GSTC Standards: A global framework for sustainable tourism
“The future of travel is sustainable travel. The GSTC standards are your guide.”
— Randy Durband, CEO, GSTC
Discover the GSTC Standards and why they matter
Too often, tourism takes more than it gives — but it doesn’t have to. The GSTC Standards serve as the global standards for sustainability in travel and tourism. The Standards are used for education and awareness-raising, policy-making for businesses and government agencies and other organization types, measurement and evaluation, and as a basis for certification.
From reducing environmental harm to strengthening local economies, this explainer film breaks down the core principles behind GSTC’s practical standards. The GSTC Standards are the minimum, not the maximum, which businesses, governments, and destinations should achieve to approach social, environmental, cultural, and economic sustainability.
Whether you’re a hotelier, tour operator, destination manager, or event planner, the standards offer a clear pathway towards sustainability that benefits people, planet, and place.
A common language for sustainable tourism
The GSTC Standards help define what true sustainability looks like in practice, not in theory. They focus on how a business or destination is run.
It isn’t about checking boxes, it’s about long-term, positive change. The GSTC Standards are the result of a worldwide effort to develop a common language about sustainability in tourism, and are arranged in four pillars:
- Sustainable management
- Socioeconomic impacts
- Cultural impacts
- Environmental impacts (including consumption of resources, reducing pollution, and conserving biodiversity and landscapes)
Flexible and applicable across the industry
From hotels to destinations, tour operators to attractions, and MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions), the GSTC Standards are tailored to every corner of the industry — with food and beverage coming soon.
