The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) is implementing an ESG (environment, social, and governance) tourism approach as part of its increased commitment to sustainable travel. By offering a means of producing greater, more consistent earnings, this framework aims to improve local communities. According to their most recent report, income in those villages increased by 20% within two months of the Village to the World #SustainableAgenda’s launch, solidifying the project as a key component of the country’s long-term tourism strategy.

The TAT is institutionalising community-based tourism in collaboration with the Stock Exchange of Thailand, the Ministry of Tourism and Sports, and a group of private-sector stakeholders. The programme is designed to provide measurable impacts on ESG indicators by benefiting both firms and communities, departing from the more limited perspective of corporate social responsibility (CSR). The partnership is creating a mutually reinforcing ecosystem by combining corporate sustainability metrics with local uplift goals. This is because self-sufficiency and income strengthen local economic foundations, while resilient communities support a more sustainable growth trajectory for Thailand’s tourism industry as a whole.

Success has already been achieved with TAT’s new approach, which combines local empowerment with corporate sustainability. Over 30,000 tourists helped communities in five important locations of Thailand thrive in just two months (July to August 2025). Over 30,000 tourists visited the participating model villages, resulting in a 20 per cent boost in local revenue. Well-known companies that are working with local communities to promote sustainable practices, such as Thai AirAsia, SCG, AIS, and AWC, have successfully partnered with the programme.

Community-based tourism, which not only generates tourism income but also involves businesses in preserving Thailand’s cultural legacy, is one of the initiative’s main pillars. The project offers organisations and communities a framework for success that goes beyond typical CSR by concentrating on quantifiable ESG outcomes, which have real economic and social benefits.

The TAT effort has already had noticeable outcomes. Through partnerships with online travel agencies (OTAs) and corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives, the programme has effectively introduced new services and goods that target the business-to-business (B2B) and corporate markets. More significantly, it has created frameworks for sustainability that are replicable and scalable in other parts of Thailand.

Increasing the number of tourist partnerships and, eventually, making sure that the advantages of sustainable growth are felt across the country are the main goals of the TAT’s ESG tourism project. TAT is attempting to improve the business-community engagement paradigm and promote investment in ESG tourism by creating policy frameworks.