Posts Tagged ‘Events’
Travel+SocialGood partners with major sustainable travel organizations to make sustainable tourism more accessible to travelers
With a focus on increasing transparency in the industry, Travel+SocialGood (TSG) is teaming up with Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC), Sustainable Travel International (STI), Center for Responsible Travel (CREST) and Tourism Cares to present the 2017 TSG Summit this Nov. 16-17 in New York City. The TSG Summit agenda will be centered on a core challenge and theme aimed at increasing accessibility and awareness of sustainable tourism.
The TSG team is developing a “primer,” or introduction, to easily showcase sustainability options to consumers. The goal is to empower travelers with tools to think critically about a business’s efforts in sustainable management and its impacts on a destination’s local economy, environment and cultural heritage. The primer is meant to be a simple distillation of existing sustainable tourism certification bodies, making it easier for travelers to make more informed decisions, and arm them with access to resources to continue to learn more about sustainable tourism.
“While many travelers want to travel sustainably, they don’t always know how. We want to make these resources simple and easily available to all,” said TSG Executive Director Kelley Louise. “Each organization coming to the table brings its own perspective, experience and resources to create a comprehensive overview system. It’s a first for us to all work together and incredibly important. We’re proud to join forces around this common mission.”
Leading up to the TSG Summit, TSG, GSTC, STI, CREST and Tourism Cares will work together to build out the TSG Summit agenda, which will focus on showcasing an easily accessible, universal primer to sustainable tourism – a platform meant to act as an introduction to the basics of sustainable tourism.
“The primer is designed to help travelers understand that sustainability can be integrated into any type of travel; it doesn’t have to be about volunteering,” Louise said. “Our goal is to help make sustainability feel more accessible to travelers, and act as an introduction that will hopefully lead to travelers seeking out more in-depth resources from our Summit Partners.”
The organizations will have a chance to share their concepts during the TSG Summit’s design-thinking workshop, a key portion of each TSG Summit that is focused on developing concrete and actionable solutions that anyone can implement into their business model.
The TSG Summit is limited to 150 innovators and visionaries in the travel and impact space. An application to attend the 2017 Summit can be found here.
TSG was born in early 2013 as a partner of the +SocialGood initiative, headed by the United Nations Foundation, United Nations Development Programme, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, The Case Foundation and Mashable. Today TSG is a highly engaged and active global community with 20 Hubs (local chapters) in cities around the world. A registered nonprofit pursuing 501(c)3 status, TSG is driven entirely by volunteers and the passion of more than 200 active Hub leaders and Media Network members.
ABOUT CREST
The Center for Responsible Travel (CREST) is a policy-oriented research organization dedicated to increasing the positive global impact of responsible tourism. CREST helps governments, policy-makers, tourism businesses, nonprofit organizations, and international agencies find solutions to critical issues confronting tourism, the world’s largest service industry. It also provides analysis and innovative solutions through research, field projects, publications, consultancies, conferences, courses, and documentary films, recognizing tourism’s potential as a tool for poverty alleviation and biodiversity conservation. For more information, visit www.responsibletravel.org or call +1-202-347-9203.
ABOUT GSTC
The Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) establishes and manages global sustainable tourism standards with the aim of increasing sustainable tourism knowledge and practices among public and private stakeholders. The GSTC is an independent and neutral nonprofit organization that establishes and manages global baseline standards for sustainability in travel and tourism. The standards are two sets of GSTC Criteria: Destination Criteria and Industry Criteria, the minimum requirements for tourism businesses and destinations to pursue in order to protect and sustain the world’s natural and cultural resources, along with conservation and poverty alleviation. The GSTC represents a diverse and global membership, including UN agencies, leading travel companies, hotels, country tourism boards, tour operators, individuals and communities – all strive to achieve best practices in sustainable tourism.For more information, visit www.gstcouncil.org or email: [email protected]
ABOUT SUSTAINABLE TRAVEL INTERNATIONAL
Sustainable Travel International is a non-profit organization working to improve the lives of people around the world and the environments they rely upon. By leveraging the power of travel and tourism and providing business and government leaders with the guidance, policies and solutions they need, we aim to ensure that the communities they’re engaged in thrive and their environments are healthy for future generations. For more information, visit www.sustainabletravel.org.
ABOUT TOURISM CARES
Tourism Cares, Inc., a US 501(c)(3) public charity, advances the travel industry’s social impact to help people and places thrive. We unite the industry to make a greater impact on shared priorities, and to help each company fulfill its giving goals. Our members include leading travel associations and companies, together helping destinations in need, supporting our workforce, and improving our corporate social responsibility. Learn more at www.TourismCares.org and @TourismCares.
Media contact:
Meghan Aftosmis
Travel+SocialGood
212-729-8634
Generating Excitement and Enthusiasm Around Destination Stewardship through the ‘Heart of St. Kitts Week’
Join Industry Leaders at VERGE Hawaii: Asia Pacific Clean Energy Summit
Global tourism stakeholders to convene at sustainability summit
GreenBiz Group will host a Sustainable Tourism Summit during its VERGE Hawaii: Asia Pacific Clean Energy Summit, which returns to Honolulu on June 20-22. The Summit will be produced in collaboration with the Hawaii Tourism Authority and global NGO, Sustainable Travel International, and will take place on Wednesday, June 21.
Tourism is one of the fastest-growing business sectors in the world and the primary industry and producer of jobs for many island economies and developing nations, including Hawaii.
Many of tourism’s leaders, including the Hawaii Tourism Authority, are committed to seeing the industry grow sustainably while also generating increased global awareness about the need to preserve natural resources and perpetuate native cultures.
“We envision Hawaii being a global leader in showing destinations worldwide how unique, welcoming travel experiences can be created for visitors while Hawaii’s environment is preserved and its culture treasured by generations to come,” said George D. Szigeti, president and CEO of the Hawaii Tourism Authority. “We are pleased to support the launch of the Sustainable Tourism Summit at VERGE Hawaii. It’s vital that tourism leaders from the Hawaiian Islands and around the world come together to build a healthier, more sustainable tourism industry.”
The Sustainable Tourism Summit is a half-day, invitation-only working session that will convene more than 100 stakeholders — including global hotel brands and local operators, property owners and management companies, airlines, cruise lines, government tourism departments and policy makers, and service providers. The Summit will recognize the destination as a shared responsibility and focus on new technologies, policies and business models for accelerating sustainable tourism — in Hawaii and worldwide.
Reaping the economic, social and environmental benefits of tourism requires a shared vision of what it means for the industry to become sustainable. Addressing the myriad challenges and opportunities requires the entire ecosystem — industry, government, nonprofits and community stakeholders — in Hawaii and beyond.
In 2015, Hawaii became the first state in the nation to mandate a 100 percent renewable portfolio standard by 2045. Fulfilling this ambitious mandate will require support from the tourism industry combined with other clean energy stakeholders in order to create powerful new partnerships, technologies and business models.
“As one of the world’s largest industries, tourism has the potential to combat some of the world’s most pressing issues, including poverty, hunger, gender inequality and environmental degradation. But achieving this vision and ensuring that tourism maximizes benefits for communities and environments takes collaboration from all the relevant players,” said Geoff Bolan, CEO at Sustainable Travel International. “The Sustainable Tourism Summit at VERGE Hawaii is an ideal platform to bring together key stakeholders from Hawaii and beyond to chart a clear path toward a sustainable future.”
Goals of the Sustainable Tourism Summit include:
- Establish a shared vision of what it means for the tourism industry to become more sustainable while enhancing visitor experiences and supporting sustainable management of the destination and business.
- Convene a diverse group of stakeholders and organizations from Hawaii and beyond.
- Identify roles of key stakeholders in overcoming challenges and unlocking opportunities.
- Continue to support Hawaii’s position as a leader in sustainable tourism.
Produced in partnership between GreenBiz Group and the Hawaii State Energy Office, VERGE Hawaii brings together nearly 1,000 key stakeholders — from government, military, utilities, energy producers, entrepreneurs and other solution providers — to have candid, action-oriented conversations addressing the challenges and opportunities in transitioning to 100 percent renewable energy.
“For five years VERGE has uniquely brought together leaders and key stakeholders to accelerate the clean economy,” said Eric Faurot, CEO of GreenBiz Group. “We look forward to launching the Sustainable Tourism Summit at VERGE Hawaii as a destination for global leaders to establish a shared vision of what it means to become more sustainable, in a way that enhances visitor experience and supports local communities and businesses.”
To learn more about the VERGE Hawaii Sustainable Tourism Summit, click here.
ABOUT GREENBIZ GROUP
GreenBiz Group’s mission is to define and accelerate the business of sustainability. It does this through a wide range of products and services, including its acclaimed website GreenBiz.com and e-newsletters, GreenBuzz and VERGE; webcasts on topics of importance to sustainability and energy executives; research reports, including the annual State of Green Business; the GreenBiz Executive Network, a membership-based, peer-to-peer learning forum for sustainability executives; and conferences: the annual GreenBiz forum and VERGE. www.greenbiz.com
ABOUT HAWAII TOURISM AUTHORITY
The Hawai‘i Tourism Authority is responsible for strategically managing the State of Hawai‘i’s marketing initiatives to support tourism. HTA’s goal is to optimize tourism’s benefits for Hawai‘i, while being attentive to the interests of travelers, the community and visitor industry. Established in 1998 to support Hawai‘i’s leading industry and largest employer, HTA continually strives to help ensure the sustainability of tourism’s success For more information about HTA, please visit www.hawaiitourismauthority.org. Follow updates about HTA on Facebook, Twitter (@HawaiiHTA) and its YouTube Channel.
ABOUT SUSTAINABLE TRAVEL INTERNATIONAL
Sustainable Travel International is a non-profit organization working to improve the lives of people around the world and the environments they rely upon. By leveraging the power of travel and tourism and providing business and government leaders with the guidance, policies and solutions they need, we aim to ensure that the communities they’re engaged in thrive and their environments are healthy for future generations. For more information, visit www.sustainabletravel.org.