On May 23, 2025, the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) and Greenview launched the Global ESG Policy Tracker, a pioneering tool to help Travel & Tourism businesses navigate the complex and rapidly evolving landscape of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) regulations worldwide. Featuring an interactive online dashboard, comprehensive policy coverage across 65+ countries, quarterly updates, and expert advisory support, the tracker empowers companies to comply with regulations, benchmark progress, and integrate sustainability into core strategies. As the $10 trillion tourism sector faces mounting pressure from regulators and consumers, can this tool drive the shift to responsible tourism, or will small businesses struggle to keep up?

Features and Functionality

The WTTC-Greenview Global ESG Policy Tracker, developed by Greenview—a leader in hospitality ESG data since 2014—offers:

• Interactive Dashboard: A user-friendly platform consolidating ESG policies at regional, national, and state levels, covering carbon emissions, waste management, labor standards, and biodiversity.

• Comprehensive Coverage: Tracks regulations in over 65 countries, including EU’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), U.S. SEC Climate Disclosure Rules, and India’s Business Responsibility and Sustainability Reporting (BRSR).

• Quarterly Updates: Ensures data reflects the latest policy shifts, critical as 30% of global ESG regulations changed in 2024, per Greenview’s database.

• Thematic Summaries: Distills complex policies into actionable insights, e.g., mandatory emissions reporting or plastic bans.

• Advisory Group: Experts guide tool development, ensuring relevance for hotels, airlines, tour operators, and destination management organizations.

The tracker builds on Greenview’s decade-long policy database, analyzing 5,000+ sustainability regulations, and WTTC’s advocacy for a sector contributing 10% of global GDP ($10.3 trillion in 2024).

“This tool helps companies not just comply but lead in responsible tourism,” said WTTC CEO Julia Simpson.

Greenview’s Eric Ricaurte added, “Our ESG expertise delivers practical intelligence for global hospitality leaders.”

Why It Matters

Travel & Tourism faces intense ESG scrutiny. The sector’s 8% of global carbon emissions (4.5 Gt CO2 in 2024, per WTTC) and reliance on natural and cultural assets make sustainability critical. Regulatory pressure is rising:

• EU: CSRD mandates 50,000+ companies, including 10,000 tourism firms, to report emissions and transition plans by 2026, aligning with 1.5°C Paris goals.

• Global: 20 countries, including Canada and Singapore, introduced mandatory ESG disclosures in 2024, impacting 80% of tourism multinationals.

• Consumer Demand: 70% of travelers prefer sustainable options, per Booking.com’s 2025 survey, driving brand loyalty.

The tracker addresses a key challenge: 80% of tourism businesses are SMEs with limited resources, per WTTC. Without tools like this, compliance costs—$50,000-$200,000 annually for mid-sized firms—could overwhelm them.

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Strategic Context

The tracker aligns with WTTC’s sustainability agenda, including its 2024 “Nature Positive Tourism” report with UN Tourism, advocating biodiversity protection, and Puerto Rico’s 2023 sustainability benchmarking. It complements initiatives like:

• Snam’s $2B SLB: Ties financing to net-zero goals, showing ESG’s financial integration.

• TotalEnergies’ 263 MW Solar: Highlights renewable energy’s role in decarbonizing tourism supply chains.

• Alt Carbon’s $12M: Uses carbon removal to offset tourism emissions.

Challenges and Risks

• SME Access: The tracker’s subscription cost (undisclosed but estimated at $5,000-$20,000/year) may exclude small operators, who employ 60% of the sector’s 330 million workers.

• Data Complexity: Interpreting 5,000+ policies requires expertise; only 15% of tourism firms have dedicated ESG staff, per Oliver Wyman.

• Policy Gaps: Emerging issues like climate risk disclosure or biodiversity credits, noted in WTTC’s 2025 roadmap, may lag in coverage.

• Political Risks: Trump’s 2025 deregulation push could weaken U.S. ESG mandates, creating global inconsistencies, as seen in Columbia River salmon cuts.

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What’s Next?

The tracker will expand to cover climate risk, social equity, and sustainable supply chains by 2026, per WTTC’s roadmap. A planned 2025 WTTC summit in Tokyo will showcase case studies, like Accor’s 50% emissions cut using the tool. Greenview aims to onboard 1,000 firms by 2026, targeting 5% of global tourism businesses.

The sector’s 3% annual decarbonization rate must double to meet 2050 net-zero goals, per IATA. The tracker could save firms $1 billion in compliance costs by 2030, per WTTC estimates, while boosting competitiveness. Yet, SMEs need subsidies or simplified access to avoid being left behind.

“This is about resilience and leadership,” Simpson said.

As tourism grows to $15 trillion by 2033, the tracker is a linchpin for sustainable transformation. Will it empower the sector to thrive, or widen the gap between large and small players?

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