Setting the Standard: 2024 World Tourism Day Ethics Statement

World Committee’s 2024 Statement

The World Committee on Tourism Ethics (WCTE), an unbiased organization that answers directly to the General Assembly of the World Tourism Organization (UN Tourism), convened with a new temporary chair and membership. Following discussion, the Committee decided to release the following statement:

The World Committee on Tourism Ethics (WCTE) welcomes the World Tourism Organization’s (UN Tourism) decision to designate “Tourism and Peace” as the theme for World Tourism Day 2024. The theme is timely, given the current global climate of conflict and division.

Recognizing tourism´s significant influence in fostering cross-cultural understanding as a foundation for peace and sustainable development, the Committee reaffirms tourism’s vital role as a catalyst for peace, mutual understanding, and friendship among people worldwide.

Acknowledging the United Nations Secretary-General’s statement that “building peace is a conscious, bold, and even radical act,” and guided by article 1 of the UN Tourism Global Code of Ethics for Tourism, the Committee calls for all efforts to support peace negotiations in conflict-affected destinations, adhering to the fundamental principles of the United Nations Charter.

The World Committee on Tourism Ethics interprets, implements, and evaluates the UN Tourism Global Code of Ethics for Tourism provisions, promotes its ethical principles, and monitors the private sector’s practical application, including the right to Tourism.

Tourism should always remind people of the importance of dialogue, peace, tolerance, and mutually beneficial interactions between people and countries.