- Stratford-upon-Avon, Solihull and Sandwell among world’s top 10 most improved destinations for sustainability
- Birmingham and Coventry recognised for advances in environmental performance
Destinations across the West Midlands have been recognised for their climate action and sustainability efforts, according to a new report.
Stratford-upon Avon (4th), Solihull (5th) and Sandwell (7th) all feature in the Top 10 Most Improved Destinations in the 2025 Global Destination Sustainability (GDS) Index. The index is an annual benchmarking programme, which assesses how destinations manage tourism to enhance visitor experience while balancing environmental and community needs.
Solihull also ranked 1st in the top 10 most improved Suppliers; Stratford-upon-Avon came 2nd for Environmental Performance; and Sandwell was 3rd in the Supplier category and 9th for Destination Management Organisations.
Birmingham (8th in the top 10 most improved Destination Management category) and Coventry (10th for Environmental) also appeared in this year’s rankings.
Adelaide (1st), Krakow (2nd) and The Malverns (3rd) were named the most improved destinations worldwide.
“It is encouraging to see so many of our West Midlands towns, cities and boroughs acknowledged for their ambitions to make the region more sustainable.
“This is only the start of an important journey with our local authorities, partners and hospitality businesses to ensure that we continue to improve and build a greener, more innovative and regenerative destination for our residents and record number of visitors.
– Becky Frall, Head of Tourism at the West Midlands Growth Company
Celebrating its 10th year, the GDS-Index is the world’s most-trusted performance improvement programme to assess and accelerate the progress of a destination’s regenerative journey. It measures, benchmarks, and enhances the sustainability strategies, action plans, and initiatives of more than 100 destination management organisations, municipal authorities, and their tourism supply chains.
“Every destination featured in the GDS-Index has demonstrated leadership and commitment – each one deserving recognition for its efforts to build a more regenerative future.
“As we mark the 10th year of the GDS-Index – with 626 benchmarking assessments completed across 35 countries since 2016 – one thing has remained constant: the courage of this community to lead with vision and to innovate with purpose.
“From shifting seasonality to changing governance and a pushback against sustainability, members of the movement meet each wave with intention, creativity, and a fierce resolve to do better, faster, together. It’s not just about riding the wave, it’s about learning how to read it, shape it, and surf it to make it count.”
– Guy Bigwood, CEO and Chief Changemaker at GDS-Movement
