How far have corporate travel programs come on sustainability?

On November 2, at its Sustainability Summit in Vienna, the GBTA Foundation published its third yearly benchmark of corporate travel sustainability. The global score rose again, by a tenth of a point. The Americas went the other way. For a US agency that serves corporate accounts, the detail behind that drop points straight at the data a TMC holds.

What did GBTA's benchmark find?

Steady, slow progress. The Sustainability Acceleration Challenge scored 204 companies in 28 countries on a scale from 0, the starting point, to 5, leading practice. The average reached 1.5, up from 1.4 in 2025 and 1.3 in 2024. Since the benchmark began in 2024, 540 companies have taken part.

GBTA's own read was candid. Delphine Millot, who leads the GBTA Foundation, said the next challenge is to scale the solutions that cut emissions in ways a company can measure.

Where did programs move, and where did they stall?

The gains came in buying. Sustainable procurement rose from 1.5 to 1.6, and decarbonization from 0.7 to 0.8. The way travelers book and the way emissions are reported both held still.

Two more shifts matter for an agency. Climate criteria in supplier selection rose from 38 to 41 percent. Sustainability questions in RFPs dipped from 61 to 57 percent, still a clear majority.

Why did the Americas slip?

The score for the Americas fell from 0.9 to 0.7, the one region to drop. Emissions tracking and reporting drove it, falling from 1.5 to 0.9. Decarbonization was the one area to improve there, from 0.3 to 0.4.

GBTA's release gives the numbers and leaves the cause open. Read it as a signal, and check it against what your own clients ask for.

What does this mean for a TMC's reports?

An emissions report starts with trip data. Routes and cabins sit in the bookings a TMC makes, and hotel nights sit in the records it keeps after each trip. When that data has gaps, the client's emissions report inherits them.

The procurement numbers point the same way. More companies are writing sustainability terms into supplier contracts, and a TMC is one of those suppliers. Expect a reporting clause to appear at renewal.

Will sustainability come up in your next RFP?

Most likely. 57 percent of companies in the benchmark ask about it in their RFPs. A short, ready answer saves the account team a scramble. Say what data you report and how often you send it.

What can a TMC do this quarter?

We'd start with four steps:

1. Check the data on every booking. Routes and cabins should be complete in the records you keep, with hotel nights beside them, so an emissions figure has something solid to stand on.
2. Ask clients what they report. A travel manager with a target, a quarter of companies in GBTA's count, will want a regular view by quarter.
3. Write the RFP page once. Keep a current answer to the sustainability section, and update it after each benchmark.
4. Look at the booking tool. 60 percent of programs have sustainability features in theirs. Ask each client which ones are switched on.

The benchmark moves a tenth of a point a year. The TMCs that keep clean booking data will be ready whenever their clients move faster.

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