The United Nations has identified SDG 13 (Climate Action) as a key global goal in addressing the impacts of climate change. As the tourism industry plays a significant role in influencing the environment, enhancing the knowledge and capacity of personnel within this sector is essential to driving climate action forward. The School of Tourism and Hospitality Management, Suan Dusit University, in collaboration with the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation (MHESI), the Office of the Science, Research and Innovation Promotion Board (TSRI), the Program Management Unit for Competitiveness (PMUC), and the Thai Ecotourism and Adventure Travel Association (TEATA), a non-governmental organization (NGO), organized a professional training program for tour guides titled “Sustainable Guiding: Carbon Neutral Tourism in Action.” This workshop-based training program aims to develop the skills and enhance the competencies of tour guides and related personnel to support the transition toward carbon-neutral tourism. It serves as an outreach education program that extends beyond the university, exemplifying a community-based educational initiative that fosters both capacity building and tangible awareness of climate change.
The curriculum focuses on the dissemination of knowledge to local communities and tourism enterprises beyond the university context. Participants included a total of 80 individuals — comprising 40 students, 10 university staff members, and 30 representatives from local communities and tourism operators.
The training content was designed to foster a comprehensive understanding of environmentally conscious tourism trends and strategies for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, directly addressing climate change risks and impacts. The program’s core modules focused on enhancing participants’ capacity in both mitigation and adaptation, comprising the following key components:
- The Importance of Greenhouse Gas Reduction – Emphasizing the urgent need to mitigate the adverse effects of climate change.
- Carbon Footprint Calculation in Tourism Activities – Providing participants with tools to quantitatively assess environmental impacts.
- Application of the ZERO CARBON Mobile App – Introducing technology-based tools for tracking and managing carbon emissions effectively.
- Workshop on Designing Carbon-Neutral Tour Programs – Offering hands-on experience in developing tour programs aligned with the principles of carbon-neutral tourism, representing an operational-level adaptation strategy.
Additionally, the program included training on environmental communication skills, enabling participants to motivate and engage tourists in minimizing their environmental footprint during travel.
This training initiative demonstrates that investing in educational programs that integrate local communities and environments into the learning process — specifically through hands-on, activity-based outreach programs — is an effective approach to fostering adaptation and mitigation to climate change.
By focusing on practical and targeted content, such as carbon footprint assessment and the use of digital tools like the ZERO CARBON application, the program provides participants with actionable knowledge and tools to address environmental challenges.
The development of tour guides as leaders in carbon-neutral tourism through localized, experiential training is not merely a means of enhancing professional skills, but also a process of cultivating climate awareness and equipping participants with practical mechanisms to reduce greenhouse gas emissions within the tourism industry. This initiative represents a significant step toward Thailand’s sustainable achievement of SDG 13: Climate Action.