Greetings on the occasion of the 40th World Tourism Day.
It’s a sombre Tourism Day! Let’s use it as an occasion to introspect.
Six months of dealing with the scourge of Covid-19 has devastated economies, destroyed lives and has driven home the fragility of the Planet. Other natural calamities have added to the misery. Many have lost loved ones; many have lost their homes; numerous businesses have collapsed and the UNWTO Tourism Barometer reports a staggering 65% decline in global tourist arrivals with Asia-Pacific, one of the most robust regions, recording a decline of over 70% in the first half of 2020.
The tourism sector is the worst hit, but it’s nothing if not resilient; Travel & Tourism has bounced back in the past from repeated crises and will no doubt do that again. The innate human desire to explore will ensure that it does. The question, however, is – When? And how? All current predictions are simply educated guesses at best – often driven by hope. The only thing that’s certain is that the virus is not disappearing in a hurry; we might have to live with it. We must, however, find ways to ride out the immediate crisis – using the time to upgrade our skills, reboot our attitudes, rethink our priorities, reinvent the business and maintain focus until things improve and we evolve to a ‘next normal.’
It is incumbent upon each one of us in the industry to work towards creating that next normal so that it’s nothing like what was being passed off as ‘normal’ – keeping in mind the lessons that this pandemic has taught us. The pandemic has changed tourism forever, let the change be for the good of the Planet.
The cardinal lesson that the virus has taught us is that we cannot continue to abuse the Earth. Climate change, global warming and the unchecked depletion of natural resources are our inescapable reality. We have long passed the tipping point when the planet could regenerate itself in spite of our depredations, it’s time to rework the ideas of ‘development’ and ‘progress.’ As Jim Morrison sang many years ago:
“What have they done to the earth?
What have they done to our fair sister?
Ravaged and plundered and ripped her and bit her
Stuck her with knives in the side of the dawn and
Tied her with fences and dragged her down”
But in the midst of this plunder, I hear a very gentle sound…. It’s the sound of young people reasserting their right to reclaim the Earth – to travel, to explore, to connect with different cultures and people across the world in a way that’s peaceful, meaningful and sustainable.
As Dr. Taleb Rifai often says – you should try to leave the world a better place, and as the old Red Indian (or Native American – to be politically correct) saying goes: “You do not inherit the Earth from your forefathers, you hold it in trust for future generation.” Our generation hasn’t done such a great job on this, but there is still time – let us harness the power of Tourism to create a more peaceful, sustainable and equitable world.
Let us pledge this World Tourism Day that we shall leave the world a better place.
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