AUSTRALIA: Global Sustainable Tourism Summit 26 for changemakers, innovators and industry leaders

The Global Sustainable Tourism Summit 2026 is supported by Tourism Australia and hosted by the City of Gold Coast – Image: Tourism Australia

This year’s Global Sustainable Tourism Summit is being held in the city of Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia. The Summit is a flagship event on the international sustainable tourism calendar and will take place at Mercure Gold Coast Resort, which is a Sustainable Tourism Certified venue recognised for its strong commitment to environmental responsibility. The event will bring together sustainability changemakers, innovators and industry leaders for four days of ideas, collaboration and impact from Tuesday 2 to Friday 5 June 2026, aligning with World Environment Day on 5 June.

According to organizer Ecotourism Australia, this year’s Summit explores global best practice at both destination and business level, and how sustainable tourism delivers real value across people, place, planet and purpose.  Designed as a dynamic platform to connect, share knowledge and address the sector’s most pressing sustainability challenges, the four-day program features a two-day conference, two social functions and an optional destination immersion experience.

“There are just over 100 days to go until the Global Sustainable Tourism Summit on the Gold Coast. We look forward to connecting with tourism operators, destination managers and government and industry body representatives throughout the event, ” says Ecotourism Australia-CEO Elissa Keenan.

“We are proud to release our key program themes, addressing the most urgent sustainability challenges and opportunities facing tourism today. Spanning regenerative travel and the management of protected areas, evolving visitor expectations, inclusive and climate-resilient destination design and the development of authentic Indigenous partnerships, the program is designed to deliver practical insights, providing participants with the knowledge and tools needed to drive meaningful and lasting sustainable change across the tourism sector.”

“We have an exciting lineup of speakers in store, with more announcements to come in the weeks ahead, “says Keenan. “Don’t miss your chance to join us – book your ticket here.”

Early Bird registrations close at 11:59pm on 27th February 2026. More on the summits key themes is available here.

2025 Event Recap-Video:

Key Themes

Through a dynamic mix of keynote presentations, panel discussions and fireside chats, the program brings together international and local speakers to explore the most pressing sustainability challenges and opportunities facing tourism today:

• Ecotourism in action: Driving regeneration, conservation and protected areas
• The changing visitor mindset: What your customers are really looking for
• From strategy to action: How Slovenia became one of the world’s leading sustainable destinations
• The green skills challenge: Close the skills gap and empower your team to take action
• Communication with confidence: Preparing for sustainability scrutiny and telling your story with authenticity
• Nature and wellness: How can we leverage Australia’s unique landscapes to create world-class experiences?
• Designing for everyone: How do we build inclusive destinations and experiences from the outset?
• Proving impact: How are we measuring sustainability performance to demonstrate real results?
• Authentic Indigenous partnerships: How can tourism value chains work respectfully and collaboratively?
• Building climate-resilient visitor economies
• The future workforce: Using purpose to engage young people in tourism

Ecotourism Australia’s Government recommendations include to Increase funding for national parks, Indigenous Protected Areas, Indigenous Rangers and co-management with Traditional Owners – Image: Tourism Australia

Recommendations for Government Action

Ecotourism Australia has lodged a formal submission to the Federal Government’s 2026–2027 Pre-Budget process. This submission presents four targeted recommendations for government action, designed to support the long‑term sustainable growth of Australia’s visitor economy:

1. Establish a National Sustainability Standard for Tourism: Formally adopt a globally recognised national standard aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals and credible international certification labels, providing a consistent benchmark for sustainability, improving market clarity and supporting business risk management.
2. Provide Financial Support for Sustainability Initiatives: Implement targeted funding, including a Sustainability Grants Program for tourism SMEs and additional funding for emissions measurement and reduction programs, to overcome barriers to adoption, build capacity and enable measurable environmental and operational outcomes.
3. Invest in Protection of Natural and Cultural Assets and Best-Practice Standards: Increase funding for national parks, Indigenous Protected Areas, Indigenous Rangers and co-management with Traditional Owners, while promoting incentive-based best-practice tourism standards to safeguard natural and cultural assets and support First Nations tourism enterprises.
4. Create a Resilience Fund for the Tourism Industry: Establish a nationally coordinated fund to support rapid recovery from climate-related disasters, encourage rebuilding to higher resilience and sustainability standards, integrate risk management with certification frameworks and provide long-term security for tourism businesses in high-risk regions.

These recommendations will form part of Ecotourism Australia‘s ongoing discussions with the Australian Government and relevant stakeholders as part of broader efforts to strengthen the sustainability of the visitor economy.

NAN/Eco Tourism  Australia 21-2-26

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