Environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors for sustainable tourism development : the way forward toward destination resilience and growth

Abstract

Although environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance is increasingly gaining popularity in corporate and financial domains, its application in the tourism industry is still relatively underexplored. Hence, the objectives of this research are fivefold: (1) A systematic review appraises the extant literature on the intersection of the ESG dimensions and sustainable tourism; (2) It provides a synthesis of the content of the extracted articles and maps thematic intersections related to travel destinations' environmental stewardship, social equity and governance frameworks; (3) It assesses ESG-aligned strategies that are intended to address the destinations' challenges including their carrying capacities and overtourism issues, climate risks, sociocultural tensions as well as institutional accountabilities; (4) It provides a holistic conceptual framework that guides policymakers, practitioners and stakeholders in integrating ESG into tourism planning and development, for sustainable and economically viable outcomes. In conclusion, (5) it advances theoretical and managerial implications.