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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.

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

0%

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

Summary
Environmental
Supplier
Social

Hamburg is the second largest city in Germany and the largest city in Europe that is not a capital city. 44.5% of the city's area is either forest, green or recreational space, nature reserves or protected landscapes. This makes Hamburg one of the ten greenest cities in Europe. Numerous waterways run through the city, painting a maritime picture. Hamburg has two UNESCO World Heritage Sites. In addition to the Speicherstadt and Kontorhausviertel, which are our World Heritage Sites, we also have a World Natural Heritage Site: the Hamburg Wadden Sea National Park in the Elbe estuary of the North Sea can be experienced in Hamburg with a visit to Neuwerk Island. Since 2015, the city on the Elbe has been pursuing a climate plan to actively advance the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations' Agenda 2030. However, there are also other issues such as the environment and the city, participation and social cohesion, as well as education and science. But even today, Hamburg already has a lot to show: Hamburg has won several sustainability awards such as the Good Design Award 2021 "Green City of the Year" and was the European Environmental Capital in 2011. In 2023, the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg produced a Local Voluntary Review for the first time and report on the implementation of the SDGs in the city. This lays another important foundation stone for the development of sustainability in all dimensions in the city. For us as Hamburg Tourismus GmbH, sustainable travel for leisure or even business motives means reducing the carbon footprint and leaving a positive handprint - there are many ways to do this. Since 2018, we have been working with the help of our sustainability strategy and with our diverse partners to make Hamburg tourism more sustainable. In doing so, we want to enable our guests and customers to have a sustainable experience in our city. For example, we have comprehensively filled Hamburg's widest-reach website with sustainable offers, launched the Hamburg CARD Green as Europe's first sustainable CityCard, and are currently planning a citywide FoodFestival with a sustainable focus. We see ourselves as part of the sustainability movement and want to make our contribution. That is why we as Hamburg Tourismus GmbH have been Green Globe certified since 2018 and thus also implement sustainability goals internally.

Does Hamburg Tourismus GmbH have a Sustainability Strategy?

Does Hamburg have a sustainable destination certificate?

Does Hamburg Tourismus GmbH report on its sustainability performance?

With its climate plan, Hamburg has set itself the goal of reducing CO2 emissions by 70% by 2030 and aims to achieve climate neutrality (98%) by 2045. Also in public transport Hamburg is very active: We are focussing on the "Hamburg Takt". This means that every Hamburg resident should be able to find a public transport service from anywhere in the city within 5 minutes. Furthermore, Hamburg is a model region for mobility. One of the first projects of the "Metropolitan Model Region Mobility" will be to establish a mobility system with up to 10,000 autonomous vehicles by 2030. The overall goal of the project is to develop and build a completely new, digitized and networked urban mobility system and to be CO2 neutral by 2039. Hamburg is Germany’s biggest and Europe’s third biggest port city. The Port of Hamburg is considered the center of transformation. The Port of Hamburg is set to become the center of a sustainable and green hydrogen economy in Europe and to play a major pioneering role here. Numerous initiatives at the location are working together with partners on various aspects of sustainability, such as circular economy and reusable systems. With the Foodlab, Hamburg has a start-up and accelerator program for the gastronomy scene, where budding gastronomists can try out and develop new ways of eating.

3%

OF ELECTRICITY
FROM RENEWABLES

34%

OF WASTE
RECYCLED

1676 ha

HECTARES OF GREEN
AREA PER 100 000
POPULATION

Hamburg is a congress and trade fair location. Both, the trade fair ground and the congress center are located directly in the city center and can be reached directly by public transport. The journey from the airport to the trade fair only takes 20 minutes by train. Speaking of the airport, Hamburg is not only easy to reach by plane, but is also well connected by sustainable rail transport within Europe. Many hotels are now certified with GSTC-approved certificates or are committed to build a more sustainable convention destination with their own sustainability programs. In addition, there are numerous sustainable caterers, venues, incentive providers and mobility providers who have a strong sustainable approach to live and develop it in all facets. In Hamburg, we are convinced that congresses have a sustainable impact on the city. Projects are initiated, expertise comes to the city, international networks are formed and, ideally, topics are moved that have a sustainable influence on the city of Hamburg. As an example of this, we can point to the ITS World Congress, which has once again anchored the topic of mobility in Hamburg and will continue to have a major influence on mobility development in Hamburg in retrospect. This is also underpinned by the UITP Global Summit, which will be hosted in our city in 2025 and 2027.

28%

OF HOTEL ROOMS
SUSTAINABILITY
CERTIFIED

0%

OF VENUES
SUSTAINABILITY
CERTIFIED

26%

OF PCOS/DMCS
SUSTAINABILITY
CERTIFIED

Social sustainability is one of the cornerstones in the city's attitude. The city's second mayor is also Senator for Science, Research, Equality and Districts. This means that the topic of social sustainability is anchored almost at the very top in Hamburg. This is reflected, for example, in the fact that the city has already been pursuing an "Action Plan for Acceptance of Gender and Sexual Diversity" since 2017. This is about recognition, fair participation and the reduction of exclusions. Because we are convinced that equal opportunities and acceptance are essential criteria for a sustainable city in which all people can live freely and self-determined. Hamburg is thus positioning itself as a haven of protection for people of all origins, identities and sexual orientations. This can best be seen in the districts of St. Georg and St. Pauli. Two districts that embody tolerance, diversity and equal opportunity in a way that not many cities in Germany do. Once a year, this is transported far and wide by what is perhaps the city's most colorful and open festival, when Christopher Street Day parades through the city with its huge parade and thousands of visitors. Tourism acceptance is a big issue for the destination. Since 2017, Hamburg Tourismus GmbH has regularly conducted resident surveys on this. With the event "Deine Stadt. Deine Hotels", a format was created in 2019 with which Hamburg hotels opened their doors to citizens and potential professionals. The initiative by Hamburg Tourismus GmbH, DEHOGA, Chamber of Commerce, Tourism Association and Promotion Pool created visibility for the hotels' offerings for residents as well, thus promoting greater acceptance for this not only tourist infrastructure. At the same time, potential skilled workers should get to know the hotel trade.

SDG IMPLEMENTATION SCORE

SCORE ON SOCIAL PROGRESS INDEX

SCORE ON CORRUPTION PERCEPTION INDEX

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