Aaron Tham, senior lecturer – tourism, leisure and events, University of the Sunshine Coast, Australia sees an opportunity for progress in clean energy and electric mobility usage in travel and tourism amid the ongoing oil crisis
The escalating events surrounding the Middle East have disrupted fuel supply chains across the globe. This is particularly challenging for the travel industry, which is extremely reliant on fuel to power transport modes, supply food and sustenance, and employee mobility.
Indeed, these operational issues were already identified in TTG Asia earlier this week, leaving various stakeholders and governments scrambling to identify optimal solutions to minimise disruptions to everyday lives.
At present, different countries have adopted a range of strategies to mitigate the oil crisis. These include reducing flights or taxis, as in the case of Vietnam and Thailand, respectively. Other nations, such as Cambodia and Malaysia, are warning tourists to brace themselves for higher prices as fuel surcharges continue to rise in aviation.
These scenarios are a lose-lose situation for operators and tourists alike, as demand and supply will likely be reduced soon, unless the oil crisis finds an amicable solution.
Nevertheless, this crisis opens much-needed conversations around how better organised supply chains, or even post-oil futures, can be conceived for the tourism industry.
Given the ongoing fuel price increases, there may be a stronger case for buying local to reduce the impact of lengthy food miles to feed locals and tourists in densely populated destinations.
There would also be stronger calls for the push towards clean electricity sources and electric forms of mobility – ferries and tuk-tuks, among others, in moving towards post-oil futures. After all, oil crises could occur again in the future and present an ongoing challenge for the tourism industry. Ideas such as virtual tours and online events may not be suitable for all destinations, as we are an industry that is founded on people-to-people experiences.
This is the time to push ahead towards post-oil futures and take actionable steps towards SDG7 (affordable and clean energy), SDG9 (industry, innovation and infrastructure), and SDG13 (climate action).
