Responsible travel awareness raising initiative unveiled

An educational resource on responsible travel has recently been launched to help travelers, hoteliers, and local communities develop and promote environmental, social, and cultural sustainability by increasing awareness of issues affecting tourism and showcasing best green practices for hotels.

The Green Hotels and Responsible Tourism Initiative resource was developed by tourism sustainability and hotel greening experts, Dr Sonya Graci and Jacqueline Kuehnel,  with hotel search engine, HotelsCombined.com

Project coordinator, James Ferguson, commented, "I believe that we have an obligation to conserve the natural environment and help develop the local communities where we travel. The initiative provides sustainability suggestions to help hotel owners become more environmentally friendly, and for travelers to increase the enjoyment of their experiences while also being responsible tourists."

The hotel owner’s guide – How to Increase Your Bottom Line by Greening Your Hotel, is an academic style whitepaper that focuses on the business case for greening hotels, as well as highlighting several examples from around the world. In addition, hotel owners are provided with a review process, allowing them to create a sustainability statement to share their current green procedures with their guests.

Dr Sonya Graci, assistant professor at the Ted Rogers School of Hospitality and Tourism Management at Ryerson University, and director of Accommodating Green, said, "It is necessary for hotels both large and small to move towards greening their operations, not only to save money, but to protect the resources that sustain the industry. Hotels have to be forward thinking and understand the impact that their business has on the environment and that the environment is necessary for their business."

The focus of the initiative is not only on greening hotels, but on raising responsible tourism awareness with travelers.

The guide for travelers – The Responsible Traveler Guide, informs travelers on ways to preserve the natural environment and historical sites, while contributing positively to the livelihood of local communities. The guide offers valuable suggestions for each stage of the travel lifecycle – pre-planning, whilst traveling and post-travel.

Jacqueline Kuehnel, climate change, responsible tourism specialist, said, "Writing these guides has been a fantastic experience. The initiative demonstrates a genuine desire to inform travelers and hotels on responsible practices and how they can do their part in preserving the wonderful places we love to visit."

For more information about the Green Hotels and Responsible Tourism Initiative, visit green.hotelscombined.com

Valere Tjolle
Valere Tjolle is editor of the Sustainable Tourism Report Suite 2011 – latest news on the suite at www.travelmole.com/stories/1145615.php