Global map showing airplane routes with carbon emission trails.

Sky High Carbon: Can Destinations Reduce Aviation's Climate Impact?

Reese Marlowe in Climate & Environment June 2025 • 4 min read.

"Tourism destinations face a growing challenge: balancing the economic benefits of air travel with its significant carbon footprint. A new framework offers insights and potential solutions."

Global air travel has soared in recent decades, and projections indicate continued growth. While transporting billions of passengers connects people and drives economies, it also generates a substantial carbon footprint. Concerns about aviation emissions are increasing as the world strives to meet ambitious climate goals.

Destinations eager to attract tourists face a complex dilemma. Recognizing that travelers arrive with a carbon footprint complicates decisions for locations aiming to draw more visitors. The carbon risk involved in flying to and from a destination could be huge, but current accounting methods and a lack of clear data make it difficult to fully grasp the scope and patterns.

To address this challenge, a new demand-focused framework offers ten carbon risk indicators designed to help destinations evaluate their absolute and relative risk associated with the economic, financial, social, and environmental expenses of carbon. This research provides global benchmarks for carbon-, passenger-, and itinerary-related indicators, identifying the destinations most at risk, approximated by their departure airports. A comparison of four airports highlights how differences in passenger numbers, geography, route networks, and travel patterns from various markets affect exposure. The study also provides recommendations for destinations to manage and mitigate these risks.

Understanding Carbon Risk: What's at Stake for Tourist Destinations?

Global map showing airplane routes with carbon emission trails.

Carbon risk for travel and tourism includes many factors: the direct expense of carbon, growing oil prices, shifts in consumer tastes and knowledge, legal compliance concerns, and competitive challenges. Regions with large aviation carbon footprints are more likely to see changes in carbon policies and prices. However, the danger does not affect all areas of the world and the locations inside them equally.

A destination's vulnerability is influenced by several factors, including location, alternate transportation choices, and connections to other locations. Many developing countries, particularly island nations, rely significantly on international tourism for their economic growth, making them more vulnerable to carbon risks. Destinations can take steps to measure and manage these risks to mitigate the negative impacts.

Direct Costs: Carbon pricing and related policies can increase operational costs for airlines, potentially leading to higher ticket prices and reduced demand.
Consumer Behavior: Growing awareness of carbon emissions may influence travelers' destination choices, potentially impacting tourism revenue.
Regulatory Risks: Compliance with evolving environmental regulations and carbon reduction targets could require significant investments and operational changes.
Reputational Risks: Destinations with a high carbon footprint may face negative publicity and damage to their reputation as sustainable travel options gain prominence.

Benchmarking a destination's contribution to climate change via aviation activity is a risk management strategy. Destinations have some influence over air travel emissions. Governments can select preferred business partners and invest in marketing initiatives, which impact airline choices about new routes. To expand their networks, airlines and airports sometimes work closely with governments. Destinations can lower carbon risk and promote sustainability by tracking relevant indicators.

Charting a Course for Sustainable Skies

Destinations must proactively address carbon risk to secure a sustainable future for tourism. This involves embracing comprehensive carbon accounting, fostering collaboration across the aviation and tourism sectors, and implementing policies that incentivize carbon reduction. By taking decisive action, destinations can balance economic prosperity with environmental responsibility, ensuring that future generations can enjoy the wonders of travel without compromising the health of our planet.

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Everything You Need To Know

What is the core challenge tourist destinations face in relation to aviation?

Tourist destinations are struggling to balance the economic benefits of air travel with its significant carbon footprint. As global tourism grows, so does the demand for air travel, leading to a substantial increase in aviation emissions. Destinations must manage this carbon risk, which complicates decisions for locations aiming to draw more visitors. A new framework offers insights and potential solutions, recognizing that travelers arrive with a carbon footprint which can be a huge risk, but current accounting methods and a lack of clear data make it difficult to fully grasp the scope and patterns. Addressing the dilemma is key to sustainable tourism.

What are the key carbon risk indicators that destinations should evaluate?

Destinations should use a demand-focused framework that includes ten carbon risk indicators to evaluate their absolute and relative risk. These indicators assess the economic, financial, social, and environmental expenses of carbon. The framework provides global benchmarks for carbon-, passenger-, and itinerary-related indicators. This helps in identifying destinations most at risk, which can be approximated by their departure airports. A comparison of airports highlights how factors such as passenger numbers, geography, route networks, and travel patterns influence a destination's exposure to carbon risk.

How does a destination's vulnerability to carbon risk vary based on location and other factors?

A destination's vulnerability is influenced by its location, availability of alternate transportation choices, and connections to other locations. Developing countries, particularly island nations, are more vulnerable because they heavily rely on international tourism for their economic growth. Regions with large aviation carbon footprints are also more likely to see changes in carbon policies and prices. The carbon risk encompasses direct costs (carbon pricing), consumer behavior (traveler choices), regulatory risks (environmental compliance), and reputational risks (sustainable travel perceptions).

How can destinations actively manage and mitigate aviation-related carbon risks?

Destinations can measure and manage risks by embracing comprehensive carbon accounting, fostering collaboration across the aviation and tourism sectors, and implementing policies that incentivize carbon reduction. They can track relevant indicators and have some influence over air travel emissions through governmental actions. Governments can select preferred business partners and invest in marketing initiatives, which impacts airline choices about new routes. Destinations can lower carbon risk and promote sustainability.

What are the long-term implications if tourist destinations do not address the carbon footprint of aviation?

If tourist destinations fail to address aviation's carbon footprint, they face several long-term implications. These include increased operational costs for airlines, potentially leading to higher ticket prices and reduced demand; shifts in consumer behavior where travelers may choose destinations with lower carbon footprints, affecting tourism revenue; the need for significant investments and operational changes to comply with evolving environmental regulations and carbon reduction targets; and the potential for negative publicity and damage to their reputation, especially as sustainable travel options gain prominence. Destinations that do not proactively address carbon risk risk their sustainable future for tourism and future generations will not be able to enjoy the wonders of travel without compromising the health of our planet.