YRE International awarded with the Earth Prize 2018

One of Green Key International's sister programmes, also run by the Foundation for Environmental Education, is the Young Reporters for the Environment (YRE). We are very proud to share with you that they have received the prestigious Earth Prize in Italy last weekend.

The YRE programme aims to empower young people to take a stand on environmental issues they feel strongly about and to give them a platform to articulate these issues through the media of writing, photography or video. 

On 23-24 of June, YRE International Director Gosia Luszczek travelled to Luino, Italy to receive the very first edition of the Earth Prize on behalf of YRE International. She is extremely proud that the hard work of the National Operators, teachers, students, and the YRE International team has been recognized by WEEC (World Environmental Education Congress).

The Earth Prize was created by the WEEC Network as a prize for environmental education and landscape. “Earth Prize wants to be a multiplier of positive actions for the environment and the quality of life”, Luca Novelli, artistic director of the award, explains. 

Adriána Henčeková, a journalist student highly involved with YRE in Slovakia, was invited to report on the event as a Young Reporter.

Read more about the Earth Award and the event in Italy on the official website. 

Sinatur Hotel Frederiksdal has special focus on organic and locally sourced food

Green Key awarded Sinatur Hotel Frederiksdal, located north of Copenhagen (Denmark), is one of six hotels in the Sinatur Hotel Group that combines nature, gastronomy and hospitality with a personal touch.

Claus Nielsen, General Manager at Sinatur Hotel Frederiksdal, says that not only is the property Green Key awarded since 1995, but the hotel also has the bronze category in the Danish Organic label, Det Økologiske Spisemærke, for gastronomy establishments. This means that the hotel offers 30-60% organic food and beverages, while also focusing on purchasing local resources and decreasing their portions to reduce food waste.

"Nature is our unique selling point, so we should take care of it”, says Claus Nielsen.

Aside from focusing on organic and local food, the hotel has so replaced old light bulbs with energy-saving LED lamps throughout most of their property. They also have 30 solar panels on their roof, which covers about 15% of their total energy consumption and is used to heat their hot water. 

Portugal celebrates 127 Green Key awarded sites

Green Key in Portugal, managed by the Associacao Bandeira Azul da Europa (ABAE), announces that 127 establishments In Portugal are now Green Key awarded.

At a ceremony held on 7 June 2018 at the Lisbon Marriott, 127 establishments were awarded the Green Key for 2018. There was an increase in awarded sites of about 37% from last year. This suggests that the awareness of our ecolabel and responsible tourism in the Portuguese hospitality industry is increasing.

José Archer, the President of ABAE, added that the commitment to the criteria and best practices are part of the everyday tasks at all the Green Key awarded establishments. 

Hotel sector unites under ITP to tackle forced labour

The world’s leading hotel groups are standing together to tackle the issue of forced labour. The industry came together with ITP – the International Tourism Partnership – to launch ITP’s Principles on Forced Labour at an event in Singapore.

The Principles represent a big first step for ITP helping its members reach their Goal for 2030 on Human Rights.

ITP’s Principles are supported by the organisation’s thirteen member hotel groups. Five of the hotel companies – Hilton, Hyatt, InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG), Marriott, and Radisson Hotel Group - attended the launch earlier today in Singapore, sending their senior regional representatives and global CSR leads. Marriott CEO Arne Sorenson, IHG Executive Vice President George Turner and Hilton Executive Vice President Global Corporate Affairs, Katie Fallon also sent video messages in support of the Principles.

ITP’s Principles on Forced Labour are:
I. Every worker should have freedom of movement.
The ability of workers to move freely should not be restricted by their employer through abuse, threats and practices such as unlawful retention of passport and valuable possessions.

II. No worker should pay for a job.
Fees and costs associated with recruitment and obtaining employment should not be paid by workers.

III. No worker should be indebted or coerced to work.
Workers should work voluntarily, be informed of their employment terms and conditions in advance without misrepresentation, and paid regularly as agreed and in accordance with any applicable laws and regulations.

Launching the Principles, Madhu Rajesh, Director of ITP, said, “Nearly 25 million people worldwide are estimated to be held in forced labour today. Forced labour happens when people are coerced to work through violence or intimidation, or via accumulated debt, retention of identity papers or threats of reporting to immigration authorities. Forced labour is an unacceptable human rights violation that can result from unethical employment and recruitment practices throughout the labour supply chain, including for hotels.

“Last year ITP took a stand on the four critical issues which the industry’s stakeholders want the hotel sector to be addressing, via the launch of ITP’s Goals for 2030. The Goals set out our vision for how hotel companies can work together on carbon, water, youth employment and human rights. ITP’s Principles on Forced Labour move us closer on our Goal for human rights, and our members are united in their support of our Goals and these three Principles.”

ITP’s work has been widely commended as an example of international sectoral commitment to address a critical human rights issue. An infographic explaining the Principles and why they're needed can be downloaded here.

Kevin Hyland, outgoing UK Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner, said, “I am pleased to see the International Tourism Partnership taking on the challenge of tackling forced labour. No person in the 21st century should have their liberty withheld and be coerced into work under threats of mental or physical duress.

“By committing to uphold freedom of movement, the eradication of recruitment fees, and the end of such coercion, ITP is doing commendable work to ensure we eradicate this abuse. I encourage all hotels to apply these Principles and commend those taking meaningful action.”

Dr. Shawn MacDonald, CEO Verité, commented, “Verité has followed ITP’s work on human rights closely in recent years and I’m delighted to see international hotel companies focusing their collaboration on the most salient risks in the sector. The ITP Principles on Forced Labour send a very positive signal that the hotel industry is moving in the right direction on this issue, and will hopefully encourage further engagement and action from companies to address this issue worldwide.”

Meenal Sachdev, founder and director of the Shiva Foundation said, “Shiva Foundation has been working in collaboration with the International Tourism Partnership for a number of years in order to engage international brands in addressing human trafficking and modern slavery risks within the hotel industry. ITP has also been part of the Shiva Foundation Stop Slavery Hotel Industry Network since its inception, and has contributed to the Network’s “Framework for Working with Suppliers: Mitigating Risk of Modern Slavery” which was launched in March 2018.

“We strive to always complement each other’s work and with this in mind we welcome the ITP Principles on Forced Labour as a wonderful example of leadership in the industry to address human rights in recruitment and employment. We encourage hotels everywhere to adopt the Principles and work towards concrete actions that will end unethical employment practices throughout the supply chain.”

ITP’s Principles on Forced Labour are based on work done by The Consumer Goods Forum (CGF) and align with their Priority Industry Principles. They were launched today at The Global Forum for Responsible Recruitment and Employment organised by the CGF and Institute for Human Rights and Business with the International Labour Organisation and the International Organisation for Migration, in Singapore at the Marina Bay Sands hotel.

Source: Green Hotelier

Hilton Diagonal Mar Barcelona motivates employees to focus on waste segregation

The Hilton Diagonal Mar Barcelona (Spain) has been Green Key awarded since 2013. The hotel participates in the Hilton training program for employees, called Thrive Hilton, as well as encouraging staff members to attend workshops about it’s sustainable initiatives.

The Thrive Hilton program was created to focus on all team members well-being, from the Front Desk to the back-of-house, by enabling them to develop in every area of the business.

During the Earth Week in March 2018, a workshop on Recycling in Stewarding was organised at the Hotel Hilton Diagonal Mar Barcelona.

In order to motivate housekeepers to participate in this workshop, the following message was sent out before hand: “Recycling is a process whose objective is to convert waste into new products or material for later use. Thanks to recycling, the disuse of potentially useful materials is prevented, the consumption of new raw materials is reduced, as well as reducing the use of energy and air pollution.”

One member of staff, Milagros, showed fellow co-workers the correct ways for waste segregation and designed great materials for the workshop.

HI Lillehammer-Stasjonen Hotell and its unique interior concept

The budget hotel-hostel located right inside the train station of Lillehammer has a unique cooperation concept where local partners are involved in the planning and furnishing of different themed rooms

The hotel-hostel has cooperations with various local stakeholders who sponsored some of the rooms to get their very own design. Examples for cooperations are Fretex, Doctors without Borders Norway and the national railway operator NSB. And some of the cooperations even go beyond the furnishing of the rooms: In the case of Doctors without Borders, the hotel-hostel donates part of their income from the room to the organisation.

The café and restaurant are also used as an exhibition space for local partners. The cups, for example, were donated by the local designer “ment”. In return, the hotel-hostel devoted a small part of the café to the designer where the guests can learn more about them.

Furthermore, some of the other sitting areas in the café are also equipped with furniture and information of other local stakeholders and destinations, e.g. the organiser of the Birkebeiner races or the famous skiing destination Sjusjøen.

This special cooperation concept of the hotel-hostel is not only a great way for guests to learn about the local culture and surroundings, but also has an economic advantage for the accommodation as a big part of their furniture was donated by the various partners.

The accommodation also makes an effort to reduce food waste, for example through working with Too Good to Go, a food sharing app where you can buy the leftovers from restaurants. In addition, the leftovers from their restaurant are processed into other meals as much as possible.

Green Key strengthens its presence in Asia with the announcement of the launch of the programme in India

On World Environmental Day (5 June), Centre for Environment Education (CEE) launched the implementation of the Green Key programme in India

CEE is a major non-profit organisation established in 1984 as a “centre of excellence in environmental education” and recognised by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.

CEE officially launched the Green Key programme in India on 5 June 2018 in a press conference with the participation of the Municipal Commissioner, Mr Mukesh Kumar.

Kartikeya V. Sharabhai, Director of CEE, says: “On 5 June 2018, World Environment Day, we launched the Green Key Programme in India. The hospitality industry and tourism authorities are today increasingly conscious of their environmental footprint and the Green Key Programme gives them a methodology to reach international standards. We will be implementing the Programme across India through our central office in Ahmedabad and our various regional/project offices across the country. With CEE having a lot of experience in initiatives related to education for sustainable development and various eco-tourism programmes, we are looking forward to engaging Green Key to further support tourism establishments in India with their sustainability efforts."

Finn Bolding Thomsen, International Green Key Director says: “With major countries in Asia increasing their focus on tourism and sustainable development, it is a priority for Green Key to enlarge our presence in the region. We are therefore delighted that CEE has decided to launch the programme in India through its extensive network, making Green Key easily offered to any hotel and tourism establishment in India.” 

For more information about Green Key in India, please contact CEE through e-mail (cee@ceeindia.org) or phone (91-79-26858002 to 05).

Nallikari Holiday Village and Solliden Camping – the first Green Key awarded camping sites in Finland

Nallikari Holiday Village in Oulu, Northern Finland, and Solliden Camping in Parainen, Finnish archipelago, are leading the way towards more sustainable camping and caravan traveling in Finland.

Let´s travel a bit back in time: At cold December morning Nallikari looks like a winter wonder land, covered with heaps of snow. It is time for a Green Key audit of Nallikari Holiday Village.

In the middle of snow banks lies some tens of cabins and a caravan parking lot that provide year-round accommodation. During summer season there are more cabins, and a wide area for tents for summer visitors. In a café one can enjoy a cup of warming hot chocolate, and ask for a Fat Bike to explore the nearby nature trails on two wheels.

Nature has always been of great importance to Nallikari Holiday Village, but Green Key has brought new aspects to Nallikari´s environmental work: the use of water has been restrained and lightning modified to meet the Green Key criteria. Also, more organic and local foods have been added to the selection of the café. Now environmental work is systematic and well shown to the visitors, too.

A month after the audit, at the Finnish Travel Fair in January Nallikari Holiday Village receives their Green Key certificate being the first ever holiday village in Finland to attain the Green Key.

Solliden Camping, for one´s part, is already basking in the early May sun, when their audit day comes. Solliden has prepared for Green Key audit through the winter, eagerly waiting for the opening of the site for the summer season.

Environmental work is a matter of heart in Solliden, where travellers can accommodate at idyllic cabins or camp right by the sea. Travelers are encouraged to enjoy the beautiful nature of Finnish archipelago by bike, walking on trails or by using row boats or kayaks. A local fisherman brings daily fresh fish to the café-restaurant, and all bread is home-made.  

Green Key´s criteria demands that all the daily cleaning products have an eco-label but Solliden has taken the environmental friendliness of cleaning to the next level: cleaning is done completely chemical free by using modern ENJO microfibre cloths and just water.

Around the globe, there are already hundreds of Green Key awarded camping sites and holiday villages, and hopefully this summer many more are joining the Green Key family in Finland, and around the world.

First Green Key awarded establishment in Slovenia combines cultural heritage with high environmental efforts

“B&B Pr’ Gavedarjo”, located in a village just outside the well-known ski resort Kranjska Gora in Slovenia, is an establishment with a history, a care for traditions and a passion for the environment.

The Bed & Breakfast establishment was built in 1913 and has been owned by the same family for four generations. The establishment has recently been renovated paying special attention to the traditions. The furniture and floors in the guest rooms are wooden, cushions are made in traditional patterns, and the walls are whitewashed keeping parts of the original hand painted walls.

B&B Pr’ Gavedarjo has five guest rooms all different in size and interior decoration. The second floor of the establishment is now being upgraded to allow for another four guest rooms. The renovation is of course again done with full care for the local traditions.

The passion for environment is also very obvious in the establishment with change of towels and sheets when needed, dispensers instead of individual packaged amenities, locally sourced products for breakfast, etc.

The announcement of B&B Pr’ Gavedarjo being the first Green Key awarded establishment was done on 17 May 2018 during the Internautica Boat Show in Slovenia, and Ms Martina Gregori from B&B Pr’ Gavedarjo officially received the Green Key certificate from Finn Bolding Thomsen, International Green Key Director.