by Lacey Pfalz
Last updated: 11:10 AM ET, Fri December 5, 2025
New data released by the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) points to the more sustainable growth of the U.S. travel and tourism industry with greenhouse gas emissions continuing to decline as the industry grows.
WTTC’s latest Environmental & Social Research (ESR) shows that while travel’s GDP increased 1.8 percent per year between 2019 and 2024, emissions declined by 1.7, indicating a positive shift in the industry towards increased sustainability.
“This is a very positive sign, and clear proof that U.S. Travel & Tourism can decouple growth from environmental impact,” said Gloria Guevara, WTTC Interim President & CEO. “This positive trajectory matters both nationally and globally. As the world’s largest Travel & Tourism market, the U.S. has a unique opportunity to lead the global transition to a cleaner, more competitive future.”
In the United States, 54 percent of the travel industry’s emissions come from transportation, including buses, trains and airplanes. Fourteen percent are generated by utilities, which still largely run on fossil fuels in the U.S., while the rest come from a combined manufacturing, fuels, agriculture and other sources.
Low-carbon energy usage has largely stayed the same since 2022 in the U.S., at about 5.2 percent of total usage in the travel industry. This falls below the global usage, serving as a reminder that the nation falls behind in renewable energy production.
The ESR also reported on the social impact that the U.S. travel and tourism industry has on the nation. In 2024, 9.5 million women were directly employed in the industry, accounting for 47.4 percent of all industry jobs. This is higher than the national average, which is at 45.6 percent.
Youth employment is another big social sector: employment of young adults aged 15 to 24 has grown over 1.1 percent from 2024, with 3.54 million young people working within the industry. Young adults comprise 23.7 percent of travel industry jobs in the United States, vastly outpacing the national average of 13.1 percent.
Yet the number of Americans earning high wages who are directly employed in the industry is low, at 25.5 percent. This is below the national average of 50.7 percent, and the regional average for the travel industry, which is at 29.5 percent.
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