To promote personal responsibility and encourage sustainable actions, a bold, permanent new entry visa process was created.

All arriving visitors MUST now sign a pledge, stamped in their passports, to be good environmental stewards.

This mandatory agreement, dedicated to Palau’s children, needs to be signed before an officer.

Visitors are required to read and sign the agreement in front of the officer to gain entry.

The Palau Government passed a new law on December 6, 2017, directing immigration officials to use the Palau Pledge entry visa stamp.

The agency worked with the client (the Palau Legacy Project, a sustainable tourism marketing body), the government, the tourism industry and citizens to implement the new policy.

• Immigration law, customs processes were changed permanently

• The Pledge was issued in English, Chinese, Japanese, Korean

• Visitors required to watch an inflight film shown on all inbound flights

• Business accreditation program created to empower tourism businesses/ residents

• New curriculum for primary/ secondary school students and other training programs to help build eco-awareness and conscious business principles within the tourist sector

• Locals/ tour operators encouraged to take Pledge

• Multi-language passport brochure/ airport posters/ website/ signage around Palau/ social influencer activity

Launched at the UN, the Pledge has garnered enormous coverage for Palau’s conservation efforts. Its social, cultural, and political impact is both local and global:

• 2+ million tourists will sign Pledge within first 10 years

• In first weeks of launch, Pledge achieved 1.7 billion earned media impressions (for $0 spend)

• Pledge endorsed by global organisations/ leaders in politics, conservation, and tourism, including UN, World Economic Forum, Greenpeace, World Wildlife Fund, Conservation International, Leonardo DiCaprio, John Kerry (Former US Secretary of State)

• The first country to incorporate environmental practices into its immigration laws

While Palau is a small nation, its efforts to mitigate mass tourism’s effects can be seen on a global scale. Already nations including New Zealand have expressed interest in creating their own visitor Pledge. By taking steps to sustainably manage its tourist population, Palau hopes other countries will take action to protect their environment.