Tourism, Climate Change and Development - Tourism and Development: Concepts and Issues - page 348

to domestic tourists in developing countries may not be the same as interna-
tional tourists. For example, the relative attractiveness of wildlife tourism,
ecotourism or the beach is dependent on cultural context, even though there
is a growing interest for such activities in developing countries as well. For a
number of developing nations, particularly Small Island Developing States
(SIDS), there is no short-haul alternative market to draw on. While it may
thus be difficult for SIDS to replace markets, there may nevertheless be other
options for economic diversification, such as a focus on fisheries and other
biodiversity resources, as well as alternative understandings of growth and
development (Scheyvens & Momsen, 2008b).
A global 'climate justice' perspective
Developing countries highly dependent on tourism arrivals have often
presented themselves as victims of climate policy, seeking to curb emissions
from aviation or maritime tourism. For instance, the Caribbean is one region
that has frequently outlined that their contribution to global emissions of
GHG is minor, and that the islands should not be 'penalised' by the industri-
alised countries' ambitions to curb emissions (e.g. Caribbean Hotel Asso-
ciation and Tourism Association, 2007). The Caribbean accounts for only
0.2% of global emissions of CO 2 , even though its population of 40 million
(Dulal et al. , 2009) corresponds to 0.6% of the world's population.
However, the reality is somewhat more complex as in many Caribbean
countries, and in particular in those that have developed their tourism sys-
tems per capita emissions are already exceeding levels that can be considered
sustainable at the global level (Figure 11.3). In countries like Aruba (21t CO 2
per capita/year), Antigua and Barbuda (5t CO 2 per capita/year), or the
Bahamas (6t CO 2 per capita/year) (UNSD, 2009) all have per capita emis-
sion levels that are close to or even exceed those in developed countries, and
many exceed the current global average of about 4.3t CO 2 per capita per year
(IPCC, 2007). Indeed, in many of the countries with high levels of emissions,
the large visitor numbers are potentially a major factor behind the seem-
ingly high per capita emissions of the permanent population (Hall, 2010a).
If the Caribbean's contribution to global emissions of CO 2 is currently still
comparably low on a regional basis, i.e. 0.2% of global emissions, this is lar-
gely due to populous islands including Cuba and Haiti and their comparably
low per capita emission levels. If all countries had emission levels such as
those of the Bahamas, the region would considerably exceed its emission
share to population ratio; that is, it would turn into an 'above average' con-
tributor to climate change.
These insights are of importance in the light of post-Kyoto negotiations.
The IPCC recommends that the world should aim at cutting global CO 2
emissions by at least 50% by 2050 (IPCC, 2007; Figure 11.3). This would be a
minimum required to avoid global average temperature increases beyond 2°C