Code of conduct

Achieving social responsibility

1. Actively involve the local community in planning and decision-making and provide capacity building to make this a reality;
2. Assess social impacts throughout the life cycle of the operation in order to minimise negative impacts and maximise positive ones;
3. Endeavor to make tourism an inclusive social experience and to ensure that there is access for all, in particular vulnerable and disadvantaged communities and individuals;
4. Combat the sexual exploitation of human beings, particularly the exploitation of children;
5. Be sensitive to the host culture, maintaining and encouraging social and cultural diversity;
6. Endeavor to ensure that tourism contributes to improvements in health and education.

Achieving environmental responsibility

1. Assess environmental impacts throughout the life cycle of tourist establishments and operations and ensure that negative impacts are reduced to the minimum and maximizing positive ones;
2. Use resources sustainable, and reduce waste and over-consumption;
3. Manage natural diversity sustainable, and where appropriate restore it; and consider the volume and type of tourism that the environment can support, and respect the integrity of vulnerable ecosystems and protected areas;
4. Promote education and awareness for sustainable development – for all stakeholders;
5. Raise the capacity of all stakeholders and ensure that best practice is followed, for this purpose consult with environmental and conservation experts

Achieving economic responsibility

1. Assess economic impacts before developing tourism and preferitise development that benefits local communities and minimizes negative impacts on local livelihoods;
2. Maximize local economic benefits by increasing linkages and reducing leakages, by ensuring that communities are involved in, and benefit from, tourism;
3. Develop quality products that reflect, complement, and enhance the destination;
4. Market tourism in ways which reflect the natural, cultural and social integrity of the destination;
5. Adopt equitable business practices, pay and charge fair prices, build partnerships, and recruit and employ staff recognizing international labor standards;
6. Provide appropriate and sufficient support to small, medium and micro enterprises to ensure tourism-related enterprises thrive and are sustainable.