Jaume Mata


Head of Sustainable Tourism, Visit València Foundation.
Graduate in Economics and Business Management (University of Valencia)
International Postgraduate Degree in Tourism (Polytechnic University of Valencia)
Master in Tourism Management (University of Surrey, UK.

Since 1997 he has been working in the Visit València Foundation -the city’s DMO- chaired by the City Council and in which more than three hundred organisations in the sector participate.

During his 25-year career at Visit València, he has held various positions as head of marketing, promotion and communication. Between 2004 and 2016 he was deputy director, coordinating the three aforementioned areas. During this period, the foundation was recognised by the World Tourism Organisation with the S-Best certification and the Ulysses award for innovation in tourism governance.

Between 2003 and 2004, he participated in the candidacy and initial preparation of Valencia as host city for the 32nd America’s Cup. The bidding process concluded with the designation of Valencia – beating 65 cities from all over the world – projecting the city’s image worldwide and achieving a record in demand indicators. As Marketing Director and Head of Cabinet of the Valencia 2007 Consortium (formed by the General State Administration, the regional government and the City Council), he coordinated the process of preparing the dossier of candidature (ranging from infrastructures to security, including sponsorship and ambush marketing, etc.). He also was responsible for institutional relations and liaison with the event organisers.

Since 2016, he has been coordinating the implementation of València’s tourism sustainability strategy. He is currently developing, in collaboration with the municipal delegations, the implementation of the actions included in the green transition and energy efficiency axes of the València 2022-2024 Tourism Sustainability Plan. These actions range from a tourism observatory to the management of carbon and water footprints, including the sustainable management of surrounding ecosystems and natural parks, the reduction of plastics and the circular economy; food and sustainable mobility.

He has participated in several European projects related to sustainable tourism management in areas such as water use efficiency, tourism flows, monitoring and indicators, management models for natural areas, etc. He is also a member of sustainability working groups in Cities Destination Alliance (European association of tourist cities), Valencian Institute fot tourism technologies (Invattur), Interreg Sustainable Tourism Community, Tourism Transition Pathway of the European Commission, the Future of Tourism coalition, the Global Sustainable Tourism Council or the Glasgow Declaration for climate action in tourism of the UNWTO.

He collaborates as a lecturer at universities such as the Universitat de València, the Polytechnic University of València or the Catalonian Open University, and has published on quality management in the «Handbook for tourism introduction» (UNWTO, 1998) and on innovation and sustainability in «Intelligence and Innovation for City Tourism Sustainability, The Future of Tourism» (Springer, 2019).

All Sessions by Jaume Mata

  • Day 1 June 8th, 2022


  • 11:45  - 12:45
    Ms. Virginia Fernández Trapa, Programme Officer Sustainable Development, UNWTO
    Mr. Jeremy Smith, Co-Founder, Tourism Declares a Climate Emergency
    Mr. Jaume Mata, Head of Sustainable Tourism, Visit Valencia
    Mr. Pau Pitarch, Partner Consultant, PAX Consulting
    Moderates: Mr. Javier Villayamor, Coordinator, Area for Economic Development, Tourism and Trade, Barcelona Provincial Council
    Short presentation: ZeroCO2 MED Project: Mr. Joan Colón, Head of the Sustainability Accounting and Optimization Unit, BETA Tech Center / UVic-UCC

    The growing number of natural disasters each year is threatening the natural and cultural heritage on which tourism destinations rely to attract visitors, whereas coastal destinations and other areas of natural beauty may also be particularly vulnerable to climate impacts. The green transition of tourism services and activities is inevitably linked with the implementation of initiatives related to environmental protection and climate neutrality, and the 82% of Europeans are already willing to change their travel habits for more sustainable practices, according to a Eurobarometer survey from October 2021. Global initiatives such as the Glasgow Declaration show how we are at a turning point towards the acceleration of the climate action in tourism.

    This panel centres on the need that the tourism industry responds and faces the already visible challenges and impacts that the climate change is bringing, and how can it contribute to accelerate the current scheme and dynamics towards a real climate action.





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Jaume Mata