Green Key signs collaboration agreement with TripDoodler

Green Key International and the green-tech platform TripDoodler are joining synergies to empower conscious and curious tourists to make more sustainable travel decisions.

Credits: Magical Pond - https://www.magicalpond.com/en/

TripDoodler and Green Key recognise the increasing global interest of consumers in environmental certifications and how transparent and accessible information plays a crucial role in shaping the tourism and hospitality sector. That being so, there exists a need to invite travellers to become an active part of the solution. 

As part of this collaboration, travellers can now locate the Green Key certified establishments through the visual presentation of the Green Key logo on the TripDoodler platform. This new feature allows all certified establishments, including hotels, restaurants, or smaller accommodations, to claim their business on the TripDoodler app and get acknowledged by the travellers for their sustainability practices.

The sustainability practices integrated on the TripDoodler platform go beyond carbon emissions and enable travellers to rate up to 40 easily visible parameters of environmental, social-cultural, and economic sustainable tourism. As part of the rating process, the tourists are asked different questions such as “Does the hotel provide recycling bins?”, “Is the establishment run by female-led management?” or “Does the restaurant use local produce?”. To find the full list of parameters, visit TripDoodler’s Beta App here.  
 
The Green Key International Director, Finn Bolding Thomsen, and the CEO of TripDoodler, Josephine Piplits, highlight the importance of this collaboration:  

“With Green Key being a leading standard for environmental and sustainable operations within the tourism industry, we are happy to enter a partnership with TripDoodler to help support consumers on their decisions about sustainability and travel. Through this collaboration, travellers can now easily find Green Key certified accommodations on the TripDoodler platform, and certified establishments can benefit from accessing data on how customers perceive their sustainable actions". 
                                                       - Finn Bolding Thomsen, Green Key International Director 

“We are very excited to partner with Green Key and work closely together on translating all the great initiatives that are implemented throughout our industry into a language that every traveller can relate to and make new better decisions based on.”  

- Josephine Piplits, Founder & CEO, TripDoodler 

About TripDoodler 

TripDoodler is an online platform that empowers travellers to easily find, acknowledge, and share verified sustainable travel options, powered by a crowd-sourced certification. With a vision to make sustainable choices the easiest choice, TripDoodler aims to create the world’s largest searchable database of better travel choices, led by first-hand insights from globetrotters across the world. These insights further provide managerial comprehensions to the tourism establishments on how the travellers perceive their sustainable practices. Guided by the 2030 Agenda, TripDoodler offers an easy, independent, and trustworthy solution for travellers and businesses to assist them on their sustainability journeys.  

Green Key certified establishment joins group of climate partners in Denmark

The conference hotel Kolle Kolle is one of the organisations joining the Furesø Klimapartner working group. The project aims to encourage business owners in the Furesø municipality, in Hovedstaden, Denmark, to compromise with climate action and adopt strategies to reduce environmental impact. 

Located in the Furesø municipality, a few kilometres of distance from the Danish capital, the Kolle Kolle hotel has long been a Green Key certified establishment. Inside the conference hotel, attention is given to food waste, recycling, and knowledge sharing about sustainability issues between staff and guests.  More recently, Kolle Kolle’s compromise with reducing its environmental impact has transcended the hotel's frontiers.

Since 2019, the establishment has been involved in the creation of Klimapartner, a project developed by several local businesses in collaboration with the Furesø municipality. Although the COVID-19 pandemic put the project on hold, the working group has now restarted the course of action. Inspired by SDGs 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities) and 13 (Climate Action), the Klimapartner initiative hopes to involve local businesses and encourage them to share knowledge and work together in areas such as waste management, heat and energy supply and green mobility. The goal is to inspire all 4,000 companies in Furesø to take action against climate change and join efforts as a community.

The general manager of Kolle Kolle Berit K. Leth considers that the Klimapartner objectives align with the hotel’s goals of raising awareness of environmental issues:

KolleKolle sees Klimapartner as a very important task and we hope to contribute with ideas and knowledge, from our long history of working with environmental issues and most important our membership of Green Key. We hope to be able to help other companies in our local community with environmental questions and how they can turn even small things into reality. We of course also hope to get new ideas and knowledge, which can contribute to our never-ending work to improve KolleKolle’s contribution to a greener world.

Green Key International praises Kolle Kolle’s efforts and compromise toward a more sustainable hospitality world. Visit Kolle Kolle’s website to learn more about its sustainability actions.

7 Mehmet: The first restaurant in Turkey to receive a Green Key certification

Located in Antalya, Turkey, the 7 Mehmet restaurant is a popular choice, not only for its menu of contemporary and traditional Mediterranean dishes but also for its commitment to reducing environmental impact.

For 80 years, the 7 Mehmet restaurant has been a mandatory stop for those seeking an authentic experience in Antalya, Turkey. Visitors are welcomed with an extensive menu composed of more than 600 varieties of Mediterranean fare, including several Turkish traditional dishes. Seasonality is highly embraced, meaning guests will find carefully selected ingredients and a menu that adapts and changes according to the season.

The 7 Mehmet’s philosophy towards a more sustainable and locally sourced cuisine also reflects its commitment to being a Green Key certified establishment. In fact, 7 Mehmet is currently the only certified restaurant by Green Key in the entire country. As a result, 7 Mehmet has consistently implemented sustainable practices to reduce its environmental impact. On a social level, the restaurant managed by Mehmet Akdağ has supported its local community by prioritising local products from women's cooperatives to help women entrepreneurs. Moreover, 7 Mehmet has also contributed to improving the kitchen equipment used by the Gastronomy Department of Akdeniz University in Antalya while assisting the school in building larger kitchens to accommodate more students.

© 7 Mehmet

In the restaurant, there have been multiple environmental-friendly improvements, including the use of renewable energies, such as solar energy, and the adoption of many energy and water-saving devices. Waste management is also a priority for 7 Mehmet, not only through recycling but also by avoiding and properly separating food waste. Finally, the restaurant has also replaced the plastic packaging of the towels offered to guests with more sustainable packaging alternatives.

Green Key International congratulates the 7 Mehmet restaurant on its efforts toward a more sustainable hospitality industry.

Visit 7 Mehmet’s website to find out more about its sustainable journey.

New framework for achieving net positive hospitality can be implemented globally

The Sustainable Hospitality Alliance has recently launched its Pathway to Net Positive Hospitality, a framework created to help hospitality businesses around the globe move towards a net positive tourism industry.

© Sustainable Hospitality Alliance

With climate action failure considered one of the world’s preeminent threats, it has become even more determinant to move towards net positive tourism industry. Developed by the Sustainable Hospitality Alliance (SHA) in collaboration with industry experts and environmental organisations, the Pathway to Net Positive Hospitality is new a tool designed to help businesses that want to embark on a sustainable journey.

In addition to being free, the SHA framework simplifies the complex process of achieving net positive in the hospitality industry in four steps:

• Simple environmental actions

• Robust environmental actions

• Net zero impacts for the planet

• Net positive impacts on the planet

Through this framework, SHA hopes that hospitality businesses can move up the sustainability ladder through the different pathway stages until becoming net positive. The tool was built to be accessible to all companies, independently of their starting point in the sustainability pathway. On this matter, the chair of Sustainable Hospitality Alliance, Wolfgang M. Neuman has said:

“Our Pathway fills the current vacuum of a co-ordinated and focused strategic plan across the hospitality industry to tackle the urgently needed climate actions. It is a practical tool for any hotel, no matter their starting point, to obtain guidance on how to prioritise and sequence targeted and measurable climate actions. The Alliance wants to encourage all hotels to embrace the journey all the way to net positive. We are spearheading the dialogue beyond having ‘zero’ impact and setting a vision for what we can be putting back into the natural world with a lasting ‘positive’ impact on our planet and its people.”

The SHA has already released the two first stages of the pathway (Simple Environmental Actions and Robust Environmental Actions) and it is planning to launch the last two steps later in 2022. To learn more about the Pathway to Net Positive Hospitality visit the Sustainable Hospitality Alliance webpage.

First boutique Hotel to receive Green Key certification in Malta

The 19 Rooms hotel is one of the most recent establishments to join the Green Key network of certified accommodations.

© 19 Rooms

With a long and interesting history that goes back to the 18th century, the 19 Rooms is located at an old palace in the heart of the capital city of Valetta. Before being converted to a boutique hotel four years ago, the building was once a private residence purchased by a Maltese philanthropist and later used for housing unprivileged families living in Valetta. In 1994, the building had to be closed down under the risk of becoming an unsafe place for tenants to live in. It opened again in 2016, at the hands of the current owners, who transformed the building into a stylish boutique hotel.

Considering that sustainability is at the core of its brand values, the 19 Rooms hotel has recently optimised its internal practices to comply with the Green Key eco-label standards. On the importance of receiving the Green Key certification, Managing Director Michael Xuereb has said:

“We are very focused on having an eco-friendly and sustainable operation, where we recognise the realities of climate change and focus on reducing our footprint and being a responsible part of our community. Obtaining Green Key certification was important for us because it demonstrates our commitment to sustainability and also gives us a rigorous standard to adhere to and build processes around. We also hope that, by making this commitment, we will encourage other hotels and hospitality establishments in Malta to pursue a stronger sustainability strategy.”

As part of its sustainability strategy, the boutique hotel is implementing several practices, which include:

• Waste separation bins in all guest rooms and the restaurant (all waste is separated and daily weight)

• Equipping guest rooms with soap, shampoo and moisturiser dispensers to avoid single-use plastic

• Rejecting single-use plastic for drinking water consumption in the hotel, and instead of using glass bottles which are refilled regularly

• Sourcing and buying local ingredients when possible

• Providing guests with clear instructions (in their rooms) on reducing laundry changes, separating their waste, and being mindful of consumption when using the heating and cooling system

• Offsetting the carbon emissions yearly.

Green Key International congratulates the 19 Rooms Boutique Hotel for their efforts towards a more sustainable tourism industry!

Green Key certified hotel receives Best New Sustainable Hotel award

Three establishments with the eco-label were nominated in the Sustainable Hotel category of the New Hotel Awards, held in Belgium, last week.

The Radisson Grand Place Collection Brussels won the Best New Sustainable Hotel award.

It is undeniable that the last two years have been particularly challenging for the hotel industry. While some hotels endured the difficult years by reinventing themselves and adopting new practices to attract guests, others were opening their doors and starting from zero amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. To recognise the effort and persistence of new hotels inaugurated in 2020 and 2021, the New Hotel Awards were created in Belgium.

The first edition of the awards show took place in the city of Antwerp, on March 14, where a panel of jury, consisting of industry experts, chose winners from seven categories: Best New Hotel Concept, Best New Hotel Restaurant, Best New Hotel Design, Best New Hotel Bar, Best Price Guarantee, Publieksprijs (Audience awards), and Best New Sustainable Hotel.

"The main purpose of this edition was to showcase new hotels and to give a boost after these unpleasant corona years. We can proudly say that the first edition was successful and that we discovered a lot of new gems. We are already looking forward to all the beautiful things that we will see in the next edition," explained the jury president Rachel Persoon, after the ceremony.

In the category that showcases leading establishments in the field of sustainability, three Green Key certified establishments were amongst the four nominees, including the Hotel Nhow Brussels Bloom, the Radisson Grand Place Collection Brussels, and the Mercure Antwerp City Centre. The Radisson Grand Place Collection Brussels, which was first certified by Green Key in 2010 and still holds a valid certification, won the Best New Sustainable Hotel award.

Green Key International congratulates the winner and also Nhow Brussels Bloom and Mercure Antwerp for their work towards achieving a more sustainable tourism industry.

Read more about the New Hotel Awards here.

Green Key launches series of biodiversity webinars

As part of the Foundation for Environmental Education’s strategy for the next decade, Green Key is hosting four webinars on the importance of biodiversity to the tourism industry.

Climate change, biodiversity loss and environmental pollution. These critical environmental threats are the focus of the Foundation for Environmental Education’s (FEE) strategy for the next decade. Named GAIA 20:30, the strategy encompasses several actions and campaigns which aim to bring more awareness about environmental problems while contributing to a more sustainable world.

In 2022, the GAIA 20:30 focuses on biodiversity loss through different actions: promoting sustainable management of the coastal zone, combating pollinator and insect loss, preserving existing and creating new natural areas, and finally raising awareness of efforts to remove invasive alien species.

The biodiversity campaign is running across all five FEE programmes through different actions and initiatives, including a biodiversity quiz and a course that will be available from March 21. Within the Green Key programme, a series of webinars are being held in collaboration with Blue Flag, focused on the importance of biodiversity to the tourism industry. The first introductory webinar on April 5 is already open for registration (here) and will address the following key questions:

- Why is biodiversity important to the tourism industry?
- How does tourism contribute to biodiversity loss?
- How can tourism contribute to the protection of biodiversity?

Our speakers Mr Nikos Petrou, Naturalist, Nature Photographer and Author, and Mr Arnau Teixidor-Costa, Programme Officer - Ecosystem Resilience & Spatial Planning at IUCN Med will reflect on these questions and provide practical examples related to the topic.

See below our schedule for the upcoming Biodiversity webinars:

1. The importance of biodiversity to the tourism industry (April 5)
2. Welcoming nature as your guest - biophilic design in the hotel industry (April 25)
3. My establishment in action - how to support biodiversity in the tourism industry (May 12)
4. Tourism - a force for good for biodiversity (end of May - date to be confirmed)

Sign up to the first webinar event here!

Sustainable journey of a Green Key certified restaurant featured on CNN

The Michelin awarded restaurant Grič in Slovenia has been a Green Key certified establishment since 2021.

Grič is the Slovenian word for hill. ©Suzan Gabrijan

Located in the green village of Šentjošt, a few kilometres away from Ljubljana, the Grič restaurant has made it on the Slovenian gastronomy map since becoming a Michelin star awarded restaurant in September of 2021. Young chef Luka Košir’s cuisine has been praised in the last couple of years due to his choice of local and seasonal products, some of which are produced by Grič’s team at their own farm.

Sustainability has been part of the Slovenian chef’s motto even before joining the Michelin starlight sky. In August 2021, one month before being featured in the restaurant’s prestigious red-coloured guide, Grič received its first Green Key certification, solidifying its commitment towards a greener and more sustainable hospitality industry. To become a Green Key certified establishment, Grič’s practices were assessed against a rigorous set of standards, requiring restaurants to increase the share of organic, eco or fair-trade labelled products yearly, for example. On the restaurant’s sustainable actions, Luka Košir said to the Michelin Guide: “We are 80% self-supporting with vegetables, 50% with fruits, and we also grow mushrooms. Foraging is an everyday task even in wintertime and is a big part of the restaurant's identity. We have a zero-waste policy when it comes to garden produce; we use the hard parts of the vegetables for compost and some vegetables and fruits as an extra treat for our animals. We have the first certified ecological duck farm”.

Slovenian Luka Košir is the current chef of the restaurant. ©Suzan Gabrijan

Grič has its own duck farm. ©Suzan Gabrijan

More recently, Grič’s sustainable efforts have also caught the attention of CNN, which featured the Green Key certified restaurant on their website. In the article, journalist Megan Alldrige describes the chef’s work as “blazing a trail for a more sustainable restaurant industry”. Moreover, the CNN story highlights how the surrounding forests and hills of Slovenia inspire the process of creating a dish, from the gardens to Grič’s table.

Read more about this Green Key’s certified restaurant here.

First Hilton Hotel in England to receive Green Key certificate

The Hilton Garden Inn London Heathrow has become one of the three hotels in the airport vicinity to hold the Green Key certification.

Representatives from Keep Britain Tidy presented Hilton Garden Inn London Heathrow General Manager Richard Lee with the international Green Key Award last week.

Located near the Heathrow airport in London, the Hilton Garden Inn is joining the list of over 3,000 establishments across more than 60 countries that have the leading sustainability certification. Furthermore, the hotel is the first one from the Hilton chain in England to become a Green Key certified establishment.

To receive the certification, the Hilton Garden Inn was submitted to a rigorous assessment to verify that the establishment was complying with the Green Key standards. These standards, set by the Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE) and recognised by the Global Sustainable Tourism Council, cover areas such as staff involvement, guest information and sustainable management of energy, waste, water, cleaning and food and drinks.

On the choice of the Green Key certification for the Hilton Garden Inn, the General Manager of the hotel Richard Lee has said:

“Sustainability is a core part of our purpose, so Green Key fits perfectly alongside the Hilton Travel with Purpose programme and our owner’s commitment to operating sustainable buildings & businesses. Sustainable and purposeful travel are becoming ever more important to our guests so having a Green Key Award demonstrates our commitment and will give our guests the assurance that they are making a sustainable choice when they stay with us”.

As part of its sustainability strategy, the Hilton Garden Inn London Heathrow has recently implemented several initiatives to reduce the ecological footprint of operations. According to the environmental organisation Keep Britain Tidy, responsible for managing the Green Key programme in England, some of the initiatives from the Hilton hotel focused on:

• Installing solar panels which generate approximately 3% of the hotels’ annual energy use;

• Making use of cutting edge technologies such as the Granuldisk Dishwasher, which uses small pellets and UV light to clean pots, thereby lowering the overall water consumption in the pot wash area by on average 70%, compared to manual pot washing;

• Using EnozoPRO Spray Bottles which utilise tap water, diamond plates, and a small electrical charge to create Ozone Water, a safe and effective multipurpose cleaner, which replaces the need for synthetic chemicals that contribute to chemical pollution.

To learn more about the hotel, please visit their website

Green Key International congratulates the Hilton Garden Inn on its certification and is pleased to see the hotel among its certified establishments.