SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GROWTH AND TOURISM IN EUROPE: PANEL DATA ANALYSIS

The concept of sustainable development emphasizes a holistic approach to economic, social and environmental elements. It is based on the idea that while the prosperity of countries and individuals increases, the needs of future generations should not be put at risk. While as a major sector of the world economy, tourism’s contribution to economic growth is widely accepted, the situation is not clear when it comes to sustainable development. This study empirically investigates whether there is a relationship between tourism and sustainable development, growth in European countries which are located in front of the world in terms of tourism movements, through panel data analysis. In the empirical work used for the period 2000-2015, adjusted net savings were set as sustainable development indicators, per capita income for economic growth, as well as tourist arrivals and tourism revenues representing the tourism sector were used. The variables were taken as cointegrated as a result of the panel cointegration tests. A Panel Dynamic Ordinary Least Squares (PDOLS) analysis was then applied and long-term parameters were examined. According to the results of empirical research, although the growth hypothesis of tourism led by European countries has been confirmed, the number of tourists reached the result that sustainable development is negative and tourism incomes are positively affected