Green Key in Flanders (Belgium): a new chapter lies ahead

After 12 years of Green Key in Flanders (Belgium) being run by Bond Beter Leefmilieu, the umbrella organisation for the environment, Green Key Flanders starts a new chapter from 2018 with the organisation GoodPlanet taking over the management of the Green Key programme.

One of the new challenges that lie ahead is to recruit candidates for the new category 'restaurants' that is now also offered in Flanders (Belgium). Three restaurants have already signed up and will serve as models for other restaurants wishing to follow. Green Key Flanders sees a lot of potential in this new category, especially when it comes to tackling food waste and promoting sustainable food.  

The region of Flanders now has 129 of the 204 Green Key awarded establishments in Belgium, which is a fairly high number relative to the size of the region. The 129 Green Key establishments (including ten new establishments) were awarded the Green Key on 26 February 2018 during an event taking place in Martin’s Klooster, a four-star hotel and meeting location that offers its clients the possibility to offset their carbon emission.

Hotel Kämp effortlessly combines 5-star luxury with environmental friendliness

Hotel Kämp in Helsinki, Finland is an iconic landmark. It is also a Green Key awarded hotel, as are all 9 (and soon 10) hotels in Kämp Collection Hotels. Hotel Kämp has made some very important choices for the environment.

Photo: Hotel Kämp

The hotel follows the Green Key criteria rigorously and continuously strive for excellence. They exceed imperative Green Key requirements many times over and additionally aim for LEED Gold certificate for the building itself.

For many years now, Hotel Kämp has chosen to use 100% renewable electricity. Each year they receive a report and a certificate stating the various renewable sources and the amounts of water power or wind power used, for example. They have also chosen to purchase renewable energy which is also EKOenergy certified. This means that the energy sources have been verified not only to be 100% renewable but also 100% sustainable. So they continue their historical tradition to be on the forefront:

 “Back in the day in 1887 Hotel Kämp was Finland's first hotel to have an elevator. Other modern technologies were also applied, such as electric lighting.”

                        History of Hotel Kämp, www.hotelkamp.fi

The historic building and its décor are one of the kind and highly admired. The hotel takes good care of each piece of furniture and continually refurbish them to be able to use the same high quality and timeless sofa, chair or table for yet another decade or two. They have a storage facility for excess furniture – actually a genuine treasure cave – from which they can retrieve suitable pieces for all 10 hotels in Kämp Hotel Collection instead of buying new ones. As for items which are usable but not needed anymore, they donate to charity organizations for example to the Red Cross.

Hotel Kämp also has high standards for procurement of goods and services. Housekeeping partner has a strict environmental policy and food and beverage are acquired in great portion locally. Also, guests can take part. Room TV includes practical tips for ecological choices. The guest will find information about moving around with public transportation or by luxurious Pelago bikes available for hotel guests free of charge. There is also information about recycling, electricity and other green choices. On the bed awaits a beautiful sign for the guest to use for communicating their wishes about having or not having the linen changed.

Finn Bolding Thomsen, Green Key International Director, visited Hotel Kämp on 19 January 2018. He was delighted to see all the environmental efforts done at the hotel - showing that a 5-star hotel can combine luxury with sustainability!

First hotel in South Africa awarded Green Key

Green Key is pleased to announce that the NH The Lord Charles in Cape Town is the first hotel in South Africa to receive our prestigious award. 

NH The Lord Charles has convinced the Green Key Jury with their strong environmental management and dedication to save scarce resources in South Africa.

Besides complying with Green Key’s imperative criteria, the hotel implements a particularly strong focus on reducing the consumption of water through several initiatives around the property. This is a very important aspects in a water scarce country where drought is an ongoing threat.

One of the initiatives implemented by the Lord Charles is their own in house plant nursery, which is used to improve their own gardens at the hotel. Many of the plants grown at this nursery are succulent plants, known as “water wise” plants, which do not require as much watering as conventional garden plants would. By slowly converting the garden to water wise plants, the hotel is able to reduce the amount of water used in their gardens.

Furthermore, the hotel involves its guests and staff in their water-saving initiatives by reminding them throughout the hotel to save water.

Green Key International congratulates NH The Lord Charles on their achievements and is looking forward to seeing a growing number of Green Key awarded hotels in South Africa. 

Green Hotelier Award 2018 - apply now!

The Green Hotelier Awards, which seek to discover the world's most sustainable, environmentally friendly and socially responsible hotels, has launched for 2018. Will a Green Key awarded establishment be the winner this year?

This year the Awards unveil a new look which changes the winning categories. In previous years hotels have been grouped geographically. This year hotels across the world will compete to win in categories which examine their carbon footprint, their water stewardship, their waste reduction, their community impact and their role as a responsible employer.

The move aims to align the awards with the industry call to action of the International Tourism Partnership(ITP) for hotels to focus their sustainable, environmental and socially responsible actions on the United Nations’ Global Goals also called the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Green Hotelier Editor Siobhan O'Neill said, "The Green Hotelier Awards have been growing in popularity year on year and we expect record numbers of hotels to share their sustainability stories with us in 2018. Although the form hoteliers will complete is essentially the same as previous years, the new approach allows us to focus on the winners' actions and impacts, rather than their geographical location. In addition it means there will be more winners and hotels named Highly Commended because we've increased the number of categories we're awarding in.

"We wanted to reflect ITP's call to action to the hotel industry to work together to achieve the Global Goals, and we can use the Green Hotelier Awards to show hoteliers how their sustainability actions and initiatives are doing just that. The application process is still free and deliberately designed to be quick and easy. The scoring on each section is simple and transparent, and hotels will need to complete every section to be in with a chance of winning, but we'd like them to indicate which category they think they're a strong contender in. It doesn't mean they won't be considered as a winner in other categories as well.

"We're really excited to be launching our new look and we're looking forward to reading all the amazing sustainable and responsible business actions we know so many hotels around the world are actioning for a fairer future for all."

The new look Awards means that no hotel is excluded from entering. Previous winners can apply this year. The Awards are open to hotels, resorts, eco-lodges and B&Bs of any size, anywhere in the world. Entrants should read all the rules and tips for applying before completing the form to make sure they maximise their chances of winning. The closing date for entries is Friday 23rd March 2018, and the winners will be announced in April during Responsible Business Week.

Download the form as a pdf here or as a Word document. Completed forms should be emailed to info@greenhotelier.org.

The judges look forward to receiving the Awards and showcasing the winners' actions in support of the Global Goals.

Source and acknowledgement: Green Hotelier

Green Key wishes all Green Key awarded establishments that participate good luck!

BookDifferent wins the Dutch Sustainable Travel Award 2018

The hotel booking site BookDifferent wins the Dutch Sustainable Travel Award 2018 for its contribution on making the tourism industry more sustainable!

BookDifferent.com is a hotel booking site with a mission to make the tourism industry more sustainable. Their mission is to make travel more green and fair and give tourism the opportunity to commit to a better and more sustainable world. BookDifferent is a social enterprise that places impact higher than profit.

When showing accommodations, BookDifferent.com not only shows pricing but also the level of sustainability of the listed accommodations - making it possible for consumers to actively choose accommodation where sustainability is strongly implemented. Green Key has been a partner to BookDifferent since 2014, and Green Key awarded establishments are proudly featured on BookDifferent.com. 

Green Key would like to congratulate BookDifferent.com on the achievement!

Green Key International at Stichting KMVK's annual Green Key event

On 8 February Green Key International participated in this years’ Green Key award ceremony in the Netherlands. The event was held in the prestigious NH Grand Hotel Krasnapolsky in Amsterdam.

Every year, the organisation Stichting KMVK - responsible for the Green Key programme in the Netherlands - organises a Green Key event for its awarded establishments to offer them the opportunity to participate in workshops, an inspiration market and to receive their Green Key award in a solemn ceremony. This year, the event was held at the NH Grand Hotel Krasnapolsky which has been Green Key awarded since 2012.

The programme kicked off with the finals of the Green Team Award, which is a yearly competition between the Green Teams of the awarded hotels in the Netherlands. After that, the participants of the inspiration market were given 45 seconds each to present their products and services to the guests of the event. At the inspiration market companies and organisations get the chance to advertise their products and services directly to the awarded establishments. A requirement is that their offers are sustainable or help the establishments to improve their environmental performance.

In the second part of the event, several workshops were held to inspire and inform the establishments and stakeholders about latest sustainability issues. The topics covered were circular economy in the hospitality industry, sustainable seafood, laws & regulations on energy savings, sustainable property management and the Tiny Forest project. Guests were also invited to go on a round tour of the NH Grand Hotel Krasnapolsky to learn about the hotel's sustainability initiatives. The event closed with the handover of the Green Key awards.

The Green Key event in the Netherlands is a good example of national Green Key initiatives where awarded establishments can gain knowledge in sustainability and be inspired by other establishments or stakeholders. 

Hotelier Qatar Magazine featuring Green Key

In the latest edition of Hotelier Qatar, Green Key is highlighted as an initiative to support the sustainable development in Qatar.

The article in Hotelier Qatar has been prepared by the Chairman of the Green Hotel Interest Group in Qatar and describes the general work with sustainability in Qatar with focus on how Green Key can support this development.

In 2008, Qatar launched its 2030 vision with the aim of transforming the country towards sustainable development. The vision is being implemented in various parts of the society, also within the hotel and hospitality sector with Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA) as legislative body.

QTA has recently agreed on a new hotel classification system where environmental criteria are now integrated into the system, and participation in international eco-certification schemes are encouraged through the hotel classification system.

The work with the hotel classification system goes hand in hand with the non-profit organisation, Qatar Green Building Council (QGBC) having become the national organisation managing the Green Key programme in Qatar.

The Green Key programme was officially launched in Qatar in late 2017 at an event with 45 hoteliers present. During the workshop, the advantages of joining Green Key were highlighted with special emphasis on the programme being well-reputed and widespread as well as the benefits of having a national representative in Qatar understanding the local conditions. QTA is supporting the implementation of Green Key in Qatar. 

Currently, W Doha Hotel & Residences has had the Green Key award since 2013 but interest has been shown from a number of other hotels and hospitality groups in Qatar.

The link to the full article (page 32-33) in Hotelier Qatar can be found here: http://edition.pagesuite-professional.co.uk//launch.aspx?eid=ef0c27c1-051f-4492-825b-ef4d28150bf9.

Original Sokos Hotel Helsinki – a champion in sustainability communication!

Information to hotel guests about its environmental engagement and the encouragement to participate in the efforts is a matter of priority for Green Key awarded Original Sokos Hotel Helsinki in Finland!

Original Sokos Hotel Helsinki has had the Green Key award since 2015. The hotel has high standards in relation to resources saving, recycling and reusing; products such as the daily cleaning products and paper products have a recognised eco-label, and shampoo and shower gel are offered from a dispenser, etc.

The hotel is very proud to have the Green Key award and has decided to become a champion in relation to informing guests about the environmental efforts done at the hotel. The information also includes a clear encouragement for the guests to participate in the environmental efforts.

Already at the entrance of the hotel, the guests meet the Green Key plaque and certificate. The staff in the reception wears a Green Key pin and they are always ready to inform you about sustainable transport possibilities, such as nearby tram, bus or train stops or how to rent a city bicycle. In the elevator on the way to the room, you can read about what it means that the hotel is an environmentally friendly hotel. In the guest room, you can find information about Green Key and the encouragement to consider whether to have towels changed or the room cleaned – in case you stay more than one night. When you go to the hotel restaurant for your dinner, you can see the environmentally friendly options on the menu card, e.g. vegetarian or vegan dishes or dishes with locally produced ingredients. After a good night’s sleep, you can in the morning choose healthy and sustainable food options in the breakfast buffet. And finally, when you check out you are offered to choose not to have your payment receipt in an envelope.

Green Key wishes everyone a good and environmentally friendly stay at Original Sokos Hotel Helsinki!

Green Key entering a cooperation agreement with Apollo/DER Touristik Nordic

Apollo/DER Touristik Nordic, a large leisure tourism company in the Nordic countries, has entered an agreement with Green Key to highlight the Green Key awarded establishments used by Apollo/DER Touristik Nordic

Apollo/DER Touristik Nordic is a leisure travel company where customers can purchase leisure travels (including accommodations) to various destinations. Apollo/DER Touristik Nordic consists of the leisure travel agencies Apollo, the airline company Novair, the leisure companies Golf Plaisir, Lime Travel and Xtravel as well as the sports resort Playitas. Apollo started in 1986 and is today one of the leading leisure travel organisers in the Nordic region. Since 2015, Apollo/DER Touristik Nordic is a part of the German company, REWE with more than 300,000 employees.  

The agreement between Apollo/DER Touristik Nordic and Green Key will give the two entities the possibility to highlight the Green Key awarded hotels and resorts used by Apollo/DER Touristik Nordic via the Apollo brand websites in Sweden, Denmark, Norway and Finland.

Finn Bolding Thomsen, Green Key International Director, says: “Green Key is already working with various international hotel chains and online booking and travel agencies where both business and leisure tourism plays a role. We are happy and proud to be able to work closely with the leisure tourism industry through the cooperation with Apollo/DER Touristik Nordic for the benefit of the guests and the Green Key awarded hotels and resorts.”