AMUN 2020 UNWTO Guidebook - page 1

Managing the negative environmental

effects of overtourism

TABLE OF CONTENT

Chairs Introduction 2
Content Developers Introduction 3
Introduction 4
Committee Introduction
Topic Introduction
Topic Background 5
Definition of Key Terms
Causes
Consequences
Current situation 9
Current Situation analysis
Core Issues
Past Actions 12
Actions by the UN
Actions by the International Community
Bloc Positions 14
Possible Solutions 17
Questions to Consider 18
Bibliography 19
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I. Chairs Introductions

A. Chau Anh Ngoc Tran:

Distinguished delegates,
It is my utmost pleasure to welcome you all to AMUN and thank you for your in-
terest in the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO). My name is Chau
Anh N. Tran, Chau Anh for short – a graduated 10th grader from The Olympia Schools
and a soon-to-be year 11 student at London Ashbourne College.
It is my honor to come back to AMUN 2020 as a Chair for the 2nd time. I am very
excited to work along with the Core team as well as our excellent delegates this year. My
co-chair, Dang Khanh Linh, and I will be guiding you, our distinguished delegate, along
with the conference and by participating in our committee, we’ll certainly give you a
memorable and interesting journey.
Coming to AMUN 2020, I genuinely believe you will have a great time. Not only
will you be able to find yourselves, and learn about the world around you, you will em-
bark on a terrific experience with new friends. I’m looking forward to meeting you all in
AMUN 2020, and especially in UNWTO!

B. Dang Khanh Linh:

Dear fellow delegates,

Welcome to AMUN 2020, and especially for those who have chosen UNWTO,
I greet you with my utmost delight and joy!
My name is Khanh Linh, an 11th grader majoring Russian-English in Hanoi-Am-
sterdam High School. It is my honor to be the chairwoman of UNWTO and with Chau
Anh, we will guide you through the topic: Managing the negative environmental effects
of overtourism.”
MUN may sound daunting at first and to be honest, I still panic in every conference I’ve
been to. But I cherish every one of them. In MUN, I unravel fascinating insights into
world issues and learn how to be a diplomat while improving my skills and having un-
forgettable memories with other talented people. In AMUN last year, I was the delegate
of France in UNODC and this is the conference that I learned to believe in myself more.
I’m sure that you will have an invaluable experience too.
I’m sincerely glad to have you guys with me on this journey. I’m looking forward
to meeting you all and hearing your passionate voice, heart, and mind in AMUN 2020.
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II. Content Developer Introduction

Bao Nguyen:

As a sophomore at Hanoi International School, I am a kid no longer. When

you attend the Amsterdam Model UN conference, so should you. Upon rep-
resenting your State, you are given by your Government and people, strict
requirements, bold expectations and unique objectives.

My advice for those in doubt would be to listen to what you think and say — if
you sound right and appropriate for your country stance, you will know. But
to erase self-doubt entirely is to have faith in one’s message, and that means to
prepare your research rigorously, as it will assist you at every step of the way.

Achieving so is a pain for many of us, particularly those who are coming to
AMUN 2020 as their first Model UN conference. I can only urge you so much
to gather all your energies and skills in order to make this a productive confer-
ence, however, try and do so decisively. For learning comes from failures, and
therefore, from failures blossom the flowers of wealth, purpose and knowl-
edge.
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III. Introduction

A. Committee Introduction:

United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) is the world’s leading tour-
ism agency. It encourages tourism as an engine of economic growth, equitable develop-
ment and sustainable environment, and provides sector leadership and support to advance
awareness as well as global tourism policies.

UNWTO also promotes the adoption of the ‘Global Code of Ethics for Tourism’,
maximizing the tourist contribution to its socio-economic potential while mitigating its
adverse effects and is dedicated to enhancing tourism as a method achieving the Sustain-
able Development Goals (SDGs). The membership of UNWTO includes 159 countries, 6
Associate Members and more than 500 members from private sectors, educational institu-
tions, tourism organizations and local tourism authorities.

Through generating market knowledge, maintaining competitive and sustainable

policies and instruments on tourism, holding educational platforms and training for tour-
ists and enabling tourism as a development tool has created economic and socio-cultural
benefits for more than 100 countries all over the world.

B. Topic Introduction:

Overtourism can be described as “the impact of an excessive amount of tourists on

a visited destination, which can negatively affect locals’ quality of life and tourists’ expe-
riences.” This ever-increasing problem seems impossible to eradicate, as its root causes,
which include poor tourism planning and lack of awareness, are yet to be addressed by
governments. The situation could be poised to get worse. According to the World Tourism
and Travel Council, of the 1.4 billion international tourist trips in 2018, more than 36%, or
half a billion, involved a visit to one of the planet’s 300 most popular cities, a trend that is
set to continue upwards. Cities such as New Delhi, Cairo, Manila, Bangkok and Moscow
are unprepared to deal with the surge in travellers expected in the next decades. The effects
of overtourism on the environment are the most important to discuss since these negative
influences on our ecosystem would disrupt other sectors such as culture, economy, and the
citizens’ lifestyle. Regarding environmental impacts, overtourism can lead to water con-
sumption, air emissions, and overflowed waste and litter in visited destinations. Interna-
tional organizations and governments must take control of modern tourism patterns and
resolve these issues to help the industry develop while keeping in mind the importance of
the affected environment.
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IV. Topic Background

Understanding that tourist destinations are unique in their condition and needs is
central to providing effective, localized policies against environmental degradation caused
by overtourism. For example, a destination’s seasonality and main purposes of travel (e.g.
personal, business) may answer the question of where and when to allocate human and
financial resources. The aforementioned principle may be recognized by most policy-
makers, however, some countries have allowed or implemented inadequate restrictions
against tourism volume growth. By underestimating and not considering environmental
facets in the decision-making process, governments may risk lowering citizens’ quality
of life in the long run. When addressing this topic, countries both must evaluate and act
upon the various drivers and implications of overtourism, exclusively through the lens
of environmental conservation. Discussions and research should go hand in hand with
policy administration; the former sets the vision and informs decision-makers while the
latter appropriately deploy available resources and energies to materialize the objectives.

A. Definition of Key Terms:

Overtourism: Long before the emer- Cultural tourism: Cultural tourism is

gence of buzzwords such as ‘overtour-
ism’, UNWTO define tourism’s carrying
capacity as “the maximum number of
people that may visit a tourist destina-
tion at the same time, without causing
destruction of the physical, economic
and socio-cultural environment and an
unacceptable decrease in the quality of
visitors’ satisfaction”.
the act of travellers visiting particular
destinations in order to experience and
learn about a particular culture. This
can include many activities such as; at-
tending events and festivals, visiting
museums and tasting the local food and
drinks.

Mass tourism: Mass tourism refers to the movement of a

large number of organized tourists to certain destinations
for recreational purposes. Mass tourism has received a neg-
ative reputation for its disruptiveness to local citizens’ lives
and the environment of visited places.
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B. Causes:
Before its effects on the environment are realized, the tourism volume of a des-
tination must first grow to a point that it decreases the quality of life of locals and/or
visitor experience. That happens through specific scenarios, including 1) public utilities
and transport systems struggling to handle increased usage (OECD 93); and 2) multina-
tional corporations using their competitive advantage to take an increased local tourism
market share, which in a way dries government revenue needed to conserve damaged
areas. This paper points out 3 main drivers of mismanagement leading to overtourism:
geographically unbalanced tourism development, a tourism policy centred on volume,
and the rise of unregulated tourism activities. These industry-focused factors speak to
the importance of effective government action in mitigating the environmental impacts
of overtourism.

1. Geographically unbalanced tourism development:

Tourist destinations in rural settings bear the largest environmental impact, per
the OECD, out of all area types (94). Corresponding to their relatively low economic
activity and usually higher exposure to nature, rural areas face cramped funding and yet
greater vulnerability to environmental degradation (see Annex 1). Despite the urgency
to improve public services, frequent fluctuations in tourism volume and revenue ques-
tion the actual rate of return for these investments. This complicated scenario prompts
governments to consider promoting economic activities unique to and which exploit the
strengths of a rural area, to establish more permanent tourist demand without greatly
harming the environment.

2. A volume-centered tourism policy:

There is nothing wrong with increasing the number of visitors, but tourism’s eco-
logical impact becomes less manageable when the capacity of ecosystems to withstand
impact from human activities is exceeded. A real-life example of this is Maya Bay, an
island destination in Thailand which welcomed 5,000 tourists every day, and has, since
2018, closed itself for rehabilitation. As part of the country’s most popular national park,
it receives a large number of speedboats transporting tourists from the mainland and
nearby islands (e.g. Phuket). The chemicals in products which visitors typically consume,
such as sunscreen, along with such disperses by speedboats, contribute to the destruction
of 80% of coral reefs around Maya Bay. Promoting tourism volume without adequate at-
tention to locals’ quality of life and visitor experience will quickly reduce the resilience of
tourist destinations against its environmental impacts.
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3. Rise of unregulated tourism activities:

If the prospect for tourism development in a destination rises, current businesses
will expand and fresh ones will be established to provide innovative services that appeal
to the increased tourism volume. Newer forms of tourism are not inevitably illegal or
unethical, but they are more likely than their conventional counterparts (e.g. traditional
hotels, transport businesses) to be unregulated. In Santorini, Greece, for example, accom-
modation sharing services, unmonitored by local authorities, are ushering tourists into
residential areas unimpededly, leading to periods of water and electricity shortage, and
an overburdened waste management system. As is the case in many countries currently,
not all businesses play by the same rules, which lowers the overall effectiveness of envi-
ronmental regulations.

C. Consequences:
The quality of the environment, both natural and man-made, is essential to tourism.
However, tourism’s relationship with the environment is complex and many activities
can have adverse environmental effects if careful tourism planning and management are
not undertaken. Tourism can be sometimes viewed ironically as it often destroys the very
things that it relies on.

Negative environmental impacts of tourism occur when the level of visitor use is greater
than the environment’s ability to cope with this use. Uncontrolled conventional tourism
poses potential threats to many natural areas around the world. It can put enormous
pressure on an area and lead to impacts such as soil erosion, increased pollution, dis-
charges into the sea, natural habitat loss and increased pressure on endangered species
and heightened vulnerability to forest fires. It often puts a strain on water resources, and
it can force local populations to compete for the use of critical resources.
1. Destruction of natural ecosystems and biodiversity:
The flora and fauna are usually the first to suffer from overtourism in the most
popular natural tourist destinations. In some natural destinations, environmental issues
led to the destruction of entire ecosystems. Among these problems are deforestation, ex-
ploitation of the soil and pollution, which create massive destruction to the climate and
the environment of the destinations. Take Vietnam as an example, its government has
taken an aggressive approach to the promotion and development of its tourism industry,
resulting in the number of international arrivals reaching more than 6.7 million in the
first five months of this year, an increase of 27.6 percent over the same period last year,
as reported by the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism. While this is positive
news for the country’s growing economy, the millions of travellers flocking to Vietnam
 AMUN 2020 UNWTO Guidebook - page 8

are jeopardising its natural landscapes. Visitors to Halong Bay will know how blighted the
UNESCO World Heritage Site is by the abundance of trash floating in the emerald waters.
Much of this waste originates from the thousands of tourist boats floating in the bay, neg-
atively influencing the coastal habitat and other animals’ ways of living. Due to littering
issues coming from massive tourist waves, the water in Halong Bay shows pollution by oil
and coliform, making the flora and fauna of the beach become more damaged, as well as
making water-related activities more dangerous.

The effects of overtourism on wildlife in natural attractions vary by size, cause and area
of impact. Within natural, untouched areas, especially in Asia and Africa, the contamina-
tion and degradation of habitats brought as a result of tourism activities. Prime examples
of such include the improper disposal of body fluids and feces, and the removal of trees
to construct necessary tourism infrastructure, leading to erosion. Unless monitored and
rectified in a proper and consistent manner, these negative byproducts of overtourism
may deplete vital resources of conservation agencies and reduce their capabilities in other
areas of natural area management. Needless to say, the negative environmental effects of
overtourism not only limit themselves to inland areas, but can expand to coastal desti-
nations. A way in which tourism activities are specifically damaging marine ecosystems
is their methods of transportation. The noise and water pollution from common carriers
like cruise ships and speedboats cause animals to flee their habitats and disrupt migration
patterns, not to mention its carbon footprint.

2. Resource depletion and scarcity:

Overtourism can put pressure on natural resources when the consumption is in-
creased in areas the capabilities of which are very limited. Some of the most common
problems include water depletion, land degradation, and exhaustion of other local re-
sources.
Water resources, for example, are usually overused by the tourism industry for ho-
tels, swimming pools, golf courses, and personal use by tourists. This can result in water
shortages and degradation of water supplies, as well as the generation of a greater volume
of wastewater. In drier regions, such as the Mediterranean, the issue of water scarcity is of
particular concern. Most countries favor mass tourism without implementing the neces-
sary infrastructures. Moreover, because of the hot climate and the tendency for tourists to
consume more water when on holiday than they do at home, the amount used can reach
440 litres a day, which is almost two-fold of what the inhabitants of an average Spanish
city use.
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V. Current Situation
A. Current Situation analysis:
According to UNWTO, over the past decades, international tourists have gone from 25
million international arrivals in 1950, to over 1.3 billion in 2017. The sector is forecast to
continue growing 3.3% annually until 2030 a year in which 1.8 billion tourists will cross
borders. For example, Barcelona is at the centre of these mounting concerns about the rapid
growth of tourism in cities, especially during peak holiday periods, with about 30m over-
night visitors in 2017, compared to a resident population of 1,625,137.

Local authorities in many countries have been implementing increasingly stringent mea-
sures to regulate tourism in the past few years, such as rental restrictions on tourist lets in
Madrid, capping the number of cruise ships permitted to dock in Dubrovnik, and fines for
sitting in undesignated spots (along with many other offences) in Venice. Another example
of government action against the ecological effects of overtourism is Maya Bay, Thailand.
It became famous after the appearance of Leonardo DiCaprio in the movie “The Beach”,
which led to unsustainable levels of overcrowding at this destination. The Thai authorities
had subsequently closed Maya Bay until 2021 to allow for coral reformation and prevent
erosion.

Timeline Event Description

February 2018 Threat to close Government officials announced that Maya

the idyllic Bay in Thailand, one of the world’s most
cove from The celebrated beaches, will be closed to tourists
Beach for at least three months in an attempt to
reverse damage caused to the surrounding
coral reef.

April 2018 First protest Protest against the impact of overtourism

against tour- with more than 500 people broke out – the
ism in Ibiza first rally of its kind on the Balearic island
famed for its hedonistic 24-hour lifestyle.

Introduction of Venice employs unprecedented crowd

unprecedented control measures to separate tourists from
crowd-control locals as the World Heritage city braces for
measures in a busy bank holiday weekend.
Venice
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Closure of Boracay closed to tourists for six months

Philippines from April 26. It will provide time to over-
island for six haul the island’s creaking infrastructure.
months

May 2018 Ban on new Another attempt was made by Venice offi-
fast-food out- cials to reduce the impact of mass tourism
lets in Venice by banning takeaway food outlets from
opening in the city.

September 2018 Locals express “In both Lisbon and Porto the central
concern that downtown areas have become more or less
Lisbon is be- only for tourists,” one local said. “Lisbon’s
coming “Dis- Baixa district, for example, which covers
neyfied” an area of 1.5 square kilometres, now has
more than 70 hotels, while tourist-oriented
restaurants, souvenir shops and big interna-
tional brands have displaced local business-
es.”
November 2018 ‘Overtourism’ ‘Overtourism’ was named as one of its 2018
shortlisted as Words of the Year by Oxford dictionary,
Word of the following an ongoing campaign from the
Year Telegraph Travel for the word to be recog-
nized in its annual list.
December 2018 Thailand’s Glut of tourists flocking to enjoy the archi-
idyllic Phi Phi pelago’s sandy white shores and turquoise
islands suffer waters caused a drinking water crisis in
from water cri- Thailand’s Phi Phi islands.
sis after tourist
influx
March 2019 Closure of Ice- An Icelandic canyon made famous by Justin
landic Canyon Bieber closed to the public after becoming
made famous overrun with tourists – increasing from
by Bieber 150,000 to 282,000 between 2017 and 2018.

May 2019 Change from Amsterdam stops shifting its tourism strategy to-
“destination wards destination management. “To control visitor
promotion” to flow and leverage the opportunities that tourism
“destination brings with it, we must act now,” the tourist board
management” in said in a strategy document which addresses the
Amsterdam challenges to be faced between now and 2030.
 AMUN 2020 UNWTO Guidebook - page 11

June 2019 Measures The remote Siberian lake has been unlikely
taken in Lake affected by overtourism. “We’ll have to ar-
Baikal to re- tificially limit the flow of tourists to Baikal,
duce tourist as sad as it sounds... to preserve its unique
numbers nature and purity,” said Sergei Ivanov - an
aide to Vladimir Putin on environmental
issues.

July 2019 Announce- The island of Komodo, home to the endan-

ment to close gered Komodo dragon, announces to close
Komodo Is- to tourists from January 2020 over concerns
land about poaching

August 2019 Ban on large The Italian government will be rerouting

cruise ships cruise ships away from central parts of Ven-
from docking ice, following a long campaign by residents
at Venice’s to prevent large ships from docking in the
historic city UNESCO-listed city.
centre

B. Core Issues:
1. Absence of good management and uncontrolled development
Due to the policies focused on volumes, some local and national authorities and tour-
ist boards have been reluctant in putting thorough measures to cap numbers in any
way, to introduce or increase daily tourist taxes, to charge cruise lines for docking or to
raise tourists awareness to limit the damage on landscapes. Moreover, in some countries,
there has not been an adequate implementation of tourism strategies or plans regarding
managing the negative environmental effects of overtourism due to bad governance.

As some certain tourist destinations increase in their popularity, governments and tour-
ism industries begin promoting these places without careful consideration and plan-
ning. Many companies heavily market this destination when it becomes a trend. To at-
tract more tourists to visit, holiday bookings, flights, and connections have all become
much easier and cheaper. Moreover, tourism has been called the biggest freeloader since
many of the must-see destinations are free e.g Venice’s Piazza San Marco, Dubrovnik’s
old quarters, and the Amalfi Coast. Though these strategies may make the destinations
more attractive, these imbalanced marketing and planning can lead to the destruction of
tourism sites. For example, there has been a huge rise in tourism in Cuba as visa restric-
tions were relaxed, causing many problems for locals and the destinations.
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2. The growth of irresponsible tourisma. Tourists behaviour:

Ancient monuments are disfigured and damaged by graffiti, eroded or literally
taken away by tourists. The improper disposal of litter can also detract from the aesthetic
quality of the environment and harm wildlife. Furthermore, walkers can destroy the veg-
etation. For instance, the littering of Base Camp on Mount Everest, Nepal by tourists and
the erosion of the pathway has become a threat to these sites. In the UK, citizens have
noticed increasingly frequent reports of troublesome behavior; illegal drinking in public
spaces, littering in the parks, even a smashed windscreen. However, thorough measures
regarding raising tourists awareness or introducing fines have yet to be taken to ensure
adequate tourist behaviours and limit the damage of overtourism.

b. Unsustainable tourism practices:

Due to the rise in the number of tourists, the use of unsustainable tourism prac-
tices also increases, placing enormous pressure on the area and its resources and leading
to negative environmental impacts such as soil erosion, increased pollution, discharges
into the sea, natural habitat loss, threats on endangered species and heightened vulner-
ability to forest fires. The use of camels to transport tourists has caused the erosion of
paths to the Pyramids at Giza, Egypt. In Nepal, trekking in the Himalayas has exacerbat-
ed deforestation, waste problems, and erosion.

VI. Past Actions

A. Actions by the UN:

Sustainable Development Goals
One of the most compelling actions taken by
the UN is the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable
Development adopted in 2015 with the aim
to address the global challenges we face and
ensure peace and prosperity for all so that the
international community can move together
towards a future of social, economic and en-
vironmental sustainability. There are 17 Sus-
tainable Development Goals (SDGs) in total,
integrated with one another as actions in one
area can affect others considerably. It is im-
portant that overtourism measures are taken
aligning with these goals, namely Goal 11 on
“Make cities and human settlements inclu-
sive, safe, resilient and sustainable”
The New Urban Agenda
The New Urban Agenda was adopted at the
United Nations Conference on Housing and
Sustainable Urban Development (Habit III)
in Quito, Ecuador, on 20 October 2016 and
endorsed by the United Nations General As-
sembly. It represents a shared vision for a bet-
ter and more sustainable future by planning
and managing urbanization for both devel-
oped and developing countries.
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B. Actions by the International Committee:

Network of Southern European Cities against tourism (SET)

The “SET network” of cities of southern Europe against tourism plans was
created to stage joint protest actions and pressure governments to “estab-
lish limits to the tourist industry” and promote its “decrease”. The network
has released a manifesto denouncing how mass tourism causes rents to
soar, local shops to disappear, creates low wage jobs and generates pollu-
tion. It is made up of ten Spanish cities including Madrid, Barcelona and
Palma de Mallorca as well as Lisbon and Venice. It also includes Spain’s
Canary Islands and Malta. There have been considerable actions taken by
these cities. Palma became the first Spanish city to ban holiday rentals, and
several Spanish regions have been holding protests against mass tourism
in recent years. Access to cruise ships was also restricted in Venice due to
mass congestion in the canal city, while other Italian cities like Naples and
Palermo have long bemoaned the impact mass tourism has on water re-
sources and the environment. Moreover, cities across Europe have stepped
up their efforts to crack down on home-sharing sites such as Airbnb as
concern mounts over the side effects of their increasing popularity amid
fears of a housing shortage for local residents.

Principles of Responsible Management Education (PRME)

PRME are educational institutions that have assumed the role of contrib-
uting towards a sustainable world. With the effective implementation of
the six principles in tourism education, graduates, including both tour-
ists and tourism stakeholders would develop a responsible attitude and
take decisions in consideration with socio-economic and environmental
sustainability. With programs carried out by business schools under the
PRME platform, discussions with stakeholders and community on sus-
tainable development, it helps increasing awareness of responsible tour-
ism and better dealing with overtourism.

Responsible Tourism

Responsible Tourism was defined in Cape Town in 2002 alongside the

World Summit on Sustainable Development, being about “making better
places for people to live in and better places for people to visit.” It requires
that tourists, operators, hoteliers, local people and governments take re-
sponsibility and action towards making tourism more sustainable.
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VII. Bloc Positions

A. Asia:
Every year, millions of tourists flocked to the white sandy beaches, old temples and a range
of wildlife in Asia. The tourism market is expanding, and Asia is a favorite of tourists with
its panoramic spots and exotic attractions. Nevertheless, fear has emerged in recent years
that overtourism and tourism unsustainability will lead to the extinction of the natural
wonders of the continent itself.

(Source: Xu , Kathy. “Managing Overtourism in Asia.”)

Asia has developed more steadily since 2005 with an estimated annual increase in tourists’
visits of about 6%. Since the 1990s, tourism started to bloom and grow, especially in the
Southeast Asia regions; in 2017, Thailand was in the top ten of most visited countries in the
world, and then came in Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar. The estimated number of foreign
tourists (IVAs) to Asia is predicted to rise by 2022. Countries such as China, Thailand, Ja-
pan, and India have always been in the top lists of international tourism spots, attracting
millions of tourists per year. The tourism sector has definitely led to the boost of employ-
ment in many Asian local communities. The disparity between rich and poor countries in
South East Asia has also been reduced as tourists usually travel from more industrialized
nations to less developed ones for various discovering purposes, and the finance benefits
from this industry have enabled local economies to alleviate poverty. However, as Asia
nations become more and more well-known among the tourism industry, each year, gov-
ernments have to face the issues of tourists travelling uncontrollably. This leads to issues of
overcrowding, traffic jams, poor waste management are just a few of the many unmanaged
tourism dangers. The more severe effects, though, include depletion of habitat, destruction
of species, relocation of populations and increased transport and emissions. For example,
 AMUN 2020 UNWTO Guidebook - page 15

Vietnam’s Halong Bay is now bloated with trash, with 70% of them including styrofoams,
plastic bags and bottles, food wrapping, fishing net and clothes. Thailand had to close down
Maya Bay beach due to an overwhelming amount of tourists’ visits, leading to uncontrol-
lable actions such as littering and polluting the fauna and flora. As Asia tourism is highly
dependent on natures’ discoveries, when they are destroyed or could not preserve the orig-
inal status, they would negatively affect numbers of tourists’ visits and the economy of the
country and the continent as a whole.
An issue that Asian’ governments have yet to solve is tourist control in order to eliminate
overcrowding in famous destinations. The demand for leisure travel is prosperous and ma-
jor expansions of the airports are required to develop this industry. After all, tourism is
an economic pillar which not only generates incomes, but also employment, investment
and a global profile. Ticketing and visitors caps have become solutions for many locations
around the world to monitor tourist numbers. However, some of Asia’s most beautiful and
far-reaching destinations have not been able to implement these methods due to economic
situations of these nations. A core issue for Asia countries is the balance between the tour-
ism industry’s economic development and its negative effects on the environment. Since
Asia mostly consists of developing nations, it is crucial for governments that depend on
tourism to create a pathway for this industry’ growth. However, restrictions are also re-
quired for the preservation of natural heritages of the nation.

B. Europe:
Over the last decade, Europe grew more than ninety-fold year on year, more than double
the amount of low-cost airline seats available. In Europe, there was an increase of 8% in
the number of international arrivals compared with 2016, which means an addition of 55
million tourists in 2017. (UNWTO, 2017). In 2017, there was an unprecedented 13 percent
rise in Southern and Mediterranean Europe. Growth of tourism also increased strongly in
Western Europe with 7%, and in Northern, Central and Eastern Europe with 5%. Europe
is deemed the leading tourism spot in the world, even dominating over Asia. Around 1.2
million European people visited Europe in 2016 and 62% of Europeans took part in tour-
ism each year.
According to UNWTO 2018, France, Spain, Italy, Germany, and the United Kingdom are
in the top 10 most visited countries in the world, with France topping the chart. However,
European cities do have to face issues of mass tourism each year due to its popularity of
famous heritages, which leads to “opportunities” for pollution in famous destinations. For
example, cruise boats have had a massive impact on the environment of Venice, Italy, hav-
ing been one of the most popular cruise destinations in Europe. The ships are responsible
for tides which erode building fundamentals and contribute to the pollution of water and
air. The city is predicted to sink due to 1-2 mm rise of water annually, in which researchers
warned that Venice would be underwater by 2100. Another case study is Barcelona, Spain,
with 82% of tourists coming by airplanes. Despite this boost of tourism percentage by 17%,
it is projected that the air transport constitutes 75% (the overall emissions comprise travel,
lodging and tourist attractions) of the carbon emissions in Barcelona.
 AMUN 2020 UNWTO Guidebook - page 16

Similarly to Asia, Europe has to resolve the conflicts of tourism management. There, sus-
tainable planning, economic dimensions, and intelligent communities are crucial concerns
to tackle for Europe to improve its management issues. Despite the majority of countries
are developed and developing, Europe still needs to create a balance between the industries’
growth and environmental effects, maintaining heritages’ sites while also boost the tourism
industry healthily. Sustainable tourism is highly recommended in Europe’s tourism poli-
cies and strategies, however, governments need to further enhance these policies in a more
concise, stricter, and tighter manner.

C. Other continents:

Overtourism can happen to any country, though for other nations in Africa and Oceania,
it is yet to be a threatening issue. For Africa countries, nations such as South Africa, Kenya,
and Egypt are famous for their tourists’ attractions; while in Oceania, New Zealand and
Australia are the most popular sites to visit. However, for other countries in Africa and
Oceania areas, they are yet to be internationally recognized as famous tourists’ spots or are
not tourism-dependent countries. For this reason, most countries in Africa and Oceania
are not at risk of overtourism, but rather focus on developing other aspects of their envi-
ronment. On the other hand, famous tourist attractions in the listed nations are at high risk
due to mass tourism over the years, especially during holidays.
For countries such as Spain, Italy, and China, overtourism is a controversial and danger-
ous issue, however, Africa is seemingly still seasonally impacted. Overtourism encounters
tourist hotspots including the Maasai Mara (Kenya), Table Mountain (South Africa), but
only at certain periods of the year, especially during holiday seasons. During those periods,
overtourism is an unavoidable situation which will create difficulty for managers to con-
trol tourist activities, leading to unwanted consequences to the environment. During these
tourists’ seasons, governments often boost the number of tourists as much as they could to
gain further profit for the industry. However, due to these reckless tactics, major tourists’
spots are in danger of exploitation and pollution as consequences of mass tourism.
Australia’s tourist numbers are not as high as ones in Barcelona and Amsterdam, the issues
of overtourism should not be taken lightly. Weak policies on tourism can also contribute to
overtourism if the government turns a blind eye on this issue. For example, the Kangaroo
Island Pro Surf and Music Festivities in 2011 encountered resistance from the community
to their proposal of taking 5,000 tourists to the Vivonne Bay hamlet. Recent research on
the political process has shown that tourist authorities have pushed tourism on the island
to boost the event. The consequences were incredibly severe to the environment and qual-
ity of living that in subsequent years, organizers abandoned the preparations for the event.
While partially covered by their exclusion, New Zealand is no exception when it comes to
overtourism issues. The number of visitors increased to 3.9 million today, from 500,000
in the 1980s. By 2025, the five million marks are expected and the strain is beginning to
appear.
 AMUN 2020 UNWTO Guidebook - page 17

VIII. Possible Solutions

Overtourism is an issue that requires community efforts from international organizations,
governments, and locals. In this guidebook, delegates may obtain some ideas for the com-
mittee’s discussion and develop them into complete policies. Bear in mind, these are just
suggestions, and delegates are welcomed to strengthen them and think of new policies for
the best results.

A. International organizations and governments:

- Limiting transportation access to a certain number in a period.
- Enhancement in marketing strategies for equal promotions and tour-
ism opportunities for different cities/sites in the nation.
- Improve collaborations with important stakeholders (e.g. UN bodies
including the United Nations Environmental Program, World Health
Organizations, etc.; international governments; tourism industries
and companies).
- Boost security measures in the overcrowded area to avoid unethical
behaviors (e.g. littering, stealing, breaking floras, etc.).
Revise existing sustainable tourism frameworks on an international
and national scale, to create a new/improved policy that can be applied
long-term.

B. Locals, citizens, and tourists:

- Respect the visited destination by avoiding littering, breaking floras,
and other actions that may disrupt the ecosystem and natural habitats
of the environment.
- Input signs in overcrowded destinations to remind people to throw
trash in the bins, avoid smoking in public, etc.
- Support local community services such as staying in locally-owned
accommodations, buying handmade souvenirs, joining tours run by
responsible local operators, etc.
- Staying eco-friendly by minimizing waste, bringing and using reus-
able products, volunteering for local cleanups, etc.
Travel off the beaten tracks to avoid overcrowded destinations, as well
as enhance tourist opportunities.
 AMUN 2020 UNWTO Guidebook - page 18

IX. Questions to Consider

1. What is your national interest in overtourism’ negative effects on

environment? Which aspects of the problem are the most important to
eradicate? Why does your government care/do not care about them?

2. How can governments enhance existing methods of tourism sus-

tainability to prevent overtourism?

3. How can governments conserve natural resources and build sus-

tainability in tourism industries?

4. How can governments infuse methods that would reduce waste pol-
lution from the tourism industry? What is the importance of waste man-
agement methods?

5. How can governments balance between socio-econ development

and the preservation of natural heritages in terms of tourism growth?

6. What restrictions should governments impose in order to limit the

numbers of visits per destination or per year? Would these restrictions
limit national economic and/or social development?

7. What can UNWTO do to prevent negative effects from overtour-

ism? Would campaigns and media promotions work, and why/why not?
What are other methods that UNWTO members can do to avert further
damages under the council’s powers?

8. What can other UN bodies, organizations, and/or NGOs do to help

eradicate and/or alleviate these issues? What kind of collaborative projects
and/or agreements among these stakeholders should be taken for the most
effective outcome?
 AMUN 2020 UNWTO Guidebook - page 19

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