August updates from GreenStep Sustainable Tourism:
New and Returning Members Awaiting Grading
Canmore Inn & Suites – Canmore, AB
Canmore Rocky Mountain Inn – Canmore, AB
Copper Point Resort – Invermere, BC
Discover Canada Tours – Vancouver, BC
Explore Waterloo Region – Waterloo, ON
Invermere Inn & Suites – Invermere, BC
Sagebrush Tours – Penticton, BC
Sunwolf Riverside Cabins & Fergie’s Cafe – Squamish, BC
Terracana Ranch & Resort – Fraser-Fort George, BC
The Sustainable Tourism 2030 Pledge is our newest initiative that encourages tourism businesses and destinations across Canada, and globally, to commit to measuring and improving their sustainability performance each year between now and 2030.
The Sustainable Tourism 2030 Pledge offers a free online assessment and sustainability score, helping tourism businesses and destinations self-assess on a broad range of sustainability criteria. This creates a common framework and benchmark from which tourism businesses and destinations can create action plans to make ongoing improvements in the areas of economic, social, cultural, natural and environmental sustainability.
By taking the pledge, tourism businesses and destinations will commit to doing two things: measuring their sustainability score annually using the online assessment, and then making a public commitment and goal to improve their score by 2030.
Newest Pledge Signatories
Tourism Businesses
Elmhirst’s Resort
EXA Group Canada
By Angela Nagy, CEO
Now more than ever, Canada critically needs policies and funding to support the transition to a just, low carbon economy that supports our commitments to the UN Sustainable Development Goals and Paris Agreement. With a federal election on the horizon, all political parties now have some element of their platform committed to addressing these issues. However, most are missing the mark as well as the tremendous opportunity to leverage our journey to net-zero emissions as an economic recovery tool that will support the tourism industry’s immediate needs while also building resiliency into the future…[read more]
Introducing Jennifer Burling, Director of Sustainable Tourism
We are so excited to welcome the newest member of the GreenStep Sustainable Tourism team, Jennifer Burling.
Jennifer brings more than 20 years of experience in sales & business development, project and program management, and leadership in the travel & tourism industry to manage GreenStep’s Sustainable Tourism division and team as Director of Sustainable Tourism. Jenn is a values-based leader with a distinct passion for delivering exceptional client experiences, working to support tourism clients in accessing and implementing our products and services as they embark on their sustainability journey.
Stemming from her love of travel and a passion for learning, Jenn has become a subject matter expert in the field of tourism. Jenn studied Tourism & Marketing Management at BCIT, and holds a Certificate in Project Management from UBC.
“I am beyond excited to have recently joined the talented team at GreenStep Solutions Inc., a company that is making its mark as a powerhouse in the world of sustainability. This meaningful and impactful work paired with my passion for supporting the tourism industry is a great match for this next step in my career.”
Wickaninnish Inn is one of Vancouver Island’s iconic accommodations, perched between the ancient rainforest and the ocean. They have recently been reassessed by GreenStep, to achieve Sustainable Tourism GOLD Certified.
The Wickaninnish Inn is dedicated to the journey toward sustainable tourism because it is the right thing to do. We are committed to maintaining the highest environmental practices while delivering value to our guests, a safe workplace for our employees, and a lasting legacy for our families and community.”
[Read more…]
Join GreenStep’s Sustainable Tourism Team for this informative webinar to learn how your business, and the planet, can benefit from assessing your sustainability performance.
- Improve your knowledge on sustainability as a topic and build an understanding of the assessment criteria specific to the tourism industry and what is measured within the environmental, social and cultural, and economic aspects of your business.
- Learn about the benefits of assessing your business on the sustainability criteria.
- Gain tips on creating an action plan, long-term goal setting, and how to engage your customers and staff in your sustainability journey.
- Learn why businesses need to take a closer look at their impact and how small actions can make a difference
Free Sustainability Lens Assessments
Northern BC Tourism & Kootenay Rockies Tourism Associations are offering their tourism stakeholders free sustainability lens assessments (value $99), to help businesses and DMOs measure their sustainability performance. Once online self-assessments are completed, stakeholders will receive a full sustainability scorecard report together with customized action items based on their results. For information on how to sign up in each of these regions, see below:
Northern BC
Stakeholders in this region who wish to access their free sustainability lens assessment should complete this intake form.
Kootenay Rockies
Stakeholders in this region who wish to access their free sustainability lens assessment, should complete this intake form.
The Canadian Tourism Awards are presented annually by TIAC to recognize success, leadership, and innovation in Canada’s tourism industry, and to reward those people, places, organizations, and events that have gone above and beyond to offer travellers superior tourism experiences in Canada. Four awards in total will be presented, including the Sustainable Tourism Award:
The Sustainable Tourism Award will be presented to an organization that has made an outstanding contribution to the practice and promotion of responsible and sustainable tourism in Canada.
If you know a business who is excelling in this area and deserves to be recognized, consider nominating here. Nominations are now closing September 7th, 2021.
Did you know that forging a path to sustainability not only helps our planet but can result in significant savings?
The BCHA GoGreen program helps hotels conduct an in-depth energy analysis of their operations to identify energy conservation and cost-cutting projects. This service is complementary to other energy or sustainability assessments hotels may have received, providing a much deeper analysis of energy consumption and costs, with the goal of identifying tens of thousands of dollars of annual cost savings and utility rebates.
Contact Dylan Tomlin, Energy Analyst for more information at [email protected] | 604-443-4754
2021 Global Sustainable Tourism Conference
Hosted by: Thompson Okanagan Tourism Association
Where: Virtual
Dates: Nov 3 – 4, 2021
The GSTC Conference will be hosted by the Thompson Okanagan Tourism Association, where attendees from across the global tourism sector will be engaging in discussions around key challenges and opportunities as it pertains to smart destination management and sustainable tourism development.
2021 TIAO Tourism Summit
Where: Virtual, & Ottawa, ON Canada
Dates: Oct 26 – Oct 27, 2021
TIAO and presenting partner Destination Ontario will be welcoming tourism professionals from around the province to gather, share, and collaborate as they work to rebuild Ontario’s tourism industry.
2021 TIAC Tourism Congress
Where: Virtual, & Ottawa, ON Canada
Dates: Nov 30 – Dec 1, 2021
Under the theme “Forging Canada’s Tourism Future,” this year’s Tourism Congress will focus on how to recover, rebuild and reimagine the Canadian tourism sector after the pandemic.
