Center for Responsible Travel (CREST)

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8%
of global greenhouse gas emissions came from the tourism sector in 2019
1.3 trillion
in export revenues were lost from the Covid-19 pandemic travel shut down
42%
of respondents remarked sustainable travel decisions are a priority in a 2019 study
70%
of travelers feel tourism providers make little or no effort to activate sustainable practices

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To promote responsible tourism policies and practices globally so that local communities may thrive and steward their cultural resources and biodiversity.

The Center for Responsible Travel (CREST) is a global nonprofit organization based in Washington, DC dedicated to increasing the positive global impact of responsible tourism. CREST provides evidence-based research and analysis to governments, policymakers, tourism businesses, nonprofit organizations, and international agencies to solve the most pressing problems confronting tourism, the world’s largest service industry.

Originally known as the Center for Ecotourism and Sustainable Development (CESD), CREST was established in 2003 as a bi-coastal institute, with offices at Stanford University and in Washington, DC. It was co-founded by Dr. William (Bill) Durham, a highly respected Stanford Professor of Anthropology and a MacArthur “genius” fellow, and Dr. Martha Honey, an author and internationally recognized authority on responsible travel who has been named one of world’s top 10 eco-travel “watchdogs” by Conde Nast Traveler.

Founded in the wake of the UN's International Year of Ecotourism, CREST initially focused on the role of small-scale ecotourism in empowering communities and conserving precious resources. Over time, our work has evolved to consider how all tourism can be more responsibly planned, developed, and managed across all sectors and geographies. Through innovative field projects, research, consultancies, and advocacy, CREST is taking action to address our world’s key threats to securing a sustainable future.

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Tourism in a Crisis

January 2020-Present | Current Project

This program focuses on the intersection between tourism and climate change, and how the sector both contributes to and is impacted by climate change. We advocate for and provide programming to facilitate a profound shift in the travel and tourism sector, with preparation and effective risk management, adaptation, and resilience, and decarbonization being fundamental to the industry’s future.

Overtourism

2018 - Present | Current Project

In 2019, 1.4 billion tourists traveled internationally, more than ever before. The tourism industry and travel media began to refer to this phenomenon as “overtourism.” But in 2020, the number of global international arrivals suffered a staggering drop to under 400 million. Although destinations around the world have fallen victim to overtourism, in the era of pandemics, political instability, and the powerful influence of social media, these destinations are just as prone to severe under-tourism. The COVID-19 pandemic brought to light that the problem is not just “too many tourists,” but how to manage tourism in a way that maximizes its benefits to people, the planet, and destinations sustainably. Through education resources (including a world-class Forum and book released in 2021), research studies, and field work designed to measure what matters, CREST supports our planet’s beloved places to find the right path forward.

Destination Stewardship

2015- Present | Current Project

Sustainable tourism requires thoughtful planning and management, with participation from the public, private, and civil sectors. Through collaboration, these stakeholders can help to ensure the very assets that make a destination a great place to live and visit are protected into the future. We provide educational resources and work with destinations to build or strengthen stewardship initiatives based on the unique needs of the community and best practices from around the globe. Our engagement may be short-term or long-term, and often includes stakeholder mapping, community visioning, asset mapping, destination stewardship council formation, strategic and business planning, and activity planning, depending upon the needs of the community.