What Futouris e.V. does

Futouris e.V. is a Hamburg-based non-profit association (eingetragener Verein) founded in January 2009, operating as the sustainability initiative of the German-speaking tourism industry. It convenes 35+ member companies — including DERTOUR Group, TUI Cruises, Gebeco, schauinsland-reisen, Hotelplan Group, Chamäleon, AER Touristik AG, and Lufthansa City Center — to collaboratively develop and implement sustainability projects covering climate protection, biodiversity, plastic reduction, sustainable food, human rights due diligence, and destination resilience. The association is governed by an 8-member Executive Board chaired by Lucienne Damm (TUI Cruises) and supported by an 8-member Scientific Advisory Board drawn from European universities, with operational delivery handled by a 4-person office team led by Managing Directors Inga Meese and Swantje Lehners.

Futouris funds its operations through undisclosed membership fees from enterprise members, individual donations, and project co-financing from partners such as the EU (SUSTOUR), the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, and the TUI Care Foundation. It does not sell software, an API, or any technology platform; its core "products" are the free digital toolkits, guides, fact sheets, and e-learning modules published through its Knowledge Hub, alongside multi-stakeholder projects such as Hotels Go Net Zero (with Tourythm and myclimate), Biodiversity in Tourism (with WWF Germany and mascontour), and the December 2025 Sustainable Aviation Fuels Memorandum of Understanding with DERTOUR, Chamäleon, Discover Airlines, Edelweiss, and Condor. Active project geographies span DACH plus India, Finland, Greece, Spain, Namibia, and the Caribbean.

Go-to-market is community-led: new members are recruited via ITB Berlin presence, LinkedIn, and member referrals, then onboarded into a working-group and project-based engagement model. Notable outcomes include a 35% food waste reduction at R2 Hotel Rio Calma on Fuerteventura, over 600,000 single-use plastic items saved in hotel projects, and a 17% annual food waste reduction on the Mein Schiff cruise fleet. The association is a signatory to the UN Tourism Glasgow Declaration (2022), and its "Climate-conscious Travel" project won the German Sustainability Award Products 2026.

Name

Futouris e.V.

Legal name

Futouris e.V.

Website

https://futouris.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Futouris e.V. is a Hamburg-based non-profit association (founded 2009) that serves as the sustainability initiative for the German-speaking tourism industry, convening 35+ enterprise members to co-develop climate, biodiversity, and human rights projects and publishing free toolkits and guides through its Knowledge Hub.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Sustainable Tourism Consulting

NAICS

Convention and Visitors Bureaus (561591)

akta.pro primary industry

Sustainability Training, Consulting & ESG Advisory (Operational Playbooks, Staff Training) (THAAANAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Carbon Footprint Measurement, Reporting & Management (Travel Emissions Accounting) (THAAANAB), Waste Reduction & Circularity Solutions (Plastics Elimination, Recycling, Composting) (THAAANAF), Eco-Certification, Auditing & Standards (Green Lodging, Tour Operator Certification) (THAAANAA), Sustainable Supply Chain & Procurement Platforms (Local Sourcing, Ethical Purchasing) (THAAANAJ)

Keywords

• Sustainable tourism consulting
• Tourism industry collaboration
• Climate action travel
• Biodiversity tourism projects
• Sustainability training resources

Headquarters

HQ city

Hamburg

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Membership fees: Companies from the tourism industry pay membership fees to join Futouris and gain access to collaborative sustainability projects, networking, and knowledge sharing.
2. Donations: Individual donations are accepted to support Futouris sustainability projects worldwide. The organization maintains a GLS Bank account for donations and provides donation receipts.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Futouris e.V. is a non-profit sustainability initiative for the German-speaking tourism industry that convenes 35+ member companies (tour operators, travel agencies, hotels, airlines, cruise lines) to jointly develop and implement sustainability projects covering climate action, biodiversity protection, plastic reduction, sustainable food, and human rights. It delivers free digital toolkits, guides, fact sheets, and e-learning resources through its Knowledge Hub and coordinates member-driven industry projects such as Hotels Go Net Zero, Biodiversity in Tourism, and the Strong Women, Strong Future initiative.

Product overview

Futouris e.V. is a sustainability initiative for the German-speaking tourism industry that operates as a non-profit association rather than a software product company. The organization provides a portfolio of free digital toolkits, guides, and educational resources through its Knowledge Hub. Key offerings include the Sustainable Food Toolkit, Water Management Toolkit, Plastic Waste Reduction Toolkit, Climate Management in Hotels and Resorts Guide, Biodiversity Guide, Human Rights e-learning, and Destination Resilience Toolkit. These resources are developed collaboratively with member companies, academic partners, and NGOs to support sustainability across the tourism value chain. Futouris also manages various sustainability projects including Hotels Go Net Zero, biodiversity initiatives, women's empowerment programs, and Sustainable Aviation Fuel advocacy. The organization does not offer a commercial software product, API, or technology platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Sustainable Food Toolkit Digital toolkit providing background information, good practice examples, and implementation tips for creating a sustainable food menu in hotels and gastronomy, for hospitality and tourism operators.
• Water Management Toolkit Digital toolkit showing how to use water responsibly in tourism operations, addressing the limited nature of water as a resource; developed jointly with Hotelplan Group for hotels.
• Plastic Waste Reduction Toolkit Digital toolkit co-financed as part of the EU-funded SUSTOUR project supporting hotels and tourism businesses in measuring and reducing plastic waste.
• Climate Management in Hotels and Resorts Guide Free guide developed with Tourythm and myclimate helping hotels and resorts systematically reduce their CO₂e footprint through practical measures, clear roadmap, and concrete recommendations based on Hotels Go Net Zero project findings.
• Grüner Gastgeber:innen-Guide: Biodiversität schützen Guide developed with Airbnb showing how hosts and guests can contribute to protecting biodiversity, part of the project 'Grüner Gastgeber:innen-Guide: Biodiversität schützen'.
• e-learning Human Rights in Tourism Free digital training course on human rights due diligence in tourism, developed with Roundtable Human Rights in Tourism and funded by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development.
• Digital Toolkit Nachhaltigkeit am Counter Toolkit providing facts, tips, and directly usable materials for travel agency counters to support sustainability conversations with customers.
• Fact Sheets Klimaschutz am Counter Fact sheets created as part of the 'Climate Protection at the Counter' project providing climate protection information for travel agency staff.
• Leitfaden zur Analyse von menschenrechtlichen Auswirkungen Guide helping tourism companies analyze human rights impacts of their business activities as part of due diligence requirements.
• Manual Sustainable Lodges in the KAZA area Manual for sustainable lodges in the Kavango-Zambezi-Transfrontier Conservation Area, developed as part of tourism and conservation initiatives.
• Digital Toolkit für Destination Resilience Digital toolkit for building resilient and sustainable tourism destinations, explaining key resilience concepts and providing practical tools.
• Futouris Knowledge Hub Central platform containing all toolkits, guides, fact sheets, and educational materials developed by Futouris for sustainable tourism development, including Climate Management, Water Management, Plastic Waste Reduction, Biodiversity, Human Rights, and Sustainability Communication resources.
• Hotels Go Net Zero Project Industry project supporting hotels across Europe in setting up and implementing active climate management for their operations through on-site climate audits, Net Zero roadmaps, and training materials, developed with Tourythm and myclimate.
• Biodiversität im Tourismus Industry Project Industry project launched jointly by Futouris e.V., WWF Germany, and mascontour to support tourism companies in systematically addressing their biodiversity impacts through assessment tools and implementation support.
• Starke Frauen, starke Zukunft - Strong Women, Strong Future Himalayas Project Joint project with Gebeco and Fernweh Fair Travel in Chamoli, India (January 2024 - December 2026) focusing on empowering women through tourism by building a Community Development Center, educational workshops (English courses), and product workshops for local product creation.

Quantifiable outcome

• Hotels reduced food waste by 35% at R2 Hotel Rio Calma on Fuerteventura
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

21 partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• IST-Hochschule DüsseldorfminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Educational partnership where Futouris delivers lectures on climate protection and emissions reduction in tourism to students in the 'Sustainable Tourism' continuing education program.
• DERTOUR GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 December 2025Member company and key project partner in SAF MOU, Hotels Go Net Zero, Biodiversity in Tourism, and Climate-conscious Travel initiatives.
• ChamäleoncoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 December 2025Member company participating in SAF MOU and Biodiversity in Tourism industry project.
• Discover AirlinescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 December 2025Airline partner in SAF Memorandum of Understanding to advance availability and use of Sustainable Aviation Fuels in DACH source market.
• EdelweisscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 December 2025Airline partner in SAF Memorandum of Understanding to advance availability and use of Sustainable Aviation Fuels in DACH source market.
• Condor Flugdienst GmbHcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 December 2025Airline partner in SAF Memorandum of Understanding to advance availability and use of Sustainable Aviation Fuels in DACH source market.
• WWF DeutschlandcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 April 2025Joint industry project 'Biodiversity in Tourism' launched Spring 2025. WWF provides biodiversity expertise, risk analysis tools (Biodiversity Risk Filter), and scientific validation for tourism companies assessing their biodiversity impacts.
• mascontourcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 April 2025Sustainability consultancy partner in the Biodiversity in Tourism industry project, providing expertise in biodiversity assessment and implementation support for tourism companies.
• TourythmcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2024Expert partner in Hotels Go Net Zero project, providing climate auditing services and methodology for measuring hotel carbon footprints using the Hotel Carbon Measurement Initiative (HCMI) standard.
• myclimatecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2024Climate science partner in Hotels Go Net Zero project and developer of the Climate Management in Hotels guide. Provides expertise in carbon measurement and reduction methodologies.
• Fernweh Fair TravelcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Local project partner in India for the 'Strong Women, Strong Future' project in the Himalayas. Coordinates on-the-ground implementation and community engagement in Chamoli region.
• TUI Care FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in multiple projects including TUI Field to Fork Greece (regenerative agriculture), Caribbean biodiversity projects, and women empowerment initiatives.
• KlimaLink e.V.coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPlatform for calculating and displaying travel carbon footprints. Futouris cooperates with KlimaLink on climate footprint visibility and emissions calculation tools for tourism.
• Roundtable Human Rights in TourismcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative partner in developing e-learning training on human rights due diligence in tourism. Joint industry initiative for corporate responsibility.
• German Travel Association (DRV)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerPatron of Futouris. Joint industry project 'Climate-conscious Travel' developed in cooperation with DRV. Joint events and advocacy for sustainable tourism.
• Study Group for Tourism & Development (Studienkreis für Tourismus & Entwicklung)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-exhibitor at ITB Berlin joint stand on responsible tourism. Partner in knowledge sharing and sustainable tourism development.
• ECPAT Deutschland e.V.minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-exhibitor at ITB Berlin joint stand. Organization working against child exploitation in tourism.
• Balearic Islands GovernmentminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGovernment partner in plastic-free vacations project. Cooperated on island-wide plastic waste reduction initiatives.
• Sustainable Food Destination Organization (SFDO)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in TUI Field to Fork Greece project for regenerative agriculture and sustainable food production in tourism.
• UN TourismminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational partner in developing Sustainable Food Procurement Factsheets in cooperation with UN Environment Programme.
• German Committee for Disaster Reduction (DKKV)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in Destination Resilience project, developing quality infrastructure and guidelines for resilient tourism destinations.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Tourism Declares: Tourism Declares is an initiative supporting tourism organizations and businesses in declaring climate emergencies and committing to science-based climate action plans. Its climate-commitment framework for tourism operators directly parallels Futouris's Glasgow Declaration-aligned and Klimabewusst Reisen work.
• Adventure Travel Trade Association (ATTA): ATTA is a global membership-based trade association for the adventure travel industry that runs collaborative initiatives, training, and events. Its industry-association model and member-driven advocacy role mirror Futouris's structure in the broader travel-trade space.
• TourCert: TourCert is a Germany-based non-profit sustainability certification body for travel agencies, tour operators, hotels, and destinations in the DACH market. It competes with Futouris for the same sustainability-coalition role with German-speaking tour operators and accommodations.
• Travelife: Travelife is a leading sustainability management system and certification program specifically for the tourism industry (tour operators, accommodations, destinations). Like Futouris, it serves DACH and global tourism companies with sustainability training, auditing, and standards — making it the closest direct comparator in both topic and buyer profile.
• Green Destinations: Green Destinations is a Netherlands-based foundation running the Green Destinations certification and Top 100 Sustainable Destinations program for tourism destinations worldwide. Its destination-sustainability focus and foundation structure are highly comparable to Futouris's destination resilience work.

Broad incumbents

• Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC): GSTC sets global standards for sustainable tourism and accredits certification bodies. It is a global-incumbent counterpart to Futouris's industry-focused approach, sharing the agenda of advancing sustainability practice but operating at the standards/framework layer rather than the member-collaboration layer.
• UN Tourism (UNWTO): UN Tourism is the United Nations specialized agency for tourism that sets international policy and runs initiatives including the Glasgow Declaration co-administered with Futouris. It is a broad incumbent operating at the supranational level while partnering with Futouris on tourism sustainability programs.

Emerging players

• myclimate: myclimate is a Swiss climate foundation offering emissions calculation, carbon offsetting, and (with Tourythm) hotel carbon footprinting under the HCMI standard. It is one of Futouris's core delivery partners in the Hotels Go Net Zero project and a partial-overlap competitor for sustainability-program work in the DACH tourism market.
• Sustainable Travel International: Sustainable Travel International is a US-based non-profit delivering carbon measurement, offsetting, certification, and destination sustainability programs to travel companies. Its combination of NGO structure, tourism focus, and programmatic offerings is comparable to Futouris's Knowledge Hub and project portfolio.

Others

• Roundtable Human Rights in Tourism: Roundtable Human Rights in Tourism is a Munich-based multi-stakeholder initiative where tourism companies and NGOs jointly develop human rights due diligence. It is a long-standing Futouris project partner with overlapping agenda and member companies, but its narrower human-rights focus makes it an adjacent peer rather than a direct competitor.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/futouris
• Instagraminstagram.com/futouris_ev

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Futouris e.V.