Driving Catalonia's Tourism Sector in the transition to Climate Neutrality and capitalising at EU level through a Climate Hub

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Europe's tourism sector is a major economic driver, attracting 51% of global tourists. However, it has significant environmental downsides, including urban sprawl, waste production, habitat fragmentation, and cultural loss. Tourism contributes about 8% of global carbon emissions, with transport accounting for 5% of global CO2 in 2016. If left unchecked, tourism emissions could rise by 25% by 2030. Tourism is highly vulnerable to climate change, with southern European destinations facing increased sea levels, coastal erosion, unreliable snowfall, and more frequent droughts. Despite this, the tourism industry remains one of the least prepared to adapt to climate challenges, hindered by governance barriers like lack of expertise, poor coordination, and insufficient data for monitoring climate actions. Various global initiatives, such as the Glasgow Declaration on Climate Action in Tourism and the European Tourism Transition Pathway, call for coordinated climate action. These emphasize decarbonization, and improved collaboration between public and private sectors. However, progress remains slow. The Climate Action Plan for the Tourism Sector in Catalonia offers a pilot solution. It aims to address governance issues by enhancing horizontal (across government levels) and vertical (across sectors) collaboration. The plan brings together key stakeholders—such as the Catalan Tourist Board (ACT), Barcelona Provincial Council (DIBA), and Catalan Government Railways (FGC)—to implement climate mitigation and adaptation measures. The Catalonia initiative also focuses on building expertise, promoting data sharing, and ensuring funding allocation for climate projects. The project will use the EU Climate Hub from Necstour to share best practices with other European regions, creating a replicable governance model. This model could serve as a blueprint for sustainable tourism across Europe, supporting the decarbonization of the sector and ensuring climate resilience.