Guaranteed green site launched and sloppy green personalities criticised by certifier

Andrea Nicholas & Tarka

Site featuring properties with third-party eco-certification launched by the Green Tourism Business Scheme who criticise sloppy green characters green implementation.

It is believed to be the first such ‘guaranteed green’ online accommodation booking tool and currently features more than 500 venues in the UK and Ireland with a 1500 total planned for the end of the year. www.green-tourism.co.uk.

Says Andrea Nicholas, managing director of the GTBS, ‘Suppliers range from bed and breakfasts and self-catering providers to five-star boutique hotels as well as business focused properties which update regularly with special offers and rates.

‘The aim of the site is to help buyers distinguish between credible and not-so-credible claims of environmental-mindedness among accommodation providers – now for the first time there is a booking resource which features only those who consistently meet standards endorsed by the International Centre for Responsible Tourism.’

The scheme’s  MD also said that ‘Green’ personality testing for hotel managers will soon become a recruitment ‘must’and that the most common reason for venue failure to meet environmental standards is a ‘bolt-on’ rather than ‘built-in’ approach from management. The GTBS predicts that ‘pro-environmental’ traits will soon become a key employment consideration for tourism businesses as accommodation providers and venues come under increasing pressure to demonstrate full commitment to sustainability.

Says Andrea Nicholas, managing director of the GTBS, ‘For decades recruitment decisions have been aided by tools which suggest a predisposition towards psychological attributes such as self-motivation, leadership and reliability. As ‘green’ becomes an ever more critical booking consideration among consumers as well as procurement professionals, hotels cannot afford to risk their environmental investment through uninterested or sloppy implementation of their green policies by a non-sustainability-minded manager.’

‘Thirteen years of GTBS experience in helping properties implement environmental programmes and thousands of venue inspections show that those which are less successful are typically run by general managers who take a ‘bolt-on’ approach to green considerations. Personality testing will allow recruiters to gain insights into likely ‘green’ commitment levels of their managers, the success of their environmental efforts and ultimately their business.’

‘As an example of how this might work, an interpretation of the ‘Five Factor’ trait model published in the Journal of Environmental Psychology earlier this year indentified key ‘pro-environmental’ attributes as Agreeableness and Openness followed by Neuroticism and Conscientiousness.’

Valere Tjolle

Valere Tjolle is editor of the Sustainable Tourism Report Suitewww.travelmole.com/stories/1143624.php