THAILAND: Green Hotel Plus and its Thai version (เกณฑ์ Green Hotel Plus) have gained GSTC-Recognised Standard status, meaning they have been fully recognised as equivalent to the GSTC Industry Criteria.
The Green Hotel Standards’ framework (through Bronze, Silver and Gold Awards) focuses on improving sustainability practices and reducing the environmental impact of hotels in Thailand.
For the last ten years, the Department of Climate Change and Environment of Thailand (DCCE) and the Environmentally Friendly Hotel Project (Green Hotel), has worked to enhance Thai hotels’ environmental management and to support Thailand to achieve Carbon Neutrality by 2050 and Net Zero by 2065.
Green Hotel Plus will help Thai hotels to transition from national to international sustainability standards.
Randy Durband, CEO of GSTC said: “Green Hotel Plus represents an important step in consolidating existing programs in Thailand to create greater clarity in the marketplace. A Thai solution aligned with the global GSTC Criteria.”
The GSTC-Recognised status refers to the standard itself, indicating that a sustainable tourism standard has been reviewed by GSTC technical experts and the GSTC Assurance Panel and deemed the content of the standard equivalent to the GSTC Criteria for sustainable tourism.
It shows that the set of standards is based on the four pillars of the GSTC Criteria: Sustainable Management, Socioeconomic, Cultural, and Environmental principles.
Dr. Pirun Saiyasitpanich, director of the Department of Climate Change and Environment (DCCE) said: “For the first time in Thailand, a national, sustainable hotel standard has been recognised by the GSTC. This recognition will motivate Thai hotels following the Thai Green Hotel programme to meet world-class environmentally and socially friendly standards, gaining acceptance from eco-conscious tourists and tour operators.
“This recognition also promotes the development of sustainable production and consumption patterns, towards Thailand’s and the DCCE’s mission to achieve the SDG’s, and contribute to global efforts to combat climate change by achieving carbon neutrality by 2050 and zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2065.”
The GSTC Recognition is valid until either the standard or the GSTC Industry Criteria are changed.
Currently, 73 standards have achieved GSTC-Recognised status. GSTC Recognition does not ensure that a certification process is reliable, only that the set of standards used to certify are equivalent to the GSTC Criteria. GSTC-Recognised standard owners are encouraged to follow and complete the accreditation process, which assures that the certification process used to apply the standard meets international best practices, transparency, and rigor. A list of GSTC-Accredited certification bodies is available on the website. You can read more about the GSTC below.
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