WORLDWIDE: The World Travel & Tourism Council’s (WTTC) Hotel Sustainability Basics has ended its first year with more than 1,300 hotels verified.
The Hotel Sustainability Basics is an independent global sustainability verification programme, overseen by Green Key and SGS.
The aim is for hotels around the world, regardless of their size, to follow a 12 step programme to reduce carbon emissions, protect and promote nature, and ensure local communities benefit from the hotel.
It is achievable for all hotels to implement as a bare minimum, and crucially, they serve as a stepping-stone to more complex sustainability schemes.
In its first year, Basics has worked in more than 30 countries and has been adopted by a number of major hotel brands including Jin Jiang, with more than 10,000 hotels, European hotel giant Louvre Hotel Group, and Radisson Hotel Group.
Other major brands, which have signed up include adventure travel specialist Intrepid, British Airways Holidays, HotelBeds, WebBeds, and Abercrombie & Kent.
The recently announced partnership between WTTC and the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) has also helped to cement the sustainability pathway for those in the hospitality industry.
This collaboration will establish a structured framework from the Basics towards advanced global standards for hotel sustainability.
Julia Simpson, WTTC president & CEO, said: “Basics is a global programme to support hotels to cut emissions, support local communities and protect nature.
“Launched last year, it is the only independent scheme that gives hotels a helping hand to look at their environmental impact. The take up of Basics is going from strength to strength with whole countries committed to make real, lasting change.”
Satu Rouhiainen, sustainability manager, British Airways Holidays said: “Working closely together with our industry and value chain partners is paramount to British Airways Holidays.
“We are delighted to be supporting the Hotel Sustainability Basics, offering our hotel partners a fair and industry recognised criteria to start their sustainability journey.”
You can read more about the Basics programme below.
WTTC to release benchmarking reports for members of Hotel Sustainability Basics
Image: Christian Lambert on Unsplash