Brazilian Journal of Enviromnent
Open Access Journal
CiteScore
0.5
Indexada na
SCOPUS
QUALIS
B2
2021-2024
quadriênio
Open Access Journal
0.5
Indexada na
SCOPUS
B2
2021-2024
quadriênio
Sustainable tourism, when articulated with the circular economy and social empowerment, offers a strategic pathway to balance environmental preservation, economic development, and community inclusion. In this regard, a systematic review of recent international scientific literature was conducted to identify trends, gaps, and opportunities for integration among Empowerment, Sustainability, and Circular Economy. Data were obtained through searches in indexed databases using standardized protocols, application of inclusion and exclusion criteria, data extraction, and bibliometric and qualitative analyses. The results indicate significant growth in publications over the last decade, with a predominance of studies focused on environmental sustainability, followed by social empowerment; the circular economy remains in an emerging stage. The discussion highlights advances in the integration between sustainability and empowerment but identifies theoretical and methodological gaps in the full incorporation of the circular economy. As a contribution, the Sustainability Triangle in Tourism is proposed, a model that integrates environmental, economic, and social dimensions to guide managers and researchers. It is concluded that the articulation of these axes enhances the transformative potential of tourism and points to directions for future research.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Copyright (c) 2026 Tania Mara Ribeiro Bragança Kallás , Willian Guimarães de Carvalho Costa, Jeniffer de Nadae