The tourism industry realises something needs to change. In September 2019, 150 companies (and counting!) in the sector signed the International Tourism Plastic Pledge, an initiative of MVO Nederland. In doing so, they are expressing their joint commitment to reduce plastic pollution at holiday destinations worldwide.

Representing around 50 million holidaymakers

The signatories include TUI Group, Radisson Hotel Group, Hostelling International and Green Key International. Together they represent around 180,000 employees and 50 million holidaymakers. By signing the Plastic Pledge, they recognise the urgency and the need to work together to reduce plastic pollution. They promise to work on a concrete roadmap for the international tourism sector, continue efforts to reduce the use of single-use plastics, and exchange knowledge, tools, and best practices. “In that way the pledge contributes to the Sustainable Development Goals set by the UN,” says Saskia Pepping, Project Manager at MVO Nederland.

Speeding things up

Saskia: “Many companies in the sector have already taken action to reduce their use of plastic. There are so many inspiring examples out there. If they join forces and share their knowledge, we can speed things up. That's exactly what we are aiming for with the Plastic Pledge. The more companies we involve, the larger our impact will be on reducing plastic pollution at beautiful holiday destinations.”

Towards a concrete roadmap

In the coming months a working group of representatives will draw up a roadmap with concrete goals and a monitoring system to measure impact. They will do this in collaboration with the UNWTO (World Tourism Organization) and the Ellen MacArthur Foundation. By working together with these international and renowned organisations, the scope and impact of the pledge will be enlarged. Saskia: “We will present the roadmap internationally in the first quarter of 2020. In the meantime, signatories will be invited to a meeting helping them to take the next steps in their organisation. We will also encourage participating companies and organisations to share their sustainability challenges and solutions on tourismplasticpledge.com, the matchmaking platform for entrepreneurs, employees and like-minded people to solve their sustainability challenges.”