Region Västerbotten in Northern Sweden has completed a three-year project of introducing sustainable thinking and acting among industry and public stakeholders with the GSTC Criteria as guidelines. About 60 tourism businesses were assessed with GSTC Industry Criteria and given sustainable tourism action plans. Participants ranged from small family outdoors businesses to city hotels, museums [...]
APEC Addresses Greenwashing in Tourism and refers to the importance of GSTC in a new Policy Report Demand for sustainable tourism has been on the rise, and with it came exaggerated sustainability claims – also known as “greenwashing”. This policy brief addresses the issue by examining the use of environmental certifications to address greenwashing and [...]
Global Travelers prefer eco-friendly accommodation: Booking.com Sustainable Travel Report 2019 70% of global travelers say they would be more likely to book an accommodation knowing it was eco-friendly, whether they were looking for a sustainable stay or not. However, when it comes to recognizing a sustainable place to stay, almost three quarters (72%) of [...]
Condé Nast Traveler Recommends GSTC “Aside from air travel, properties have some of the greatest impacts in terms of energy use and food." Check a hotel’s website for a "Responsible Travel," "Environment," or "Good Stewards" section—if they’ve spent time, energy, and money to be low-impact, they’ll likely have this information displayed - says Jim Sano, WWF's [...]
The Toll of Tourism: Can Southeast Asia Save Its Prized Natural Areas? From Thailand to Bali, a huge increase in tourists, many from China and other rapidly developing economies, is straining sensitive ecosystems to the breaking point. Some countries are trying to control the boom, with a few closing popular destinations to allow damaged [...]
Travel with Care in Thailand Thailand's Tourism and Sports Minister Weerasak Kowsurat acknowledged that sustainable tourism looks beyond economic benefits: "Thailand, which witnessed 38 million tourist arrivals last year and tourism revenue approaching 20% of GDP, has provided us with a more challenging job." The tasks, he said, are to ensure fair distribution of [...]
H.E. Mr. Tserenbat Namsrai, Minister of Environment and Tourism of Mongolia, and Mr. Randy Durband, CEO, GSTC As the central government body who is in charge of tourism development policy and coordination in the country, the Ministry of Environment and Tourism devotes itself to implement effective and credible sustainable tourism policies in [...]
GSTC Member St. Kitts’ Sustainable Destination Council (SDC) Wins WTTC 2019 Tourism for Tomorrow Awards in the Destination Stewardship category Once Again, GSTC Member Wins WTTC Tourism for Tomorrow Destination Stewardship Award 2019: St. Kitts’ Sustainable Destination Council (SDC) WTTC has announced the 2019 leaders in sustainable tourism at the 2019 Tourism for Tomorrow [...]
HuffPost UK Recommends GSTC Book sustainable hotels and excursions #5 Look sustainable hotels and excursions: "Add sustainable accreditation to your criteria when checking out places to stay. According to Michael Gold, editor of The Economist Intelligence Unit’s Sustainable Tourism Index, the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) is one to look out for." Read the full article: 7 Ways To [...]
GSTC Chair, Luigi Cabrini, comments on tourism in Brazil in two articles published on G1 (Rede Globo): Carros ameaçam dunas em Jericoacoara; veja problemas do turismo em 4 parques nacionais (30 March 2019) 'Efeito manada' nas redes sociais e 'economia disruptiva' podem estimular turismo predatório (1 April 2019) by Patrícia Figueiredo
Trade associations as corporate social responsibility actors: an institutional theory analysis of animal welfare in tourism Abstract In this article we argue that most travel trade associations ignore their responsibility towards sustainable development broadly and animal welfare in particular. We analyse the development and implementation of animal welfare standards across 62 national and international [...]
The Sustainable Travelogue help to understand what sustainable tourism is, and why it matters. Join world traveler and tourism professional Kathy Eow as she talks with industry leaders and unsung trailblazers from around the world about their work helping us travel better, forever. Season one kicks off with conversations from The Global Sustainable Tourism [...]
"Quality through Creativity" Led the 2019 GSTC Asia-Pacific Sustainable Tourism Conference in Chiang Mai, Thailand The 2019 GSTC Asia-Pacific Sustainable Tourism Conference "Quality through Creativity" took place from Febraury 27th to March 2nd in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Organized by Thailand’s Designated Areas for Sustainable Tourism Administration (DASTA) and the Global Sustainable Tourism Conference (GSTC), the [...]
At ITB travel trade show in Berlin, the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) signed a ‘memorandum of understanding’ with The Code and ECPAT International to work together to expand standards for the protection of children and to take other measures to end this crime. “Sustainable tourism is on the rise, consumer demand is growing for [...]
According to the 'Sun, Sand, and Ceilings: Women in Tourism and Hospitality Boardrooms - 2018 Report' by Equality in Tourism International, the overall representations of women on travel and tourism companies/organizations boards has increased from 15% in 2013 to 23%. However, the representation of women on the GSTC Board of Directors is 50%. "Men are seen [...]
The "Hotel Yearbook 2020 – Sustainable Hospitality" has been released and is available online for free. Along the same lines as previous editions of the Hotel Yearbook, the 2020 Sustainable Hospitality edition gathers the thoughts and research from a wide-ranging group of senior executives, analysts, consultants and opinion leaders from all over the world [...]
*GSTC Conference in Chiang Mai: Following the training class, the GSTC organized the GSTC Asia-Pacific Conference (Feb 27 - Mar 2, 2019). About the Training The two-day intensive and interactive sustainable tourism training program took place in Chiang Mai, Thailand, from February 26-27, 2019. The training covered tourism as [...]
From Words to Actions From February 14-15, 2019, the GSTC, in partnership with NCE (Norwegian Centres of Expertise) Tourism Fjord Norway offered a training class for tourism industry stakeholders from the Fjord Norway region. The training class, led by Ayako Ezaki (GSTC Training Director) and Nicola Koschel (GSTC Trainer, Sustainable Tourism Consultant), covered sustainability [...]
The 13th Meeting of the COMCEC Tourism Working Group was held on February 13th, 2019 in Ankara, Turkey, with the theme of “Sustainable Destination Management Strategies in the OIC Member Countries”. The meeting included a presentation by Dr. Ioannis Pappas, GSTC Director Mediterranean Region, on the GSTC's Role and Mission for Sustainable Destinations. The [...]
"The Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) [accredits] certification programs for hotels and tour operators [...]. Travelers can visit their site to see lists of these programs, which include The Rainforest Alliance and Earth Check, and hotels that are [certified] will typically show a certification logo on their own websites and marketing materials." Read the full article: How to Be a Green Traveler by By [...]
