On measuring the sustainability of tourism: MST
Measuring the Sustainability of Tourism aims to provide an internationally agreed statistical framework to measure the impacts and dependencies of tourism on the economy, society and the environment.
As a living example of going beyond GDP, MST will support the production in countries of reliable, internationally comparable data on the performance of countries and subnational tourism destinations when it comes to the sustainability of tourism.
All in all, MST will lead to more robust data to ensure that tourism action on the ground really contributes to the betterment of people’s lives now and into the future.
The MST Statistical Framework is being developed by UNWTO in partnership with leading countries, and with the support of the United Nations Statistics Division, the International Labour Organization and others. Work is being led by the Expert Group on MST under the auspices of the UNWTO Committee on Statistics.
Expert Group on MST
Expert Group on MST
In advancing the MST statistical framework, an open Expert Group has been established to lead the technical development and support engagement among these key stakeholders.
Expert Group on MSTStatistical Framework for Measuring the Sustainability of Tourism
Statistical Framework for Measuring the Sustainability of Tourism
The Statistical Framework for Measuring the Sustainability of Tourism (SF-MST) is an organizing structure for integrating statistics on the economic, environmental and social dimensions of sustainable tourism.
Statistical FrameworkPilot studies and country experiences
Pilot studies and country experiences
Country pilot studies aim to bring together relevant stakeholders and contribute to the design and development of the statistical framework by testing its relevance and feasibility.
Pilot StudiesSustainable Development Goals Indicators
Sustainable Development Goals Indicators
UNWTO Committee on Statistics liaises with the official UN process (IAEG-SDGs) on the development of statistical indicators for the measurement of tourism's role in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
SDG IndicatorsESG Framework for tourism businesses
ESG Framework for tourism businesses
While a number of ESG reporting and disclosure initiatives already exist, they have been developed relatively independently, meaning the comparability and scalability of ESG reporting is limited. In this context, UNWTO is joining efforts to provide a single ESG framework that can be used as a single reference by all kinds of tourism businesses.
ESG FrameworkDOCUMENTS/PUBLICATIONS
- MST Brochure
- Experiences from Pilot Studies in Measuring the Sustainability of Tourism: A Synopsis for Policymakers
- Measuring the Sustainability of Tourism - Learning from Pilots
- Statistical Framework for Measuring the Sustainability of Tourism (SF-MST) - Draft, version October
MST in the media
- Palma Declaration: “The path towards social sustainability of tourism in the EU”
- Planificación e indicadores: la hoja de ruta para el turismo sostenible
- La sostenibilidad turística en datos, según el análisis de Deloitte
- Kraus-Winkler: Österreich federführend bei internationalen Nachhaltigkeitsstandards im Tourismus
Additional information
- High Level Discussion on Measuring the Sustainability of Tourism
- Virtual 63rd ISI World Statistics Congress 2021
- UNWTO Asia-Pacific Workshop on Measuring the Sustainability of Tourism (Philippines)
- UNWTO Regional Workshop on Measuring Tourism Asia-Pacific (Kathmandu)