The Global Council for Sustainable Tourism raised Dubrovnik's sustainability rating by more than 15%

The Global Council for Sustainable Tourism (GSTC) conducted the second evaluation of the destination for the City of Dubrovnik, which in 2023 is 86,04%.

This is an increase of 16% compared to 2019, when the same organization first conducted a sustainability assessment, which then amounted to 70%. These results were based on the criteria of the United Nations, and the final document is an indicator that Dubrovnik is on the right path towards complete and permanent sustainability.

Namely, through a detailed analysis conducted in April this year, it was determined that significant progress has been made in all specific areas, all in accordance with the projects and activities of the Respect the City project and recommendations from the previous GSTC report, according to the City of Dubrovnik.

The aforementioned assessment established indicators in accordance with the GSTC criteria, which cover certain risks and necessary adjustments: destination management responsibility, monitoring and reporting process, private sector involvement and sustainability standards, risk and crisis management, management of protected areas, protection and management of plant and animal resources and waste management.

In  numerous activities and projects that were carried out in the period from the previous evaluation of the destination until today, apart from the excellent evaluation, it was achieved that no indicator is in the risk zone.

The project was carried out for the City of Dubrovnik by the director of the Mediterranean Region of GSTC, Ioannis Pappas, with the professional support of city administration employees and the Dubrovnik Development Agency DURA.

With the aim of assessing the City's performance in relation to the GSTC criteria for destination sustainability, he reviewed extensive documentation and through numerous meetings consulted around 70 key stakeholders and leading organizations from national and local administration, the private sector, non-governmental organizations and university institutions, as well as residents. He also visited numerous locations in the city area, which, in addition to the historical core and the contact zone, also included a visit to the TUP complex, the construction site of the Lapad coast and the location of the new waste water treatment plant.

Dubrovnik is the first local self-government unit for which the GSTC conducted a new sustainability assessment, i.e. a complete assessment of the destination's sustainability status compared to the previous report, based on the UN's sustainability criteria and destination management. This project continued the successful cooperation between the City and this independent international body whose role is to promote the development of sustainable tourism. 

Read the entire CTGC report on Dubrovnik in the attachment.

Side dish: DOCUMENT: GTSC/ Dubrovnik - recheck

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Cover photo: Ivan Bagić / Pixabay