Arabian Travel Market (ATM) 2023, the travel and tourism event in the Middle East, will celebrate its 30th annual anniversary by unveiling 30 long-term sustainable net zero goals.
The event, which will take place at the Dubai World Trade Centre from 1-4 May, announced that ‘Working Towards Net Zero’ will be the official theme of its next edition.
Danielle Curtis, Exhibition Director, ATM, said: “If the UAE and the wider Middle East are to achieve their net zero ambitions, the travel and tourism industry will play a vital role, given its share of regional economic activity and of course its growth potential.
“With COP27 being held in Sharm El Sheikh this year and COP28 in Dubai in 2023, it is essential that hotels, airlines, leisure resorts, and all associated companies start to put their sustainability strategies in place. While unveiling our strategic path to net zero, ATM 2023 will also provide an ideal platform for industry players to engage with sustainability experts and their peers to address the challenges of achieving net zero.”
According to a World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) report, travel and tourism account for between 8-11 percent of the world’s emissions. It also revealed that 42 percent of the travel and tourism businesses analyzed currently have publicly announced climate targets. Moreover, 61 percent of travelers say they want to travel more sustainably in the future and over 80 percent of travelers plan to prioritize sustainability in their travels in the coming year.
Furthermore, research by Skift and McKinsey has found that globally, more than 3,500 organizations across all industries have set emission-reduction targets, including airlines, hotels, restaurants, and those providing leisure and tourism services. Air travel alone is predicted to account for 12 to 27 percent of global emissions by 2050, and 40 percent of travelers globally say they are willing to pay at least 2 percent more for carbon-neutral flight tickets.
