The 3rd International Congress on Ethics and Tourism, to take place in Krakow, Poland on 27-28 April 2017, will discuss ways to advance the commitment of tourism towards sustainable and responsible practices. The event is one of the major components of the 'Enhancing the Understanding of European Tourism' Project, conducted by UNWTO in cooperation with the European Commission.

Social responsibility champions, academics, private sector and representatives from national tourism administrations will meet in Krakow with civil society and international organizations to discuss how advance in the shared responsibilities of tourism development. The Congress acquires particular relevance as it takes place during the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development, which is being celebrated worldwide throughout 2017.

The event, with the presence of Rajan Datar host of Fast Track - BBC World News' flagship travel programme, will feature the views of policy makers and companies such as NH Hotel Group, TripAdvisor, ClubMed, TUI, and Amadeus IT Group. National, regional and international organizations like the European Network for Accessible Tourism (ENAT), European Destinations of Excellence Network (EDEN), UNESCO World Heritage Centre and VisitScotland will also share their best practices.

Topics under discussion include strategic policy frameworks and models of governance as well as innovative and multi-stakeholder management models for the development of a more responsible and inclusive tourism sector.

Special attention will be devoted to the Tourism for All, the preservation of natural and cultural resources and best practices that contribute to socio-economic empowerment of local communities, women and youth.

The 3rd International Congress on Ethics and Tourism is organized by UNWTO in partnership with the Government of Poland and the European Commission.

Additional information:

The 'Enhancing the Understanding of European Tourism' Project is a joint project by UNWTO and the Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs of the European Commission (DG GROW). The project aims to improve the socio-economic knowledge of the tourism sector, enhance the understanding of European tourism and contribute towards economic growth and job creation, thus improving the competitiveness of the sector in Europe. The project includes three components: 1) increased cooperation and capacity building in tourism statistics; 2) assessment of tourism market trends; 3) promotion of cultural tourism through the Western Silk Road; and 4) promoting sustainable, responsible, accessible and ethical tourism. The project is co-financed with COSME funds and will run until February 2018.

About UN Tourism

The World Tourism Organization (UN Tourism) is the United Nations agency responsible for the promotion of responsible, sustainable and universally accessible tourism.

As the leading international organization in the field of tourism, UN Tourism promotes tourism as a driver of economic growth, inclusive development and environmental sustainability and offers leadership and support to the sector in advancing knowledge and tourism policies worldwide.

Our Priorities

Mainstreaming tourism in the global agenda: Advocating the value of tourism as a driver of socio-economic growth and development, its inclusion as a priority in national and international policies and the need to create a level playing field for the sector to develop and prosper.

Promoting sustainable tourism development: Supporting sustainable tourism policies and practices: policies which make optimal use of environmental resources, respect the socio-cultural authenticity of host communities and provide socio-economic benefits for all.

Fostering knowledge, education and capacity building: Supporting countries to assess and address their needs in education and training, as well as providing networks for knowledge creation and exchange.

Improving tourism competitiveness: Improving UN Tourism Members' competitiveness through knowledge creation and exchange, human resources development and the promotion of excellence in areas such as policy planning, statistics and market trends, sustainable tourism development, marketing and promotion, product development and risk and crisis management.

Advancing tourism's contribution to poverty reduction and development: Maximizing the contribution of tourism to poverty reduction and achieving the SDGs by making tourism work as a tool for development and promoting the inclusion of tourism in the development agenda.

Building partnerships: Engaging with the private sector, regional and local tourism organizations, academia and research institutions, civil society and the UN system to build a more sustainable, responsible and competitive tourism sector.

Our Structure

Members: An intergovernmental organization, UN Tourism has 160 Member States, 6 Associate Members, 2 Observers and over 500 Affiliate Members.

Organs: The General Assembly is the supreme organ of the Organization. The Executive Council take all measures, in consultation with the Secretary-General, for the implementation of the decisions and recommendations of the General Assembly and reports to the Assembly.

Secretariat: UN Tourism headquarters are based in Madrid, Spain. The Secretariat is led by the Secretary-General and organized into departments covering issues such as sustainability, education, tourism trends and marketing, sustainable development, statistics and the Tourism Satellite Account (TSA), destination management, ethics and risk and crisis management. The Technical Cooperation and Silk Road Department carries out development projects in over 100 countries worldwide, while the Regional Departments for Africa, the Americas, Asia and the Pacific, Europe and the Middle East serve as the link between UN Tourism and its 160 Member States. The Affiliate Members Department represents UN Tourism's 500 plus Affiliate members.

Rut Gómez Sobrino
Principal Media Officer
(+34) 91 567 81 60
UN Tourism