TOTA Declares a Climate Emergency With International Initiative "Tourism Declares"
The Thompson Okanagan Tourism Association (TOTA) has declared a climate emergency as a signatory of Tourism Declares, a global tourism-specific initiative bringing together organizations and individuals from across the industry to take purposeful action and reduce Carbon emissions. TOTA has committed to developing and publishing a comprehensive "Climate Emergency Plan" within the next 12 months, including transparent goals, measurable reductions, and yearly progress updates.
"The climate crisis poses an immense threat. Throughout COVID-19 recovery efforts, we must stay one step ahead to not only mitigate environmental impacts, but work toward transforming tourism into a force for good," said Glenn Mandziuk, TOTA President and CEO. "Becoming a signatory of Tourism Declares is reflective of TOTA's Regional Strategy, Embracing Our Potential, which has lead to this commitment to take climate action towards long-term, measurable results."
Like all signatories of Tourism Declares, TOTA has committed to five key actions, which includes accepting current advice of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) stating the need to cut global Carbon emissions to 55% below 2017 levels by 2030, sharing a public commitment, and acting as an advocate for change and urgent action. TOTA intends to support the regional as well as wider travel and tourism sector through continued leadership efforts, accelerating the transition to a low carbon tourism economy.
During the TOTA and Cariboo Chilcotin Coast Tourism Association (CCCTA) joint Virtual Tourism Summit on November 25 & 26, Jeremy Smith, co-founder of Tourism Declares, was welcomed to a panel discussion to share background, insights, and practical tools for climate action. A recording of the panel can be found at News.TOTABC.org/update/Summit-Recap/Climate-Action.
Any company, organization, or individual working in tourism is welcome to join the Tourism Declares initiative, and TOTA encourages you to take action.
Declare and Share at TourismDeclares.com.
About the Thompson Okanagan Tourism Association (TOTA):
The Thompson Okanagan Tourism Association is a non-profit society, governed by an elected Board of Directors, which represents business and community tourism interests throughout the region, and is supported by the British Columbia Ministry of Tourism, Arts, Culture, and Sport. It is an Industry-led organization that represents and supports all business and community tourism interests in the region, while also helping to implement provincial tourism policies. For more information, visit TOTABC.org.
About Tourism Declares:
Tourism Declares supports tourism businesses, organizations, and individuals in declaring a climate emergency and taking action to reduce their carbon emissions. As advocates for the urgent changes needed to accelerate a just transition towards carbon-free tourism, Tourism Declares is building a global community of industry leaders, developing resources to help everyone create their Climate Emergency Plans, and ensuring a fair and sustainable recovery from COVID-19. For more information, visit TourismDeclares.com.