Canada
Contact: Virginie De Visscher
The GDS-Index is a destination-level programme that measures, benchmarks, and improves the sustainability strategy and performance of tourism and events destinations.
The GDS-Index is aligned with international standards; UN SDGs, GSTC Destination Criteria, UNWTO.
Click here to read more about the benchmarking methodology including data collection and verification, the four benchmarking categories, governance and criteria development and performance scoring methods.
This page highlights each destinations sustainability journey and will showcase their journey.
Destination Canada’s Business Events Sustainability Plan
Canada has a total of 20 participating destinations, of which 16 are in Destination Canada’s Business Events Sustainability Plan.
The commitment and leadership demonstrated by the Business Events Team at Destination Canada and the individual destinations is worldclass. Canada is becoming a reference on how to develop a national sustainable destination initiative, how to build capacity, measure performance and communicate results.
Performance Overview
The 2023 GDS-Index comprises 69 indicators across four categories. Here is the total score and the score for the four categories for this destination.
Total
90%
Environmental
Social
Supplier
Destination Management Organisation
Environmental
Includes a city’s performance pertaining to its policies and infrastructure, such as climate change commitment, carbon emissions, renewable energies, resource and water management, public transport, and air pollution levels.
Social
Indicates the performance of the city against indicators of SDG integration, Corruption, Personal Safety, Access to Information and Communications, Health and Wellness, and Inclusivity, using external sources such as the Social Progress Imperative Index, and Corruption Perceptions Index.
Supplier
Addresses the sustainability commitment and performance of the local meetings’ industry supply chain, including airports, events agencies, hotels, venues, and restaurants.
Destination Management Organisation
Indicates the sustainability commitment, including questions pertaining to maturity of a destination’s sustainability and regeneration strategy, leadership, communication of sustainability initiatives (to support client planners), and the accuracy of their reporting on sustainability operations.
Sustainability Journey
Canada is becoming a reference on how to develop a national sustainable destination initiative, how to build capacity, measure performance and communicate results.
The commitment and leadership demonstrated by the Business Events Team at Destination Canada and the individual destinations is worldclass.
Canada has a total of 20 participating destinations, of which 16 are in the Destination Canada’s Business Events Sustainability Plan (DC Plan).
Destination Canada is committed to ensuring meetings hosted in Canada—and around the world—leave a positive handprint, rather than a negative footprint. We want to lessen the environmental footprint of events, while boosting their socio-cultural and economic benefits. That’s why, in conjunction with our groundbreaking Canadian Business Events Sustainability Plan, we have commissioned this world-first Legacy & Impact Study.
