Costa Rica is once again taking a firm step in its environmental history. The Costa Rica Convention Center, was invited to sign the Glasgow Declaration on Climate Action in Tourism this past week, joining a global movement demanding urgent climate action from tourism.
The signing took place within the framework of the Sustainability and Social Tourism Summit organized by the Costa Rican Tourism Institute (ICT), marking a key milestone in the CCCR’s position as a regional leader in regenerative tourism and a venue that promotes carbon neutrality in all its events.
The Costa Rica Convention Center (CCCR) developed the certified CarbonClear Events methodology, which allows for the neutralization of operational emissions from all events held at its facilities, thus aligning itself with the principles of the Glasgow Declaration on Climate Action in Tourism, which urgently calls on all stakeholders in the sector to halve CO2 emissions by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.
Truly environmentally responsible events
“More and more sustainable companies are realizing that, to organize truly environmentally responsible events, the first step is to choose a venue that not only significantly reduces its footprint but also strengthens the organizers’ commitment to sustainability to their attendees. Signing the Glasgow Declaration commits us to continue measuring, reducing, and regenerating,” said the General Manager of the Costa Rica Convention Center. This declaration also requires the submission of a climate action plan within 12 months of signing, and annual reports with measurable and transparent progress. With this adhesion, the CCCR reaffirms its leadership as a world-class sustainable infrastructure and an active venue in the fight against climate change.
“The signing is a clear signal to the country’s tourism and business sectors that the future of tourism must be guided by environmental regeneration, multi-sector collaboration, and community well-being,” the manager added.
Towards environmental sustainability
For her part, Mariana Garita, head of the Tourism Sustainability Department at the ICT, stated: “The signing represents a significant step in the Convention Center’s journey toward environmental sustainability to accelerate climate action in tourism in our country. The Convention Center has been designed responsibly and sustainably. Today, it reinforces its commitment, and its operation demonstrates that it is possible to implement innovative practices, adaptation measures, and actions to reduce carbon emissions from the events it hosts. This ranges from the use of renewable energy to efficient waste management and raising awareness among its customers and business partners, among many other actions.” Glasgow Declaration on Climate Action in Tourism
The signatories of this declaration recognize that tourism, being directly dependent on nature, must transform and assume a commitment to five strategic axes: measurement, decarbonization, regeneration, collaboration, and financing, aligning themselves with the principles of the Paris Agreement and the One Planet Program for Sustainable Tourism.
Globally, the CCCR becomes one of the first venues in the MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions) sector to sign the declaration, making the commitment even more relevant and distinctive.
