On 20 November 2025 co-hosted by Travalyst and The Travel Foundation, in collaboration with UN Tourism, this flagship online event was the global virtual gathering point for tourism during COP30 Tourism Thematic Days. Read on for highlights from each session below.
Programme overview
Morning session
**10:00 – 10:30 CET
Opening and insights sharing: COP30 progress - observations and implications for tourism**
The COP30 insights provide an overview of key developments and discussions from the event to date, helping participants understand what they mean for the tourism sector. Major themes, advances, and challenges emerging from the negotiations will be unpacked, highlighting their relevance to tourism’s climate agenda. The session aims to translate global progress into insights that can guide sector-wide action and collaboration.
- Sally Davey, CEO, Travalyst
- Zoritsa Urosevic, Executive Director, UN Tourism
- Jorge Laguna-Celis, Head of the One Planet Network, UNEP
- Susanne Etti, Global Environmental Impact Manager, Intrepid
Highlights and key takeaways
- Strong emphasis on urgency as the world enters the last five-year window before 2030 milestones (Paris Agreement, Global Biodiversity Framework, SDGs).
- Tourism was reiterated as a ****major economic engine (≈10% GDP, 1 in 10 jobs) yet there continues to be room for improvement regarding its inclusion in global climate policy.
- COP30 was the first round of climate negotiations following the Global Stocktake, a moment when all countries were expected to better realign and raise their national climate ambitions.
- UN Tourism stressed the importance of institutional frameworks and country-level coordination.
- UNEP underlined the convergence of climate, biodiversity, and community resilience and the importance of the Glasgow Declaration pathways.