The climate crisis and the green transition dominated a meeting at the European Parliament in Brussels with the participation of representatives of ten leading pan-European associations and bodies in the travel and tourism sector, EU Commissioner for Sustainable Transport and Tourism, Apostolos Tzitzikostas, MEPs and representatives of the European Commission and Member States.
The event is a follow-up to the Rhodes Forum, the first pan-European meeting of this level, which took place in April at the initiative of HOTREC and led to the signing of the emblematic “Rhodes Declaration” under the title “European Tourism: Resilience in the Age of Climate Crisis.”
The meeting was attended and welcomed by the Regional Governor of South Aegion, Giorgos Hatzimarkos, who hosted the first Forum.
The importance of open public-private dialogue
During the discussions, sector representatives reported on the progress made towards carbon emission reduction targets and the steps being taken to support environmental commitments, highlighting the significant challenges for an effective and timely green transition. Travel and tourism leaders underlined the importance of maintaining an open dialogue between the public and private sectors, with the aim of reducing the bureaucratic burden of reporting requirements, creating funding opportunities and sharing effective best practices.
Tzitzikostas underlined the crucial role of Tourism for Europe. He committed to presenting a European Sustainable Tourism Strategy to help the sector adapt to and mitigate the impacts of climate change.
Need for support to fully exploit our potential
After the meeting, HOTREC President Alexandros Vassilikos, on behalf of all the participating bodies and associations, made the following statement: “We are continuing in Brussels the initiative we started last April in Rhodes, an island that has demonstrated resilience to the consequences of the climate crisis and is a pioneer in sustainability actions. Our sector has already demonstrated its commitment to sustainability through significant investments at many levels. From promoting sustainable aviation fuels and developing energy-efficient technologies, to creating comprehensive sustainability certifications and emissions measurement methodologies, we have laid the foundations for meaningful change. However, we recognize that realizing our full potential requires significant political support, targeted funding and engagement with policymakers so that our smaller businesses, the true backbone of our sector, can fully participate in this transition.”
