the tourism sector.

According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) - the United Nations body responsible for providing policymakers with assessments on climate change - Earth has already faced .9°C of global warming since the late 19th century, and the five hottest years on record have

occurred since 2010.122 2016 was reportedly the warmest year on record.123 In addition, atmospheric carbon dioxide levels have increased so rapidly in the past century that they are now at the highest

point in over 800,000 years.124 The warming has already resulted in a loss of Arctic ice, extreme

weather events, and rising sea levels in addition to other impacts.125

Other consequences that have resulted from warming - that will continue to worsen if climate change is not slowed - include melting glaciers, loss of animal habitats and various species, stronger hurricanes and flooding, increased precipitation as well as more severe droughts, and a greater

prevalence of diseases such as malaria.126 The IPCC reports that for each degree by which global warming increases, these effects will continue to multiply and risks for mankind will only be

heightened.127

Thus, the IPCC recommends limiting the warming to under 2°C, or even 1.5°C, if possible.128 This .5 degree difference in warming can make a large difference; 1.5°C of global warming would result in a loss of 70-90% of coral reefs, whereas with 2°C of warming, almost all coral reefs - 99% - would be

122 “Climate Change Evidence: How Do We Know?,” Climate Change: Vital Signs of the Planet, accessed September 15, 2019, https://climate.nasa.gov/evidence. 123 Ibid. 124 Luthi, D., et al.. 2008; Etheridge, D.M., et al. 2010; Vostok ice core data/J.R. Petit et al.; NOAA Mauna Loa CO2 record. 125 “Summary for Policymakers of IPCC Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5°C Approved by Governments — IPCC,” accessed September 14, 2019, https://www.ipcc.ch/2018/10/08/summary-for-policymakers-of-ipcc-special-report-on- global-warming-of-1-5c-approved-by-governments/. 126 “Global Warming Effects,” National Geographic, January 14, 2019, https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/global-warming/global-warming-effects/. 127 Ibid, IPCC. 128 Ibid, IPCC.

42 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 lost.129 Other impacts of slowing warming would include protecting ice in the Arctic ocean, reducing the measure by which sea levels rise, and sustaining more ecosystems.

The timeline of when climate change-related events are predicted to occur should be taken into account when responding to tourism-related climate change. By tailoring policies to the events predicted to occur short term and long term, nations will be better equipped to combat climate change.

129 Ibid, IPCC.

43 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 Past Actions

Many members of the international community have acknowledged the importance of taking action against climate change in a timely manner. Recognizing and reducing the role that tourism plays in contributing to climate change is also a significant step for nations and tourism organizations to take in the fight against climate change. Fortunately, many significant steps have already been taken to mitigate the effects of tourism on climate change and vice versa.

Millenium Development Goals

The UNWTO works to contribute to the Millenium Development Goals, which are eight goals that

each of the 191 UN member states agreed to try and achieve by the year 2015.130 The seventh goal, ensuring environmental sustainability, is of utmost importance to the UNWTO. The UNWTO is focused on raising awareness in the travel and tourism sector about climate change issues, while also

striving to bring tourism into UN discussions on international climate change.131

Expert Team on Climate and Tourism

In 2006, the UNWTO collaborated with the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) to create the Expert Team on Climate and Tourism, a group dedicated to building stronger connections between

the tourism sector and those organizations and individuals studying climate change.132 The Expert Team has published a report titled “Weather and Climate Information for Tourism.” This report discovered that tourism operators provided limited information to tourists regarding the climate, identifying this as hindering progress on mitigating climate change. The report suggested that the

130 “WHO | Millennium Development Goals (MDGs),” WHO, accessed October 2, 2019, https://www.who.int/topics/millennium_development_goals/about/en/. 131 “From Davos to Copenhagen and Beyond: Advancing Tourism’s Response to Climate Change,” UNWTO, World Tourism Organization, 2009, http://sdt.unwto.org/sites/all/files/pdf/537_from_davos_to_copenhagen_and_beyond_unwto_paper_electronic- version_lr.pdf. 132 Ibid.

44 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 relationship between the tourism industry, climate change researchers, and government authorities

should allow for an easier communication of climate-related information.133

World Travel and Tourism Council

The World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) is a body representing the interests of the global Travel and Tourism sector and is comprised of the industry’s major business leaders. In regards to climate and the environment, the WTTC has recognized that climate change poses a significant risk

to the tourism industry.134 Thus, they are in support of measures which help to mitigate climate change and protect the tourism sector.

In 2009, the WTTC released a document titled “Leading the Challenge on Climate Change,” which contained a framework expressing guidelines for how organizations in the travel and tourism sector should reduce their contribution to climate change. These guidelines included a goal of cutting the

industry’s carbon emissions by at least 30% by 2020 and by 50% from 2005 to 2035.135 This was followed up by another report issued in 2015, titled “Connecting Global Climate Action.” This report

noted that, since 2005, WTTC Member companies had become more carbon efficient by 20%.136 WTTC Member companies also improved their reporting of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) disclosures, through which companies are transparent about their actions related to the ESG areas.

In 2018, the WTTC partnered with the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) to produce a “Common Agenda for Climate Action,” with the following aims: raising awareness of the consequences resulting from the two-way link between tourism and climate

change, and reducing the travel and tourism sector’s contribution to climate change.137 As a result of the Common Agenda, several key actions will be taken, including the UNFCCC recognizing WTTC

133 Ibid. 134 “Climate and Environment Action,” WTTC, accessed September 23, 2019, https://www.wttc.org:443/priorities/sustainable-growth/climate-change/. 135 Ibid. 136 “Home,” WTTC, accessed September 23, 2019, https://www.wttc.org:443/. 137 “COMMON AGENDA FOR CLIMATE ACTION,” World Travel and Tourism Council, April 2018, https://www.wttc.org/- /media/files/declarations/unfccc-climate-change.pdf.

45 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 member companies who have accomplished carbon neutrality, initiating dialogue within the travel and tourism industry on how the sector can help fulfill the Paris Agreement, and the WTTC

documenting case studies of the best practices used by members of the travel and tourism sector.138

In addition to the aforementioned actions, the WTTC has also joined the UNFCCC’s Climate Neutral Now initiative. This initiative was launched in 2015 with the intention of inviting every person in the world - including organizations and governments - to do their part by joining the fight against

climate change.139 The goal is to achieve a climate neutral world - one in which the net CO2 emission

are zero - by 2050.140 By signing the Climate Neutral Now initiative, the WTTC also committed to going climate neutral by 2050.

International Conferences on Climate Change and Tourism

During the past two decades, the UNWTO has worked with other United Nations agencies to organize several International Conferences on Climate Change and Tourism. The first was held in 2003 and produced the Djerba Declaration on Climate Change and Tourism, which took the first step

of acknowledging the link between climate change and tourism.141 It brought together members of

tourism industry businesses, authorities, and organizations from 45 countries.142 This presented one of the first spaces for the different stakeholders in the tourism industry to come together and discuss their individual positions on climate change and tourism.

The Second International Conference on Climate Change and Tourism took place in 2007 and expanded on the work of the first conference. The conference recommended specific actions for four groups: governments and international organizations, the tourism industry and destinations,

138 Ibid. 139 “Climate Neutral Now | UNFCCC,” accessed September 23, 2019, https://unfccc.int/climate-action/climate-neutral- now. 140 “What Is Really Climate Neutral?,” Climate Neutral Group, March 2, 2015, https://www.climateneutralgroup.com/en/news/what-is-really-climate-neutral/. 141 “1st Conference on Climate Change and Tourism | Sustainable Development of Tourism,” accessed September 28, 2019, http://sdt.unwto.org/event/1st-conference-climate-change-and-tourism. 142 Ibid.

46 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 consumers, and research and communications networks143. The end result of the conference was the Davos Declaration, containing these recommendations and expressing the UNWTO’s strong commitment towards mitigating climate change.

The conference called for governments to incorporate tourism into their nations’ adoption of the Kyoto Protocol - an international agreement seeking to reduce nations’ greenhouse gas emissions -

and other climate-related agreements.144 Governments and international organizations were also urged to provide more financial and technological support to tourism operators in order to support

their efforts in abiding to stricter standards of greenhouse gas emissions.145 The tourism industry was encouraged to implement more energy efficient methods and spread awareness of climate

change impacts among consumers and staff.146 Consumers were advised to think critically about how they could reduce their carbon footprint during travel, and the conference promoted further

research on climate change’s impacts on the travel and tourism industry.147 The conference as a whole stressed the importance of continuing action by all tourism stakeholders, also strongly pushing for future climate change and tourism conferences by the UNWTO, UNEP, and WMO.

Climate and Tourism Information Exchange Service

The Climate and Tourism Information Exchange Service was established by the UNWTO in 2008 in order to compile and organize information relating to climate change, including data, policy papers,

and studies.148 This information exchange service promoted the spread of climate related information and allowed for easier access to the most recent data by tourism stakeholders. This service would also facilitate more effective climate change policy making by these stakeholders.

143 World Tourism Organization and UNEP, eds., Climate Change and Tourism: Responding to Global Challenges (Madrid: World Tourism Organization, 2008). 144 Ibid. 145 Ibid. 146 Ibid. 147 Ibid. 148 “From Davos to Copenhagen and Beyond: Advancing Tourism’s Response to Climate Change,” UNWTO, World Tourism Organization, 2009, http://sdt.unwto.org/sites/all/files/pdf/537_from_davos_to_copenhagen_and_beyond_unwto_paper_electronic- version_lr.pdf.

47 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 Several reports have been produced as a result, one of which is “Climate Change and Tourism ‐ Responding to Global Challenges”.

This report was created prior to the Second International Conference on Climate Change and Tourism. The UNWTO collaborated with the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) to provide a summary of climate change in relation

to tourism.149 This summary was fundamental because it was used to provide background

information for the upcoming conference.150 One of the main topics of the report was how tourism would change in a world with climate change, and how tourist destinations can adapt in order to avoid being negatively impacted. The report also outlined the trends of global tourism’s greenhouse

gas emissions as well as ways for tourism stakeholders to mitigate these emissions.151

Hotel Energy Solutions Project

The UNWTO launched the Hotel Energy Solutions Project in 2008. Acting as the project manager, the UNWTO led this effort, while the European Agency for Competitiveness and Innovation helped

co-fund the project. 152Additional partners included the United Nations Environment Programme, the International Hotel and Restaurant Association, ADEME– the French Agency for Energy

Management– and EREC– the European Council for Renewable Energies.153 As the international accommodations sector was estimated to account for 21% of tourism’s carbon dioxide emissions in

2005, the hotel industry sought to reduce their carbon footprint.154 The Hotel Energy Solutions Project worked on providing European countries with the tools and materials that would be useful in increasing the energy efficiency of their tourism accommodations. The project was also responsible

149 World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) and United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), eds., Climate Change and Tourism – Responding to Global Challenges (World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), 2008), https://doi.org/10.18111/9789284412341. 150 Ibid. 151 Ibid. 152 “From Davos to Copenhagen and Beyond: Advancing Tourism’s Response to Climate Change,” UNWTO, World Tourism Organization, 2009, http://sdt.unwto.org/sites/all/files/pdf/537_from_davos_to_copenhagen_and_beyond_unwto_paper_electronic- version_lr.pdf. 153 Ibid. 154 Ibid.

48 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 for spreading the word about these tools in an effort to encourage as many hotels as possible to adopt and test these tools.

World Tourism Day

The UNWTO recognizes World Tourism Day on September 27 of each year. In celebration of World Tourism Day in 2008, the UNWTO sought to promote the Davos Declaration among tourism stakeholders by setting the day’s theme as “Tourism – responding to the challenge of climate

change”.155 One of the main priorities of the Davos Declaration deliberations was providing support to the least developed countries and small island states who require more financial and technological

support to implement programs that reduce greenhouse gas emissions.156 As such, the UNWTO also used World Tourism Day to encourage greater financing for countries whose tourism operators

needed more support in implementing environmentally friendly systems.157

Kyoto Protocol

Beside policies that reduce the tourism industry’s contribution to climate change, it is also very important to consider large climate change reduction measures in general because these measures create awareness about climate change. Greenhouse gas emissions will be reduced on the whole, and the measures also work to reduce the impact of the detrimental consequences climate change has for the tourism industry.

The Kyoto Protocol of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is an international agreement which set emission-reduction targets for many countries in an effort to

reduce greenhouse gas emissions.158 Entering into force in 2005, the protocol mainly mandated that

developed countries meet specific targets.159 The protocol provided countries with several means they could use to reduce their emissions. One program called the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) was created to encourage more developed countries to invest in green infrastructure and

155 Ibid. 156 Ibid. 157 Ibid. 158 “What Is the Kyoto Protocol? | UNFCCC,” accessed September 28, 2019, https://unfccc.int/kyoto_protocol. 159 Ibid.

49 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 technology in less developed countries.160 Additionally, countries were encouraged to plant more

trees or use emissions trading - buy and sell the rights to emit greenhouse gasses.161

These steps, along with other climate reduction measures, have an impact on the tourism sector because they work to reduce the impact that climate change has on tourism.

Paris Agreement

While the Paris Agreement was not created in direct relation to the tourism sector, it did have enormous consequences for the sector. Negotiated during the UNFCCC in 2015, the agreement

focused on limiting global warming to below 2°C in the long-term.162 It also improved transparency

in reporting by having all countries report their greenhouse gas emissions.163 Nations were also to enact significant steps towards cutting back greenhouse gas emissions, which would be reviewed

every 5 years.164 Additionally, developed countries were obligated to fund $100 billion in climate finance every year until 2025. One major impact of the Paris Agreement is that its demand for increased transparency has pushed more companies in the tourism sector to disclose their greenhouse gas emissions.

160 “Kyoto Protocol | History, Provisions, & Facts,” Encyclopedia Britannica, accessed September 28, 2019, https://www.britannica.com/event/Kyoto-Protocol. 161 Ibid. 162 “Climate Change & Tourism | Sustainable Development of Tourism,” accessed August 17, 2019, http://sdt.unwto.org/en/content/climate-change-tourism. 163 Daniel Scott and Stefan Gössling, “The Paris Climate Change Agreement and Its Implications for Tourism,” n.d., 38. 164 Ibid.

50 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 Possible Solutions

Although climate change is already having significant detrimental impacts on the Earth, there are many actions that the tourism industry can take to mitigate climate change before our climatic conditions worsen.

Adaptation

Climate change is changing temperatures, levels of precipitation, sea levels, and many other environmental conditions. Because of these conditions, the tourism sector will have to adapt quickly

to reduce the impact that they face with climate change.165 There are various stakeholders in the tourism industry who are responsible for implementing these adaptations against climate change. However, each stakeholder has a different level of flexibility that they can use to protect themselves

against climate change.166

Tourists are most able to adapt to climate change.167 They have this high level of adaptivity because they are generally able to choose which destinations they visit, how long they stay for, what time of year they travel, where they stay within the specified destination, and what sites and attractions they wish to see during their vacation.

Transportation and tour providers are a little less flexible than tourists when adapting to climate change because they must react to the demand by adjusting their supply, unlike tourists, who

provide the demand.168 Finally, tourism accommodations and operators like hotels, people who work in the tourism attractions area, and communities have the hardest time adapting to tourism. It is they who are faced with the brunt of the work when safeguarding their communities and tourism destinations against climate change, meaning that they have to work through the strenuous processes of determining what the best methods are to deal with the challenges that climate change

165 World Tourism Organization and UNEP, eds., Climate Change and Tourism: Responding to Global Challenges (Madrid: World Tourism Organization, 2008). 166 Ibid. 167 Scott, D. and Jones, B. (2006a) 168 World Tourism Organization and UNEP, eds., Climate Change and Tourism: Responding to Global Challenges (Madrid: World Tourism Organization, 2008).

51 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 presents. Furthermore, they have invested large amounts of money into their businesses, leaving

them at financial risk if the tourism industry suffers drastic changes as a result of climate change.169

Use of Climate Services

Climate services include companies who provide ways to strategically employ climate information

for the betterment of the tourism sector.170 For example, at a popular tourist ski resort, scientists and climate analysts can work together to identify the risks that climate change poses when determining

how reliable snowfall would be in the area.171 Upon assessing which areas would be likely to have snow and which would be lacking, the ski resort can close down sections of the resort that would require more snowmaking and thus increase tourism costs. Furthermore, these areas can be replaced by areas that may be higher up and more likely to receive snowfall, thus protecting the financial security of the ski resort.

Many companies in the tourism industry are now beginning to realize the importance and usefulness of climate services similar to the ski resort example, so they can secure their own tourist attraction for an extended amount of time before the severity of climate change increases. By relying on climate consulting agencies to provide a comprehensive analysis of climatic conditions while shifting to more data-driven planning, the tourism sector can ensure that they protect themselves and regain stability by analyzing the optimum ways for them to respond to the growing threats that climate change poses.

Investing in Research

While the number of studies relating to climate change and tourism is growing, there still remain

many gaps in the available research.172 In order to reduce the impact that climate change has on tourism and to also develop more sustainable methods of tourism, states can promote and

169 Ibid. 170 “Climate Change and the Future of Ski Resorts,” Downdays - #FreeskiCulture (blog), accessed October 16, 2019, https://www.downdays.eu/articles/climate-change-future-ski-resorts/. 171 Ibid. 172 Jacqueline Hamilton and Richard Tol, “The Impact of Climate Change on Tourism and Recreation,” Human-Induced Climate Change: An Interdisciplinary Assessment, December 1, 2004, https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511619472.015.

52 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 encourage the scientific community’s research into the close, interconnected relationship between climate change and tourism. With further research, current gaps in this area of scientific literature can be narrowed so organizations and governments can proceed better informed, relying on more

accurate predictions and data.173

To make this happen, however, there must also be a greater push to take a closer look at the

underlying factors causing climate change - especially tourism.174 By focusing not just on climate change alone but also thinking critically about how various industries like the tourism sector impact climate change, governments will be able to generate greater support for policies pushing to mitigate climate change.

This would require a better cooperation between the tourism industry and major experts on climate

change.175 This would include involvement of the scientific organizations, travel and tourism organizations like the World Travel and Tourism Council, key international parties like the United Nations Environment Programme and the United Nations World Tourism Organization, and other stakeholders invested in both the tourism and climate change areas.

Transport Policies

There are also several measures that should be taken in order to reduce tourism’s contributions to climate change. One of the major policy recommendations is to amend transportation policies by integrating more sustainable measures. Taxes are one way of achieving this end. A fuel tax would involve a tax added to fixed amounts of petroleum that are sold to disincentivize people from buying

petroleum.176 This means that flying, driving, and other forms of transportation that consume a lot of fuel would likely decrease in usage. However, this may be difficult due to many bilateral agreements

regarding the tax exemptions for fuel.177

173 Ibid. 174 World Tourism Organization and UNEP, eds., Climate Change and Tourism: Responding to Global Challenges (Madrid: World Tourism Organization, 2008). 175 Ibid. 176 Ibid. 177 Ibid.

53 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 An emissions tax would be focused on reducing emissions by encouraging companies to shift to

forms of energy with fewer greenhouse gas emissions.178 Emissions trading is also another possible regulation that nations could implement, and this could be controlled through a cap-and-trade

scheme.179 Cap and trade schemes work when there is a set cap on the amount of emissions that can be released by companies, but companies are able to trade their emissions credits with each other to

make a profit.180 This scheme encourages companies to reduce their emissions so they can reduce the amount of money they spend on emissions and pushes organizations to find more sustainable

solutions in the long-term.181 As a result, a cap-and-trade system could reduce greenhouse gas emissions, helping nations to take one step forward in mitigating climate change.

Tourism Sector Accommodations

Accommodations like hotels and lodges can improve their energy efficiency by upgrading heating and cooling systems, using locally produced foods in restaurants, and making greater usage of

daylight for lighting.182 Furthermore, accommodations can look into using renewable sources of energy as opposed to nonrenewable sources of energy. Renewable sources of energy would include

wind, photovoltaic, solar, thermal, geothermal, biomass and waste.183

178 Ibid. 179 Ibid. 180 “How Cap and Trade Works,” Environmental Defense Fund, accessed October 17, 2019, https://www.edf.org/climate/how-cap-and-trade-works. 181 Ibid. 182 World Tourism Organization and UNEP, eds., Climate Change and Tourism: Responding to Global Challenges (Madrid: World Tourism Organization, 2008). 183 UNEP (2003), Switched on: Renewable Energy Opportunities for the Tourism Industry, UNEP, Paris, (Online), available: http://www.iclei-europe.org/fileadmin/user_upload/tourism/Switched_on_2003_1-5.pdf (14-12-2007).

54 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 Bloc Positions

Mountain Regions

Mountains are affected by climate change at a greater rate than most other terrestrial regions,

displaying their sensitivity to this phenomenon.184 Great mountain ranges in the world facing climate-related problems include the Alps in Europe, Himalayas in Asia, the Andes in South America,

the Alaskan Range in North America, and the Great Dividing Range in Australia.185 Climate change affects tourism on these mountains in several key ways, including natural hazards, health issues, and

loss of biodiversity.186

One prime example is the European Alps, in which climate change has been quite visible in recent years. The Alps contain glaciers of which many have been reduced to half of their previous size

because of climate change.187 This change results in landslides, mudslides, and rock falls which

threaten the safety of tourists who visit this region.188 The Alps span many countries, including France, Switzerland, Monaco, and Italy. As a popular tourist destination, they are used for adventure

sports like mountain-biking and paragliding as well as winter sports like skiing.189 Climate change clearly poses a significant threat to the tourism industry in the Alps.

It is established that melting glaciers and reduced snowfall in the Alps would make this holiday destination vulnerable. However, the people living in the Alps also contribute significantly to the greenhouse gas emissions that lead to climate change. They consume 10% more energy per capita

184 “Climate Change Impacts on Mountain Regions of the World | United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization,” accessed October 13, 2019, http://www.unesco.org/new/en/natural-sciences/resources/communication- materials/exhibitions/climate-change-impacts-on-mountain-regions-of-the-world/. 185 “Top 10 Mountain Ranges in the World,” Owlcation, accessed October 13, 2019, https://owlcation.com/stem/TopTenMountainRanges. 186 Sanjay Kumar Nepal, “Mountain Tourism and Climate Change: Implications for the Nepal Himalaya,” 2013, https://doi.org/10.3126/ntdr.v1i1.7367. 187 “Climate Change: Why the Alps Are Particularly Affected — CIPRA (e),” accessed October 12, 2019, https://www.cipra.org/en/cipra/international/projects/completed/cc-alps/about/climate-change-alps. 188 Ibid. 189 “Alpine Tourism | WWF,” accessed October 12, 2019, https://wwf.panda.org/knowledge_hub/where_we_work/alps/problems/tourism/.

55 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 than the average person in Europe.190 As the Alps are at a high elevation and have a cold climate,

locals in the Alps use more heating compared to other European regions.191 This, in turn, uses up more energy. The best way for the European Alps to reduce their contribution to greenhouse gas emissions is to renovate old buildings and reconstruct them with more sustainable designs.

Coral Reefs

Coral reefs are enjoyed by numerous tourists every year who come to see the reefs and their vast biodiversity while swimming, diving, and snorkeling. Apart from these activities, reefs also contribute to local economies by encouraging tourists to visit surrounding beaches, restaurants, and

attractions.192 Not to mention the locals who rely on reefs for their livelihoods because they protect

the fishing industries and serve as barriers against storms.193 Reefs generate $36 billion across the world every year through tourism, demonstrating how these reefs are a significant component of the

global economy.194

Major reefs in the world include those located in the Florida Keys, Bahamas, Mexico, Indonesia,

Australia, and Mauritius.195 Unfortunately, coral reefs are among the tourist destinations being severely impacted by climate change. Greenhouse gas emissions, as previously mentioned, increase

global temperatures and thus causing water temperatures to rise as well.196 As a result, corals release from their tissues the symbiotic algae that contributes to their beautiful colors which attract

190 “Climate Change: Why the Alps Are Particularly Affected — CIPRA (e),” accessed October 12, 2019, https://www.cipra.org/en/cipra/international/projects/completed/cc-alps/about/climate-change-alps. 191 Ibid. 192 “How Tourism Can Be Good for Coral Reefs,” The Nature Conservancy, accessed October 13, 2019, https://www.nature.org/en-us/what-we-do/our-insights/perspectives/how-tourism-can-be-good-for-coral-reefs/. 193 Ibid. 194 “Coral Reef Tourism: Data Highlights Conservation Opportunity for Industry | Mapping Ocean Wealth,” accessed October 13, 2019, https://oceanwealth.org/coral-reef-tourism-data-highlights-conservation-opportunity-for-industry/. 195 “How Tourism Can Be Good for Coral Reefs,” The Nature Conservancy, accessed October 13, 2019, https://www.nature.org/en-us/what-we-do/our-insights/perspectives/how-tourism-can-be-good-for-coral-reefs/. 196 “Coral Reefs and Climate Change,” IUCN, November 6, 2017, https://www.iucn.org/resources/issues-briefs/coral- reefs-and-climate-change.

56 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 tourists.197 When global warming occurs over time, this process becomes even worse and corals

experience bleaching, a process through which they turn white and even die.198

The dying of coral reefs is significant for many reasons, but the reason most important for tourists is

that they affect the ocean ecosystem and bring with them continual losses in biodiversity.199 If the ocean ecosystems collapse, tourism in these areas will rapidly decline, thus detrimentally impacting the local economies relying on these tourists.

A current example of this is in Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, where domestic tourism to the reef has

drastically fallen due to a lack of tourism appeal for bleached coral reefs.200 Tourists were aware of the bleaching and expressed concern over it, citing this as a key factor in preventing them from

visiting the reefs.201 As a result, the local tourism industry has been forced to develop alternate tourist attractions to make up for the losses they are facing as a result of the Great Barrier Reef’s

bleaching.202

Flooded and Sinking Cities

Climate change causes ocean levels to rise, which is threatening many cities that are surrounded by water. Venice is a prime example of this. Visited by over 30 million people every year, Venice is a

popular and historic tourist destination.203 Although Venice has been flooded many times before, the flooding has intensified in recent years due to climate change. Some areas of the city are actually at

197 Ibid. 198 Ibid. 199 Ibid. 200 Ben Smee, “Domestic Tourism to Great Barrier Reef Falls in Wake of Coral Bleaching,” The Guardian, June 7, 2018, sec. Environment, https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/jun/08/domestic-tourism-to-great-barrier-reef-falls-in- wake-of-coral-bleaching. 201 Ibid. 202 Ibid. 203 David Brennan On 10/30/18 at 8:07 AM EDT, “Is Venice Sinking? Worst Floods in a Decade Cover Three-Quarters of the City,” Newsweek, October 30, 2018, https://www.newsweek.com/venice-sinking-worst-floods-decade-cover-three- quarters-city-1192937.

57 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 risk of going completely underwater, and building foundations have also been compromised due to

the flooding.204

India experiences similar situations. Although the country faces a monsoon season every year from June to September, climate change is intensifying the flooding by causing more extreme

precipitation events and raising temperatures.205 Furthermore, the melting glaciers in the Himalayas are adding fuel to the fire by contributing more water to floods in surrounding areas like

Uttarakhand.206 These increased floods are damaging the country’s infrastructure, including roads, bridges, and buildings. By harming the country’s infrastructure, the area becomes less safe for tourists.

Other regions troubled by increased flooding resulting from climate change are Rio de Janeiro and Eastern Cape. Rio’s rains have grown so strong that they have flooded streets, trapped cars, caused

buildings to collapse, and created landslides.207 Rio is a major tourist destination known for its beaches, festivals, and beautiful landscapes. Eastern Cape province in South Africa, the home of

Nelson Mandela, also faces flooding issues and has displaced thousands of people.208

The levels of flooding faced by these areas has damaged infrastructure, flooded roads, forced people

to evacuate their homes.209 All of these events make it difficult for tourists to arrive at and leave the destination country due to delayed flights, also increasing the safety risk that tourists face when visiting these areas. These factors dissuade tourists from visiting, reducing tourist populations in each of these regions.

Bodies of Water

204 Ibid. 205 “As the Monsoon and Climate Shift, India Faces Worsening Floods,” Yale E360, accessed October 13, 2019, https://e360.yale.edu/features/as-the-monsoon-and-climate-shift-india-faces-worsening-floods. 206 Ibid. 207 “As Climate Shifts Bring ‘horror Movie’ Floods, Rio Struggles to Adjust,” Reuters, May 9, 2019, https://www.reuters.com/article/us-brazil-floods-climatechange-idUSKCN1SF0WL. 208 Kimon de Greef, “South Africa Floods Leave at Least 60 Dead,” The New York Times, April 24, 2019, sec. World, https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/24/world/africa/durban-floods.html. 209 Ibid.

58 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 While some areas have experienced intense flooding, others are going through severe periods of drought as a result of climate change. The Dead Sea, landlocked by Israel, Jordan and Palestine is the

lowest spot on land on Earth.210 The Dead Sea is popular among tourists because the chemical

properties of its salty water allow tourists to float on the water.211 Furthermore, tourists enjoy

covering themselves in the black mineral rich mud from the Dead Sea’s floor.212 In recent years, its water levels are dropping at a rate of about four feet per year, as a result of both warming

temperatures and area residents pulling water from the Dead Sea’s freshwater watershed.213

Rainforests

Rainforests have been heavily impacted by climate change, especially as a result of deforestation. The Amazon Rainforest in Brazil is frequented by tourists who come to hike through the Amazonian

jungle, go on river cruises, and see the diverse wildlife.214 Unfortunately, the Amazon Rainforest is one of many areas that have been adversely impacted by climate change. Climate change is increasing the frequency of El Nino events, a phenomenon which is causing dry conditions in

Northeast Brazil and wet conditions in southern Brazil.215 This demonstrates that climate change is altering the rain patterns and temperatures in the region, which will in turn affect the biodiversity,

water availability, and forest areas in the Amazon rainforest.216

Another factor affecting the Amazon rainforest is deforestation, through which humans cut down trees in the rainforest. In the process of deforestation, the trees that would normally be absorbing carbon dioxide emissions are being cut down, increasing the concentration of greenhouse gases that are released into the atmosphere. This further contributes to climate change while also altering the

210 “Under the Dead Sea, Warnings of Dire Drought - The Earth Institute - Columbia University,” accessed October 14, 2019, https://www.earth.columbia.edu/articles/view/3352. 211 “Dead Sea,” Tourist Israel (blog), July 21, 2012, https://www.touristisrael.com/dead-sea/289/. 212 Ibid. 213 “Under the Dead Sea, Warnings of Dire Drought - The Earth Institute - Columbia University,” accessed October 14, 2019, https://www.earth.columbia.edu/articles/view/3352. 214 “The Amazon Rainforest for Tourists,” accessed October 15, 2019, https://traveltips.usatoday.com/amazon-rainforest- tourists-12384.html. 215 “Climate Change in the Amazon | WWF,” accessed October 15, 2019, https://wwf.panda.org/knowledge_hub/where_we_work/amazon/amazon_threats/climate_change_amazon/. 216 Ibid.

59 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 vegetation in the region from forests to fire-prone brush and savannah.217 Thus, a lack of rainfall and change in vegetation could damage the Amazonian rainforest beyond repair, resulting in drastically reduced tourist populations.

Islands

Island states like Maldives are particularly at risk of being flooded due to the rising sea levels that come with climate change. Although Maldives is known by tourists for its beaches, lagoons, and reefs, it is already facing severe consequences as a result of climate change. It has experienced

increases in intense flooding, storm surges, and cyclones in recent years.218 Maldives is especially vulnerable because it is a low lying country, and more than two-thirds of its major infrastructure is no

less than 100 meters from the shoreline.219 As a result, Maldives is now tasked with creating safer

infrastructure, building their fiscal resilience, and providing safe drinking water.220

Winemaking

Another vital part of the tourism industry for many countries - winemaking - could be damaged by climate change. Bordeaux is a region in France famous for its wine, but once its winemaking process is damaged, it could affect it for decades to come. By its very nature, wine can take decades to make and requires a delicate balance of the right temperatures, water levels, and nourishment. With climate change bringing increased temperatures, heatwaves across Europe, and reducing rainfall in some areas, this could affect the grapes involved in winemaking by causing them to be ready two to four weeks earlier than they should be. This would impact the entire winemaking industry, affecting popular tourist activities like wine tasting.

217 Ibid. 218 “Bracing for Climate Change Is a Matter of Survival for the Maldives,” World Bank Blogs, accessed October 15, 2019, https://blogs.worldbank.org/endpovertyinsouthasia/bracing-climate-change-matter-survival-maldives. 219 Ibid. 220 Ibid.

60 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 Glossary

Carbon footprint - Carbon dioxide emissions that result from a certain individual or entity’s activities

Climate change - Includes the many phenomena that occur as a result of increased greenhouse gas concentrations, including the warming of the planet

Coral bleaching - A process through which corals release from their tissues the symbiotic algae that contributes to their beautiful colors which attract tourists, causing them to turn white and even die

Davos Declaration - End result of Second International Conference on Climate Change and Tourism in 2007, containing recommendations and expressing the UNWTO’s strong commitment towards mitigating climate change

Djerba Declaration on Climate Change and Tourism - End result of First International Conference on Climate Change and Tourism, which took place in 2003

Domestic tourism - When tourists are reaching a travel destination within their own country, meaning the travel is domestic

Global warming - Describes the trend of increasing temperatures across the world

Greenhouse gases - Gases such as water vapor (H2O), carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), and

nitrous oxide (N2O) which contribute to climate change through the greenhouse gas effect

Greenhouse gas effect - When increased concentrations of greenhouse gases trap more heat within the Earth’s atmosphere, warming the planet’s surface

International tourism - When tourists travel to foreign countries for their holiday destinations, meaning the travel is international

International tourist arrivals - Refers to the tourist arrivals from foreign countries

61 United Nations World Tourism Organization | MUNUC 32 Net hosts - Countries who bear greater greenhouse gas emissions from foreign tourists than their own residents leave in other countries.

Net travellers - Countries who leave a greater carbon footprint in other countries than they receive from foreign tourists in their countries

Overtourism - The phenomenon of tourism being so popular that it is harming the tourist areas themselves, leading to increases in travel prices, disturbing of locals, dangerous overcrowding, and environmental degradation

Tourist arrivals - The count of tourists arriving in a particular region

World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) - A body representing the interests of the global Travel and Tourism sector and is comprised of the industry’s major business leaders

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