THE BASICS
As sustainability becomes more prominent, the amount of information available also grows. A universal rating system can simplify the review process for event organisers, as participation in an independently verified benchmarking programme shows genuine commitment.

Green Globe is the worldwide benchmarking and certification system assisting the global travel and tourism industry to attain sustainability. It is based on the Agenda 21 principles for Sustainable Development endorsed at the United Nations Earth Summit in 1992.

“The next generation of sustainability actions need to clearly demonstrate measurable performance that is holistic, integrated into company policy, and has integrity; delivering against the triple bottom line,” says Stewart Moore, CEO of EC3 Global. Nicholas Mak, director of engineering and Green Globe chairman at InterContinental Hong Kong, says: “We wanted a management system that would ensure our sustainability objectives were met.

“When we joined the Green Globe programme, our target was to achieve Silver Certification (Gold is achieved after five years of continuous Silver Certification). By reaching this, we can be confident we have in place a working system that has been verified by a third-party auditor.”

THE PROCESS
Green Globe Certification takes place in two stages; first an assessment of the environmental performance according to a benchmarking audit and then the establishment of an environmental management system to improve each hotel’s performance in relation to sustainable development policies. Each hotel is then externally audited for compliance.

“The key benefits of the Green Globe programme are the ability to benchmark our environmental performance indicators against industry best practices; that it is specific to the travel and tourism industry and is directly applicable to our hotel operations; and that it also covers social responsibility,” says Mak.

Evan Lewis, Accor’s director of communications for Asia Pacific, agrees. “The benefit of the Green Globe process is that you are benchmarked to other hotels in your area,” he says. “The programme works to ensure you outperform the market in environmental programmes and consumption.”

UNIFORM APPROACH
The number and variety of sustainability actions within large hotel groups means it can be difficult for operators to ensure each is meeting certain standards.

Kenneth Fong, regional director of technical services at Dusit International, says: “Prior to benchmarking, each property had its own CSR and sustainability initiatives. Green Globe has allowed us to coordinate these efforts and measure them against common guidelines.”

These guidelines include energy and water consumption, waste management, harmful substances management and community commitment. 

Once benchmarking and certification are achieved, venues must undertake annual audits and demonstrate ongoing efforts to improve sustainability. This process assures clients the venue continues to meet industry-best sustainability standards.