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Follow on Google News | Green Hotels: What Really Makes them Green?Faced with growing concerns about ‘greenwashing' and tongue-twisting turns of phrase like ‘sustainable eco nature adventures,' the average person is left wondering what makes green hotels truly ‘green'?
By: The Travel Word To answer that, we first need to look at what it means to be sustainable. How Do Things Look Today? These days, green initiatives are usually taken to mean those where the practice either has a positive or neutral (anything except negative) effect on the natural environment. But while the protection of natural resources is a vital preoccupation, sustainability means a lot more than saving our planet's trees. Local and indigenous communities across the planet often suffer in the shadow of hard-impact mass-market tourism. While the proceeds from tourism may, generally speaking, bring in capital and sometimes even increase peace and stability, local people are sometimes hard pressed to see the benefits. The lion's share of profits are shipped abroad to foreign stakeholders while local people are even frequently overlooked as staff, tour guides or regional experts. With some bitterness, local people see their cultures bought and sold in front of them, often returned in with no resemblance to the centuries-old traditions that drew in tourists in the first place. What Is Sustainability? Clearly there is no catch-all phrase able to determine whether the place in which you are staying deserves the title of being ‘green,' but sustainability can certainly be measured in terms of an accommodation's or tour's effect on the health of the environment, energy consumption, the promotion of local culture and heritage, the distribution of profits, labour force vitality and even the quality and nature of building materials. The following chart should be looked at as a review of general trends in sustainable travel and ecotourism, not as a checklist. The list doesn't stop there, but we hope it will help add to the current discussion on sustainable tourism. ENERGY CONSUMPTION: 1. Energy Savings: timers on lights, key activated electricity 2. Emissions-free transportation: 3. Rotating electricity and water scheduled 4. Alternative energy generation: solar panels or heaters, wind turbines, hydro power COMMUNITY SUPPORT: 1. Use of locals as hotel staff, tour guides, management and communications support 2. Promotion and training opportunities for locals 3. Educating guests about community lifestyles (see cultural heritage) 4. Educating guests about local human rights and political issues 5. Use of locally grown food and produce CULTURAL HERITAGE: 1. Integration of cultural lifestyles and heritage aspects into tours and accommodayions 2. Respectful exposure to ceremonies and traditional practices 3. Inclusion of local food in restaurants and visits to businesses on tours 4. Respect for cultural norms and values NATURE CONSERVATION 1. Water conserveration: 2. Toxin reduction: chlorine substitutes, acid-free paper 3. Waste management: recycling programs, alternative septic systems, reusable amenities 4. Choice of materials and style of lodging: local natural resources, energy-saving designs, locally made furniture and textiles and art Ecotourism Destinations With these factors in mind, the question becomes: where to go? The following are some places that have made important strides toward sustainability and cultural immersion without compromising on comfort. Of course, travelling is all about forging your own path outside your daily routine, so always still keep make sure that your choice of accommodation fits your needs as well as those of the host country. Green in the City * Near Amsterdam (http://www.thetravelword.com/ * Located in the heart of Buenos Aires (http://www.thetravelword.com/ Local Houses * What better way to find out what it’s like to live as a nomad than actually to live like one? In Kyrgyzstan (http://www.thetravelword.com/ * Transport yourself to 5th-century Turkey (http://www.thetravelword.com/ * Village homestays are an increasingly popular way to directly finance traditional communities instead of parading them as tourist attractions. By living side by side with villagers in, tourists can actually take part in the perfect ecotourism model: natural materials and fibres are used for nearly every edifice and tool, water is sourced from nearby rivers and streams, and opportunities exist for fishing and hunting with locals. The Solomon Islands (http://www.solomonislands- Luxury Ecolodges * Run by a local naturalist (who discovered a new species of bird), the Hobatere Lodge in northern Namibia (http://www.thetravelword.com/ Community Projects In Thailand, it’s easy to visit monasteries but few places allow lay people to live alongside monks and learn their practices. The 10-day silent retreat at the Suan Mokkh International Dhamma Hermitage gives outsiders a chance to experience monastic life. Expect to forsake all material pleasure, eat vegetarian food only twice a day, attend meditation and yoga classes, and maintain complete silence. The retreat is free, but participants must be committed to all aspects of the program. # # # The Travel Word is the online mouthpiece of the WHL Group and draws on a vast pool of ideas generated by local tour operators, partners, suppliers and more. Our blog - http://www.thetravelword.com - showcases responsible, sustainable and local travel. We are committed to inspiring mindful and independent travellers headed off the beaten path with local businesses making responsible and sustainable decisions about their destinations. Through anecdotes, articles, profiles, opinion pieces and news, our local voices aim to inform travellers about unique and ethical ways to experience a destination, travel responsibly and help sustain the distinctive qualities of a place. Contact: media@thetravelword.com End
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