Dear Readers

a very interesting move from Sri Lanka Tourism along with all its stakeholders (hotels and resorts, tour-operators, travel agencies, green hotels, eco hotels.

Mr Milinda Moragoda, Minister of Tourism, has launched this campaign to make Sri Lanka the most sought after green destination in Asia. He declared “Towards a Carbon Clean Sri Lanka: A Tourism Earth Lung” is the thrust we have initiated. I am happy that the initiative championed by Sri Lanka Tourism presented at the UNWTO/UNEP/WMO/ WEF 2nd Conference on Climate Change and Tourism in Davos, was recognised and is supported by the UNWTO. With the Tourism Earth Lung destination initiative, we seek to establish codes of practice for each of the industry sub-sectors. It also seeks to influence and even lead efforts at stopping de-forestation, ensuring re-forestation, encourage the use of alternative energy sources and mitigate pollution at their sources through local and regional efforts, creating an “Earth Lung Community”.

Read the full report by Milinda Moragoda, M.P., Minister of Tourism, Sri Lanka’s pledge “Towards a Carbon Clean Sri Lanka: A Tourism Earth Lung” at http://www.earthlung.travel/files/pdf001.pdf

The New Zealand’s green tourism verification scheme is called Qualmark Green.

It has recently been picked up by one of Asia’s largest travel agencies, JTB, Japan Travel Bureau, the leading Japanese travel agency.

“The Qualmark Green-accredited luxury tour to New Zealand is the first of its kind in the world, providing a range of environmentally-sustainable New Zealand travel products in one package,” said Mr Hiromi Tagawa, President and CEO of JTB Corporation. “New Zealand is the only country in the world with such a robust quality assessment program incorporating strict environmental sustainability practices, fully supported by their national airline.”

It is indeed enouraging for Qualmark Green to be recognized by such a famous agency.

JTB’s ‘Royal Road’, using a theme of eco-luxury, has packaged up an itinerary featuring almost exclusively Qualmark and Qualmark-Green accredited tourism operators in New Zealand including: Millbrook Resort Queenstown, Huka Lodge in Taupo, The Langham Hotel in Auckland, Johnstons Coachlines, and Real Journeys in Milford Sound.

The Royal Road tour also includes a certified carbon-offset contribution for participants and all Royal Road customers will have a tree planted in their name, with GPS tracking, at Mangarara station in the Hawke’s bay – as part of Air New Zealand’s Environmental Trust programme.

Other JTB package tour brands ‘Look’ and ‘Grand Tour’ have also launched new itineraries based on Qualmark-only accredited operators. JTB is aiming to include only Qualmark accredited suppliers in its package tours within the next year.

more info at http://www.responsibletourism.co.nz/

Dear readers, eco-travel fans,

That’s an interesting move. We have always commented in this globe about too many labels that were often misleading so we are happy to see the two major player get together. it is certainly not a good news for Pricing of Certification (as in any monolopoly market) but that’s great for lisibility and consistency.

I also personally think it will help building on the eco-travel concept and encouraging hotels to go greener.

So good luck to the new partner teams

Press Release

Green Globe International, Inc. Announces Agreement with Sustainable Travel International for Licensing and Co-Branding Relationship for Sustainability and Carbon Neutrality Products

Issued Monday, November 24, 9:02 am ET

Agreement includes eco-tourism certification, carbon offset, carbon footprint, and renewable energy services

MURRIETA, CA–(MARKET WIRE)–Nov. 24, 2008–Green Globe International, Inc. (OTC BB: GGLB), the worldwide owner of the Green Globe brand, the premier international green brand for travel and tourism, today announced an agreement with Sustainable Travel International (STI), under which Green Globe International and STI will partner to deliver co-branded products and services to the global travel and tourism industry.

Green Globe International offers comprehensive sustainability and carbon neutrality programs under its internationally recognized Green Globe brand, including Benchmarking and Certification, consulting, communications, and carbon neutrality programs. Under the license agreement with Sustainable Travel International, Green Globe International will license certain STI properties for use as part of Green Globe programs. STI will be paid licensing fees from revenues generated by the use of its properties and services in Green Globe programs. STI may also partner with Green Globe International to license the Green Globe brand for its program participants.

Included in the products expected to be delivered as a result of the agreement is a Green Globe branded carbon offset tool for travelers.

“Sustainable Travel International is an extremely well-respected organization in the field of sustainable tourism development, and we are pleased to add them as another strategic partner to assist in our efforts to bring new Green Globe branded products to the global travel and tourism industry,” stated Steven R. Peacock, CEO and managing director of Green Globe International. “STI has developed cutting-edge sustainability and carbon neutrality products and services, and we look forward to working with STI to deliver their products as part of the Green Globe program.”

“This relationship will afford us the opportunity to expand our reach and grow revenues by including a new set of products in the Green Globe catalogue,” Mr. Peacock added.

Sustainable Travel International, a global leader in sustainable tourism development, is the developer and owner of the intellectual property rights for a variety of market-tested sustainable tourism development services including Sustainable Tourism Eco-certification Program™ (“STEP”), a voluntary, third party certification initiative, Green.travel, an on-line responsible travel portal, Traveler’s Giving Back™, a philanthropic initiative, and TravelGreen, a voluntary carbon offset initiative.

The 501(c)(3) non-profit organization’s mission is to promote sustainable development and responsible travel by providing programs that enable consumers, businesses and travel-related organizations to contribute to the environmental, socio-cultural and economic values of the places they visit, and the planet at large. For more information on STI, please visit www.sustainabletravelinternational.org.

Brian Mullis, President of Sustainable Travel International, commented, “We are extremely pleased be working with Green Globe and taking a more collaborative approach to global sustainable tourism development. This arrangement combines Sustainable Travel International programmatic strengths with Green Globe’s broad reach within the travel and tourism industry, particularly at a destination level, a combination that has all potential for success

M Hotel, a leading 4 stars hotel in Singapore, part of the Millennium and Copthorne group, has embarked on a comprehensive Green Campaign in every effort towards conserving Earth’s precious resources. The campaign is targeting specifically at energy conservation and awareness.

The hotel explains below its policy:

In an extensive energy audit, M Hotel has identified various areas to improve on its energy efficiency, which include public areas comprising its hotel lobby, guest rooms and corridors, meeting rooms as well as back-of-the-house premises in all kitchens and offices.
Since early this year, M Hotel has reviewed and implemented several conservation measures, mainly involving the control of all heating and air-conditioning systems, usage of low wattage, high efficiency lighting and close monitoring of the daily operations of all machinery and equipment. The hotel also recognises the importance of setting measurable standards and guidelines without compromising on guest satisfaction and employee safety.

At the hotel lobby, timers are installed to switch off the ceiling lights from 12am till 6am every day. The timers are also fixed at other public areas including guest room corridors and the gym on The Waterfloor to switch off half of their lights from 12am till 7am daily. When cleaning rooms, all chambermaids are urged to make use of natural light whenever possible, and to maintain air-conditioning thermostats at 22.5 degree celsius in unoccupied rooms. In addition, M Hotel is planning to replace the halogen lights in all its 413 guest rooms with the energy-saving LED (Light Emittance Diode) light bulbs.

At the Banquet Suite on level 10, a lower wattage new service light has been installed to reduce energy consumption. The hotel’s banqueting employees have also been informed to be prudent with the amount of lighting used whilst setting up events and also, to switch off all lights and air-conditioning at the end of all functions.
Over at the Kitchen, all electrical and gas equipment is switched off when not in use. Water heaters are also turned off when dishwashers are inactive for more than 15 minutes. To minimise energy consumption, kitchen staff will only operate dishwashers at full load. Overheating and simultaneous start-up of all electrical equipment are also avoided to maximise energy efficiency.

Within staff premises, all office lights and air-conditioning are switched off during meal periods and at the end of the day, likewise the lights in all storerooms and pantries when not occupied. Big-item machinery including printers and copiers are set on standby mode whenever they are not in use. All staff are also urged to refrain from printing documents unless necessary, and to utilise both sides of the paper. Moreover, M Hotel encourages waste reduction and recycling of all papers, plastic and glass bottles with the placement of recycling bins at its garbage centre.

The achievement of long term results of energy conservation requires the collective commitment of the M Hotel team. The guidelines are highlighted during staff orientation and regular briefings to reiterate its importance, and constantly reviewed to ensure their effectiveness.

More info at

A very interesting chain when it comes to eco-travel: Banyantree Resorts is one of the top-end resort chains in the world, with high growth prospects, moving up from within 3 years from 52 to 90 locations, and 7,000 to 20,000 staff !

What is interestring is that even if they grow, they are not changing their focus, still very much on sustainability and responsible travel – as shown below with some of their green initiatives:

– everything starts with the design of each lodge – all based on sustainability
– Training is a major priority of the chain
– Banyan Tree’s Green Imperative Fund provides financial support for environmental initiatives and community-based projects. Guests can contribute US$2 per night of stay at hotels and resorts. Banyan Tree matches guests’ contributions dollar for dollar to grow the fund.
– There is also a natural resource conservation programme with the objective of reducing the energy and water consumption at resorts by 10% annually for the next three years.
– last but not least each Banyan Tree property appoints a CSR/sustainability champion who not only manages and trains resort staff, but shares examples with a group CSR committee.

Check-out http://www.banyantree.com/

Dominica has just received two more nominations in responsible tourism. This was at the World Travel Green Awards.

Dominica received a nomination in the Best Green Destination category. Dominica was the only country besides Costa Rica, the eventual winner, to be selected for nomination.

The Jungle Bay Resort & Spa, from Dominica, has been listed in Poverty Reduction. Reason being is that this nature resort, in the southeast of Dominica, employs its staff from local communities and is invloved in micro-financing in the region – mostly in organic produce, local arts & crafts production, and guiding of cultural tours and hikes.

The Puerto Rico Tourism Company (PRTC) announced that 10 historic coffee plantations, known as haciendas, will join forces into a “Coffee Zone”

This move and new controlled trademark is certified by both the Department of Agriculture and the PRTC.

The locations are Jayuya, San Sebastian, Ponce, Adjuntas, Las Marías and Lares. In all these areas, Puero Rico is looking at stimulating agrotourism.

This is clearly an alternative way to visit the Island – a way to commune with nature and explore a lush, mountainous region.

“Puerto Rico’s coffee growers are now an integral part of our agrotourism offering as they will welcome tourists to their plantations and offer them an authentic experience,” said Gonzalez Denton, Executive Director on the project.

He also insisted that the Coffee Zone will form part of PRTC marketing efforts for the island’s Porta del Sol (West Coast) and Porta Caribe (South) regions and there is a plan in place to promote coffee tourism in upcoming events.

Green Hoteliers in the UK, it is time to register to the Considerate Hoteliers Association (CHA). Closing date for entries of 31 January 2009

The CHA has just announced green new green categories for its prestigious ‘Considerate Hotel of the Year Awards 2008’ – open to all hotels and guest-houses in the UK.

There will be a ‘Green Team of the Year’ and a ‘Green Champion of 2008’ categories, on top of the traditional highest accolade ‘The Considerate Hotel of the Year’ award, that nominates the best all-round environmental performance.

The current holder of the title is The Cavendish London.

The 2008 Awards will be presented at a special gala lunch at The Cavendish London Hotel on Monday on 27 April 2009.

Green Globe International, Inc. has just announced an agreement with Green Hotel Certification for Use of the Green Globe Brand in the Certification of Hotels and Resorts ….

We think that’s a good news, a nice move towards a more global, consistent approach to eco-tourism …

below is their press release

more info on www.greenglobeint.com

Joint efforts will focus on properties in the Americas, the Caribbean and Europe

MURRIETA, CA–(MARKET WIRE)–Nov. 10, 2008–Green Globe International, Inc. (OTC BB: GGLB), the worldwide owner of the Green Globe brand, the premier international green brand for travel and tourism, today announced an initial agreement to utilize Green Globe standards in a co-branding relationship with Green Hotel Certification, which is owned by Green Certifications, Inc.

Under terms of the agreement, Green Certifications, Inc., which has developed benchmarking and certification systems for use in identifying compliance with green, sustainability standards, and Green Globe International, whose Green Globe brand is used in benchmarking and certification applications worldwide, will work together to co-brand and sell the dual certification to tourism properties, including hotels and resort destinations.

Green Globe International will license Green Certifications to utilize its brand and logo mark in conjunction with Green Hotel Certification of tourism properties as sustainable businesses. The initial markets for the co-branding effort have been identified as North, Central and South America, the Caribbean, and Europe.

In exchange for the use of the Green Globe brand, Green Certifications will pay a licensing fee to Green Globe International for use of the brand equal to a percentage of gross revenues received by Green Certifications from its clients.

The initial agreement between the parties is expected to develop into a binding definitive agreement.

“This co-branding alliance with Green Certifications is exactly the type of licensing arrangement that Green Globe International will pursue with qualified partners in the sustainability sector,” stated Steven R. Peacock, CEO and managing director of Green Globe International.

“Green Hotel Certification is an extremely well-respected benchmarking and certification program that meets the very stringent Green Globe standards, and the quality of this program allows Green Globe International to enter into this co-branding relationship. Green Hotel Certification also has the sales force that will allow the Green Globe brand to grow at a much faster rate, and we look forward to additional Green Globe customers in the Americas, the Caribbean and Europe.

“As brand owner, Green Globe International will continue to seek joint ventures with partners in the sustainability industry who operate successful businesses that would further benefit from the prestige and global recognition of Green Globe. We expect that once the definitive agreement with Green Certifications is consummated, the revenue stream to Green Globe International from this relationship will begin almost immediately,” Mr. Peacock added.

“Green Hotel Certification has found the perfect partner to expand further in the Americas including the Caribbean as well as Europe. Only one certification or re-certification process is required for hotels and resorts to reach both, Green Globe as well as Green Hotel Certification, awards. This partnership makes sense and provides advantages for all parties involved,” commented Guido Bauer, President of Green Certifications, Inc.

Green Globe’s standards for sustainable tourism practice are currently used across 48 countries by both tourism businesses and communities.

The Green Globe brand and program, which traces its roots back to the United Nations Rio de Janeiro Earth Summit in 1992, where 182 Heads of State endorsed the Agenda 21 principles of Sustainable Development, has primarily been used in the travel and tourism industry but is now being expanded to include a growing number of environmentally responsible businesses in a variety of market sectors. The Green Globe brand is an ideal symbol for the world’s increasing awareness of environmental responsibility and response to global climate change.