Sustainable Destination Management
Strategies in the OIC Member Countries
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Baltic Sea Tourism Center, which is a sustainable development project together with Poland,
Germany, Lithuania, and Sweden. This project aims to set up an organization to develop, manage,
and promote tourism in the Baltic Region. Among its objectives is protecting coastlines, parks,
and other natural and cultural resources, and developing long-term, sustainable tourism
strategies. The European Regional Development Fund has allocated a budget of $1.43 million to
this project.266
Monitoring Tourism Sustainability
The destination’s sustainability progress is measured through data and details of the
sustainability performance included in the Annual DMO Report and externally audited
sustainability report using GRI G4, GSTC or similar criteria.267 Some of Copenhagen’s
environmental performance are the following: 2.5 metric tons of CO2 emissions per capita, in
2015 57.4% of the city’s energy was derived from renewable sources, the city’s ambient outdoor
air pollution level (PM10) is 13 μg/m3, low rate of traffic congestion (21%), 424 hectares of
green area per 100,000 inhabitants, and 68% of hotel room inventory and 89% of congress
venues have sustainability certification.268
Conventional indicators in Denmark include bed stays per annum, average length of stay,
average expenditure, and jobs created. However, Copenhagen’s DMO is also considering other
indicators that do not only show economic factors, but relate more directly to social and cultural
sustainability, such as tourist satisfaction (77% of visitors leave with the intention to
recommend) and perception of local community about tourism (80% of citizens support visitor
growth and 98% of capital citizens believe that tourism contributes positively to the region).269
Lessons Learned
It is important to identify and prioritize pertinent tourism sustainability issues and set a clear
strategy to tackle these issues. Denmark has a strong and stable economy and a clear vision for
the growth and sustainability of the tourism and travel industry. Its main focus is on the
development of coastal and rural tourism, tackling seasonality, and the improvement of
competitiveness through better value for money.
Tourism sustainability strategies are more effective when part of wider sustainability efforts
and strategies. Denmark is highly environmentally-aware and has strong environmental policies
which regulate all areas of production and services, and which naturally extend to the tourism
industry. Additionally, employment conditions are generally very good.
Presenting a good business case for sustainability can facilitate adoption of sustainability
strategies. Copenhagen is committed to sustainable management of the city as a destination
through its 2020 Strategy promoting the concept ‘Localhood,’ which seeks to boost all economic,
cultural, and social benefits for both tourists and locals. The Localhood program, initiated by the
266 South Baltic. (n.d.). BSTC: Baltic sea tourism center. Retrieved
center-sustainable-development-structures-for-active-tourism.
267 Global Destination Sustainability Index. (2016). Copenhagen, Denmark, 2016. Retrieved from -
268 Global Destination Sustainability Index. (2016). Copenhagen, Denmark, 2016. Retrieved from -
269 Wonderful Copenhagen, (n.d.). The end of tourism as we know it, strategy 2020. Retrieved from