GTI Foundation returns to the Seychelles one year after conducting a regional workshop for the development of progress indicators and impact measures with the IRENA SIDS Lighthouses Initiative in March 2024.
Gianni Chianetta, Chair of GTI Foundation, will join a high-level meeting in the Seychelles on March 14-16. The event, titled “Green All the Way: How island states can take the lead in green tourism” is organised by the Climate Parliament, a global network of legislators, and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), with support from the Green Climate Fund and expected presence by the President of the Republic of Seychelles and the World Meteorological Organisation. Participants will include Members of Parliament, government officials, and experts on renewable energy, green hydrogen, sustainable aviation and shipping, and green tourism.
Climate change poses many challenges for the tourist industry worldwide, especially on small islands. They include shrinking beaches as the seas rise, damage to coastal property in cyclones and storm surges, water shortages and dangerous heat waves. As climate impacts intensify, the number of people concerned about the impacts of tourism, including aviation emissions, will add to the challenges for long-haul tourist destinations, including many island states. The long-term solution is a transition to net-zero tourism powered by renewable energy and green fuels, which will also attract environmentally conscious tourists.
Island nations like the Seychelles, highly vulnerable to climate change, have the potential to lead this paradigm shift. The Seychelles are already developing “Green Zones,” devoting Ile Romainville to generating solar and wind power, and making one of its islands, La Digue, a centre of ecotourism.
Discussions will delve into how to attract more investment into renewable energy generation and sustainable aviation fuels, with the aim of eventually making the Seychelles, including all its hotels, fully renewable-powered. GTI Foundation will contribute bringing insights from the 100% RES Islands Initiative and highlighting renewables’ central role for decarbonising the tourism sector.
Chianetta said, “GTI Foundation’s return to the Seychelles is important as it marks the consolidation of our cooperation with the archipelago, and the kick-off of a partnership with Climate Parliament that can be extended to other islands around the world.”
