Low-carbon tourism involves not only reducing emissions but also transforming the way people travel. Photo credit: iStock/Venansius Martinus Marot.
There is no place like Raja Ampat. More than 75% of the world’s coral reef is found in this remote archipelago in Southwest Papua, Indonesia. Designated by UNESCO as a geopark for its unique geological heritage, it boasts of having the country's oldest exposed rock formation, dating back to the Silurian–Devonian era, some 443.8 million–358.9 million years ago, and nearly one-tenth the age of the Earth. Early this year, the New York Times named Raja Ampat among the top 52 places to visit in 2025 as it extolled the island chain’s unique beauty and rich biodiversity in land and sea.
Raja Ampat saw tourist arrivals surge in 2015 after tourism facilities and homestay options multiplied. Having seen tourism’s potential to benefit local communities, stakeholders have worked together over the years to keep tourism sustainable. The strong multi-stakeholder participation and coordination in fact was credited for the successful implementation of sustainable tourism practices. As the New York Times noted, conservation efforts resulted in the growing number of manta rays in the archipelago when ray and shark populations have declined worldwide.
Raja Ampat took efforts to protect the environment a step further when it launched an initiative last year promoting low-carbon tourism. Led by the Southwest Papua Youth, Sports, Tourism and Creative Economy Agency (Dispora Parekraf), the scheme offers tourists opportunities to explore the group of islands in an environmentally friendly and responsible manner. A guidebook was developed to inspire sustainable travel in Rajah Ampat and “demonstrate that extraordinary travel experiences do not have to come at the expense of our planet’s health.”
“Low-carbon tourism involves not only reducing emissions but also transforming the way we travel. It's a collective commitment among tourists, tourism industry stakeholders, and government entities to foster a more sustainable future,” said Yusdi Lamatenggo, head of Dispora Parekraf, in a documentary on Raja Ampat’s low-carbon travel journey.
The provincial government launched the program in October last year as part of a nationwide campaign dubbed Wonderful Indonesia Sustainable Experience (WISE) Trips. The campaign supports the country’s drive to be net zero by 2060 or sooner. Under the government’s net-zero plan, the Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy aims to reduce the sector’s carbon emissions to 4% by 2030 from 8% at present.
Southwest Papua is the first province in Indonesia to launch a sustainable tourism program under WISE Trips.
Indonesia’s push for greener travel
Indonesia is a signatory to the Glasgow Declaration on Climate Action on Tourism launched in 2021 during the COP28 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Dubai. The Glasgow Declaration is a voluntary commitment to support the halving of emissions by 2030 and achieve net zero by 2050 at the latest. This entails committing to the decarbonization of tourism operations and to restore and protect ecosystems, helping visitors and host communities experience better balance with nature. “Rebalancing our relationship with nature is critical to regenerating both its ecological health and our personal, social and economic well-being,” the declaration states.
According to a 2008 report from the World Tourism Organization (now United Nations Tourism) and the United Nations Environment Programme, the tourism sector contributed approximately 5% of all man-made carbon dioxide emissions in 2005, with transport representing the largest component, or 75% of the sector's overall emissions.
Another UN Tourism report said with the number of domestic and international arrivals forecast to reach 15.6 billion and 1.8 billion by 2030, tourism’s carbon emissions are expected to grow further. The report projected emissions from domestic tourism to grow by 21% to 1.103 billion tonnes in 2030 from 913 million tonnes in 2016. Transport-related emissions from international tourism are expected to jump 45% to 665 million tonnes in 2030 from 458 million tonnes in 2016.
Low-carbon travel as a necessity
Given these scenarios, making tourism sustainable has become urgent to ensure it continues to create jobs and generate socioeconomic benefits for communities in destinations.
With WISE Trips, Raja Ampat is adopting the low-carbon travel concept in all aspects of tourism, from transportation and accommodation to activities and waste management. “The goal is to create a tourism model that not only reduces carbon footprints but also increases the resilience and sustainability of the destinations visited,” said the guidebook
To pilot WISE Trips, Raja Ampat partnered with CarbonEthics, an Indonesia-based company that develops tech-enabled natural climate solutions, to help calculate the carbon emissions of tourist activities under the program. The goal is to give tourists an idea of their carbon footprint during their visit.
Eco-labelling, which provides carbon footprints of specific products and services to guide consumers, businesses, and governments toward sustainable consumption and production, is practiced worldwide.
A study on the Raja Ampat pilot program estimates that a cruise around the island chain will generate 0.098 tonnes of carbon dioxide per person. Emissions may be offset by planting at least one mangrove tree.
The guidebook features authentic travel experiences across Raja Ampat, including diving, island hopping, birdwatching, and river tours. It also detailed the projected carbon emissions per person for specific activities, including the footprint for homestays. To reduce emissions, it also recommended the use of efficient transportation options to save fuel, switching to renewable energy sources, using rainwater harvesting systems to conserve water, eliminating single-use plastics, increasing recycling and compositing efforts, serving local food instead of imported products, and actively participating in and supporting local conservation projects.
“Low-carbon tourism is no longer a trend—it’s a necessity,” said Yusdi. “This concept encourages us to minimize our carbon footprint at every stage of the tourist journey. By embracing low-carbon tourism, we not only protect the environment, but also ensure the long-term sustainability of the tourism economy itself.”