Gold Awards for Club Med: Global Pioneer of All-Inclusive Sustainability

Club Med is the worlds only chain of all-inclusive resorts dedicated to Green Globe certification of all properties. Almost three quarters of all Club Med Villages have been certified and this year 14 resorts have attained Green Globe Gold Membership. From Mauritius to Malaysia, Tunisia to Turkey, Morocco, The Caribbean and at home in France, these Gold Member Villages have had their sustainable operations certified for five consecutive years.

Club Med is a pioneer in tourism and has for 60 years been providing vacation experiences in touch with the culture and nature of their international destinations. Long before ecotourism and responsible travel was defined as a global movement Club Med was already setting the standard for sustainability in tourism.

"We believe at Club Med that happiness shouldn’t be at the expense of nature or others, and our sustainability program "’Globe Members" stands for this (www.sustainability.clubmed). Within this program, Green Globe Certification has recognized our long-standing commitment with the certification of 73% of our resorts worldwide. Gold membership underlines our ability to implement best practices and also to maintain that standard over time with superior know-how embedded within our teams", explains Florian Duprat, Sustainability Certification & Projects Manager at Club Med.

Over 40 years ago Club Med took the visionary step of building the first onsite water and treatment and recycling plant at their villages in La Pointe aux Canonniers and Cap Skirring. Today, Green Globe Gold Member Club Med Cherating use a 100% natural water treatment system that employs no chemicals, and uses only the natural filtration of specially constructed lagoons.

The Cherating Village has also integrated with the traditional architecture of Malaysian longhouses into its natural setting and manages to retain 75% of the remanent rainforest. Further environmental preservation is undertaken with a turtle protection program in partnership with the Malaysian fishing department. To protect these endangered marine creatures, the turtles’ eggs are collected, hatched in a protected area and the hatchlings released. This initiative delivers many more hatchings to the wild and greatly raises the turtles’ survival rate

In 1978, just a few years after pioneering on site water treatment, Club Med again demonstrated its visionary approach with the installation of the largest solar energy plant in Club Med Les Boucaniers Martinique. Last year, Club Med’s Finolhu Villas surpassed that achievement installing 67,000 square feet of solar panels generating close to a megawatt of energy. Meanwhile in Turkey, Green Globe Gold Members manage their energy efficiency with everyday solutions. Gold Member Club Med Kemer chooses to purchase 100% green electricity, while Gold Member Club Med Palmiye uses solar thermal heating for its hot water needs.

Both these Villages also pay homage to their natural settings. Club Med Kemer uses indigenous plant species to preserve the Olympus National Park biodiversity and hosts regular eco-walks to appreciate the resort’s surroundings, which use only 100% organic fertilizers.

At Club Med Palmiye, guests are encouraged to follow botanical paths to discover the local biodiversity. Everyone is also invited to the beach cleanings, organised each season with Doga Dostlari Spor Kulubu Dernegi, a local hiking association along with students from local schools.

Club Med’s dedication to sustainability extends beyond the environment to encompass the welfare of people in the destinations that host their Villages. Across 18 countries more than 2000 Club Med managers and staff contribute 10,000 hours annually to social development as part of Club Méditerranée La Foundation activities.

In Mauritius, Green Globe Gold Members Club Med La Pointe aux Canonniers and Club Med La Plantation d’Albion provide support for children’s’ education. Through the Club Méditerranée La Foundation, support is given to the Fatima Literacy School educating 200 children who are excluded from the general school system. Additional assistance is provided to the "Fondation pour l’Enfance Terre de Paix" which works to improve living and educational conditions for underprivileged children in Mauritius.

Both Club Med La Pointe aux Canonniers and Club Med La Plantation d’Albion also believe in promoting the unique culture of Mauritius, one of the world’s most special islands, and each week the Villages host local craft markets as well as introducing Mauritian gastronomy to Village guests.

In Tunisia, Green Globe Gold Member Club Med Djerba La Douce also utilises the Club Méditerranée La Foundation to support the local primary school in Hadaddam, while featuring home-grown artisans at their oriental market and including traditional Tunisian cooking on the Village menu.

In their home country of France, Club Med is working on the challenges of the developed world. With a global agreement on the Climate Change reached in Paris only 12 months ago, Club Med remains dedicated to taking responsibility for its carbon footprint. Club Med is tackling the causes of climate change with innovations in eco-construction, alternate transportation strategies, recycling and waste minimisation as well as use of renewable energy.

In the Vosges in Eastern France and on the Atlantic Coast, Green Globe Gold Members, Club Med Vittel Le Parc Hotel and Club Med La Palmyre Atlantique have committed to lowering future carbon pollution. Both these Villages, along with all Club Med Resorts, have guaranteed that 65% of their electrical consumption will continue to be from renewable sources.

Protecting the future also mean respecting the past through preservation of great assets and connection to past ways of life. Club Med Vittel Le Parc Hotel, located in one of France’s legendary spa towns, has been classified as an historical monument, helping to conserve its iconic Art Deco style. While Club Med La Palmyre Atlantique, revives France’s historical coastal culture with architecture inspired by traditional oyster-farmers’ cabins. These two Gold Members Villages are also dedicated to preserving their special corners of the French countryside with a 100% organic policy for green spaces, meaning there is no use of chemicals or pesticides.

About Club Med Sustainability

For over 60 years, the development of Club Med has been based on values ‘‹’‹and practices that fall under what is now called sustainable development. Club Med villages are built to integrate harmoniously into exceptional and fragile places, are vigilant with energy efficiency and water efficiency, promote renewable energy, and have mastered water treatment and recycling technology.

All of this is combined with an ever-present desire to contribute to local development, and to bring together in harmony people of different origins, religions, nationalities and backgrounds. For more information on Club Med’s long standing commitment to sustainability visit sustainability.clubmed

About Green Globe Certification

Green Globe is the worldwide sustainability system based on internationally accepted criteria for sustainable operation and management of travel and tourism businesses. Operating under a worldwide license, Green Globe is based in California, USA and is represented in over 83 countries.  Green Globe is an Affiliate Member of the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO). For information, please visit www.greenglobe.com

Contacts:

Bradley Cox
Director of Communications
Green Globe Certification
5959 W. Century Blvd., Suite 610
Los Angeles, California 90045
U.S.A
phone +1-310-337-3000
fax       +1-310-626-9982
email    [email protected]
web     www.greenglobe.com

Florian Duprat
Sustainability Certification & Projects Manager
Club Méditerrannée
11, rue de Cambrai – 75957
PARIS
Cedex 19
phone: +33 1 53 35 35 47
email:   [email protected]
web:    www.sustainability.clubmed/