Green Key

Green Key is an international voluntary eco-label for tourism facilities that promotes sustainable tourism.It aims to contribute to the prevention of climate change by awarding and advocating facilities with positive environmental initiatives. Green Key is a non-governmental, non-profit, independent programme. It is recognised and supported by the World Tourism Organization and UNEP. Green Key is the largest global eco-label for accommodation and has a national administration centre in each participating country.

Green Key has awarded more than 2,600 hotels and other sites in 56 countries worldwide with their eco-label.

Green Key aims to

Green Key began in Denmark in 1994 and was adopted by FEE in 2002 to become its fifth international programme. It has since spread to more than 50 countries and continues to grow in number and spread across the world.

Commercial websites, such as Bookdifferent.com, is partnering with Green Key to entice travelers to book eco friendly hotels.

Tourism facilities awarded a Green Key adhere to national or international Green Key criteria. The criteria have been designed to be easily understood by tourists, feasible for the tourism industry, and clearly verifiable through control checks.

International criteria reflect the various fields of tourism facilities (hotels, hostels, camp sites, conference and holiday centres, tourist attractions and restaurants) and specialized national criteria reflect each country’s legislation, infrastructure and culture.

The criteria focus on environmental management, technical demands and initiatives for the involvement of guests, staff and suppliers. Some of the categories covered are: Water, Waste, Energy, Involvement and Awareness of Guests, Environmental Management, Staff Involvement, Use of Chemicals, Open Spaces, and Food and Beverages.

The Green Key programme rests on five pillars:

FEE, which runs the Green Key Programme, uses a tool to compensate their CO2 emissions from flight travels. The funds are distributed by the programme Learning about Forests (LEAF), which involves children in planting tree activities.

Green Globe is a similar program offering a certification process for the hospitality industry.

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Wikipedia