Certification

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has just issued a set of criteria of the sustainable tourism Green Lotus Label applied for tourism accommodation in Viet Nam.

The certificate of the sustainable tourism Green Lotus Label (Green Lotus Label) is granted to tourism accommodation which meet standards on environmental protection and sustainable development, making efforts to protect the environment, use natural resources and energy efficiently, contribute to preservation of heritage and development of the local economy, culture and society, and pursue sustainable tourism development.

The Green Lotus Label has 5 levels, from 1 green lotus to 5 green lotuses which recognizes efforts of accommodations to protect environment and develop sustainable tourism not depending on the rank and type of accommodations.

Criteria for Sustainable Destination

The Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) has announced the release of their Criteria for Destinations. The criteria are a set of guiding principles and performance indicators designed to lead destination managers, communities, and businesses on a path to sustainability: maximizing social, cultural, economic and environmental benefits while minimizing negative impacts. The Destination Criteria complement the existing GSTC Criteria for Hotels and Tour Operators.

The GSTC is inviting industry stakeholders to participate in the public consultation period by filling out this survey: http://www.surveygizmo.com/s3/876118/GSTC-Destination-Criteria-Consultation-2012-English by June 2, 2012.

Sabre Holdings, a global technology company for the travel industry, has announced the launch of its Sabre Eco-Certified Hotel Program, an industry first program that provides clear and easy access to sustainable travel offerings throughout Sabre's portfolio. The program addresses travelers’ growing desire for environmentally responsible accommodations and includes more than 4,700 hotels certified by globally-recognized certification programs.

The Sabre Eco-Certified Hotel Program builds upon Travelocity's Green Hotel Directory, launched in 2009, and extends the program company-wide to recognize hotels that are certified as sustainable according to the Global Sustainable Tourism Council’s guidelines. Travelocity is still the only major online travel company that helps users find green hotels with an eco-friendly tag.

GSTC Criteria

The Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) has recognized ten organizations for their public commitment to using GSTC Criteria to set up specific standards. The standards adopted by the ten organizations are consistent with GSTC Criteria, the first and only global framework for defining sustainable travel benchmarks in a sustainable travel standards structure.

GSTC-Recognized Certification Programs

The following ten organizations have achieved the GSTC-Recognized status for their certification programs:

GreenWizard, a Web-based solution designed to simplify building material selection and management, announced a technology partnership with U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), creators of the LEED green building program and LEED Online. This partnership enables users of GreenWizard and their LEED Assessment tools to easily sync up data and information with LEED Online, the software platform that manages the LEED green building certification process. Using the LEED Automation API, GreenWizard is the first product management solution to integrate with LEED Online, and this integration is the first step toward a fully automated process (called LEED Automation) for obtaining LEED certification.

By Mary Kuhner

Celebrating 35 years of research and education at the edge of the Arctic, the Churchill Northern Studies Centre (CNSC) recently cut the tape on its state-of-the-art 27,000 square-foot facility. In keeping with its mission to understand and sustain the North and to live sustainably on the fragile tundra, the new building - with arching wooden interior ribs - has been aptly dubbed "the upside down ark" by locals. On track to obtain Manitoba's northernmost LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold certification, the CNSC reduces both the high cost of operating in the North and reliance on outside services and utilities.

Green Construction: Creative and Responsible Solutions

Executive Director Michael Goodyear touts the Centre's design process and self-sustaining features:

The Green Concierge© Program

The Green Concierge© Program is administered by environmental consulting firm HospitalityGreen LLC, and it trains and assesses lodging facilities to ensure that they meet standards for waste reduction, energy and water conservation, environmentally preferable purchasing and recycling.

The list of certified properties in the state of New York includes:

"If you're worried about where your pork comes from at home, why wouldn't you worry about that when on holiday?" - Professor Harold Goodwin, International Centre for Responsible Tourism (ICRT)

The Beauty of Sustainable Costa Rica (Greenloons TV)

Certified Green Rainforest Vacations for Families

Greenloons guides families to international rainforests that are inclusive of sustainable vacation opportunities. Its top five recommendations spanning the globe offer green eco adventures that are certified by leading third party sources. it's never to early to introduce children to the world's rainforests - covering less than two percent of the earth's total surface area but are home to 50 percent of its plants and animals. "Rainforests are disappearing at a rate of more than 56,000 square miles each year," says Irene Lane, Greenloons founder. "It's crucial for kids to learn about how important these environments are to their everyday lives".

Recommended Rainforest Vacations

Greenloons top rainforest destinations for families include:

LEED As The Seed: Sustainability Is An Ongoing Process