UN Tourism & easyJet Forge ESG Partnership

UN Tourism and EasyJet Holidays have increased their collaboration to develop a groundbreaking ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) Framework for the sector's businesses.

The latest UN Tourism data shows that international tourist arrivals have reached 96% of pre-pandemic levels, and full recovery is expected by the end of the year. As the sector grows, it's essential to go beyond measuring the economic impacts and consider environmental dependencies, community impact, employee well-being, and more. The tourism sector needs a unified Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) reporting framework, making it challenging for companies and stakeholders to measure, compare, and effectively communicate their sustainability efforts and impacts.

Scaling Up Support for ESG

To tackle this issue, UN Tourism, in collaboration with the University of Oxford (Oxford SDG Impact Lab), has been working on creating the first standardized ESG Framework for Tourism Businesses. easyJet Holidays has been involved in the project since the beginning and is now increasing its support to expedite the subsequent crucial phases. Through this strategic partnership, easyJet holidays will have a significant role in aiding the research and development of the ESG Framework. This includes conducting pilot tests with companies worldwide, engaging stakeholders, and organizing awareness initiatives.

UN Tourism Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili says: "UN Tourism is proud to be working with EasyJet Holidays to address the vital need for a clear, consistent ESG Framework for our sector. As we roll out this framework, such public-private collaboration plays a key role in scaling up our efforts to better understand and manage tourism's impacts at every level."

Garry Wilson, easyJet holidays' Chief Executive Officer, says: "We're extremely proud to continue our partnership with UN Tourism, a founding partner in developing the first consistent ESG framework for the tourism industry. We strongly believe in the power of collaboration between the public and private sector as an important and effective driver of achieving our Sustainable Development Goals."

Collaborative effort and standard statistics framework

The development of the ESG Framework is guided by extensive research and input from nearly 600 tourism companies worldwide. This comprehensive approach ensures that the Framework addresses the sector's real-world challenges and opportunities.

The ESG Framework is closely connected to the "Statistical Framework for Measuring the Sustainability of Tourism" (SF-MST) of the UN Tourism. The SF-MST has been endorsed by the United Nations Statistical Commission with unanimous support from all 193 UN Member States. It establishes basic ideas, meanings, data structures, and signs for evaluating tourism sustainability from international to local levels. The ESG Framework extends these principles to businesses, promoting greater alignment between public and private sector data.