The United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), is the custodian agency to monitor the targets of Sustainable Development Goal 8 ("decent work and economic growth") that are related to tourism. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) or Global Goals are a collection of 17 interlinked global goals designed to be a "blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all". Given the dramatic increase in tourism, the report strongly promotes responsible tourism. Even though some countries and sectors in the industry are creating initiatives for tourism in addressing the SDGs, knowledge sharing, finance and policy for sustainable tourism are not fully addressing the needs of stakeholders.

The SDGs include targets on tourism and sustainable tourism in several goals:
• Target 8.9 of SDG 8 (Decent work and economic growth) states: "By 2030, devise and implement policies to promote sustainable tourism that creates jobs and promotes local culture and products".
• Target 12.a of SDG 12 (responsible consumption and production) is formulated as "Develop and implement tools to monitor sustainable development impacts for sustainable tourism that creates jobs and promotes local culture and products." UNWTO is the custodian agency for this target.
• Target 14.7 of SDG 14 (Life below Water) is to: "By 2030, increase the economic benefits to small island developing States and least developed countries from the sustainable use of marine resources, including through sustainable management of fisheries, aquaculture and tourism".
According to the UNWTO, "Tourism comprises the activities of persons traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes." Global economists forecast continuing international tourism growth, the amount depending on the location. As one of the world's largest and fastest-growing industries, this continuous growth will place great stress on remaining biologically diverse habitats and Indigenous cultures. By educating tourists, indigenous communities can foster a newfound appreciation toward their “country's natural, cultural, or historical uniqueness” (Cohan, 1978). Overall, tourists are motivated to learn more, and in return, this can ‘help to shape the self-image of the natives” (Cohan, 1978). Meaning, the natives that live on these indigenous lands can better understand their own history while simultaneously educating foreigners. The comparison between tourism in remote locations versus tourism in more developed areas raises a few key differences. Conventional tourism that takes place in more established locations often has thorough infrastructure to accommodate the needs of tourists, whereas remote locations most likely would not have upscale infrastructure. For example, “new airstrips and hotels” are being constructed at an ever-growing rate. Therefore, in an effort to compare and bring mass tourism to the remotest islands, remote regions will accommodate and meet the needs of guests by developing these facilities. However, it is important to note that changes to the environment may occur for a variety of reasons. For instance, drastic changes may be made because of evolving generational differences and changing socio-political structures. Mass tourism is the organized movement of large numbers of tourists to popular destinations such as theme parks, national parks, beaches or cruise ships. Mass tourism uses standardized packaged leisure products and experiences …

Read more on Wikipedia

While "sustainable tourism" is a concept, the term "responsible tourism" refers to the behaviors and practices that can lead to sustainable tourism. For example, backpacker tourism is a trend that contributes to sustainability from the various environmental, economic, and cultural activities associated with it. All stakeholders are responsible for the kind of tourism they develop or engage in. Both service providers and purchasers or consumers are held accountable. Being responsible demands “thinking” by using planning and development frameworks that are properly grounded in ethical thinking around what is good and right for communities, the natural world and tourists.

According to the Center for Responsible Tourism, responsible tourism is "tourism that maximizes the benefits to local communities, minimizes negative social or environmental impacts, and helps local people conserve fragile cultures and habitats or species." Responsible tourism incorporates not only being responsible for interactions with the physical environment, but also of the economic and social interactions. While different groups will see responsibility in different ways, the shared understanding is that responsible tourism should entail improvements in tourism. This would include ethical thinking around what is "good" and "right" for local communities and the natural world, as well as for tourists. Responsible tourism is an aspiration that can be realized in different ways in different originating markets and in the diverse destinations of the world.

Responsible tourism has also been critiqued. Studies have shown that the degree to which individuals engage in responsible tourism is contingent upon their engagement socially. Meaning, tourist behaviors will fluctuate depending on the range of social engagement that each tourist chooses to take part in. A study regarding responsible tourists behavior concludes that it is not only a personal behavior of tourists that shape outcomes, but also a reflection of mechanisms put in place by governments. Other research has put into question the promise that tourism, even responsible tourism, is inline with UN Sustainable Development Goals given the difficulties in measuring such impact. Some argue that it actually detracts attention from the wider issues surrounding tourism that are in need of regulation, such as the number of visitors and environmental impact.
Nature positive tourism recognises that tourism should do more than leave no trace. It should leave behind positive benefits for the natural world. A form of regenerative tourism, nature positive tourism is a way for the tourism industry to address the global biodiversity crisis by committing to a nature-positive approach. This requires change across the sector to arrest and reverse declines in nature by 2030, and to achieve full recovery by 2050.

The premise of nature positive tourism rests on the principle that all types of tourism – mainstream or otherwise – rely on nature and impact on it too. According to the World Travel and Tourism Council, 80% of good and services in the industry are highly dependent on nature. The impacts of tourism on nature span all five of the key drivers of global biodiversity loss – land use change, pollution, climate change, over-exploitation of natural resources, and the invasion of non-native species.

Nature positive tourism recognises and addresses these impacts and takes st…

Read more on Wikipedia

Although we are seeking solutions for sustainable tourism, there is no desirable change in the tourism system. Sustainable models must be able to adapt to new challenges a face a wider form of societal transformations. Many critics view the extractive nature of "sustainable tourism" as an oxymoron, as it is fundamentally unable to continue indefinitely. True and perfect sustainability is likely impossible in all but the most favorable circumstances, as the interests of equity, economy, and ecology often conflict with one another and require tradeoffs. It is a reality that many things are done in the name of sustainability are actually masking the desire to allow extra profits. There is often alienation of local populations from the tourists. Such cases highlight that sustainable tourism covers a wide spectrum from "very weak" to "very strong" when the degree of anthropocentrism and exploitation of human and natural resources is taken into account.