Travel industry understanding of sustainability accreditation is “so far off the norm” that businesses risk misleading consumers with claims of certification.
That is according to Global Sustainable Tourism Council chief executive Randy Durband, who told a Sustainable Hospitality Alliance summit in London on Tuesday: “Certification means there is some form of independent external review.”
He noted: “Hotels all have their own ‘certification’, but that is not certification. The World Travel & Tourism Council’s (WTTC’s) Hotel Sustainability Basics programme is not certification.”
Durband argued: “We need to apply external accreditation. The word ‘accreditation’ is used entirely wrongly in this industry. In the EU, only a national body can provide certification. These words have precise definitions. Start learning the language. The language [in travel] is so far off.”
He did praise the Hotel Sustainability Basics scheme, launched in March, which aims to “raise the floor on sustainability” with 12 indicators “all hotels should implement” (Travel Weekly, March 2).
Durband said: “What I like is it’s just a starting point. A hotel can only use it for two years then needs to move to the next stage.”
But he argued: “We’re starving for universal measurement tools. The industry has been outside the norm in how it refers to certification.”
WTTC president and chief executive Julia Simpson noted 80% of hotels are SMEs and “need a starting point”, saying the Hotel Sustainability Basics programme “is a first step”.
She added: “I can’t say I speak to one CEO without them saying this is their top priority.”
But Durband told the summit: “Globally, things have changed pretty dramatically. Climate change is punching people in the face.”
He warned: “We’re going to see far more regulatory pressure. Hospitality, travel and tourism are visible. There is less room for hiding.”
Durband described aviation as “the Achilles heel of travel” and said: “I’m sceptical about [meeting] 2030 [decarbonisation] targets because there is a vast informal economy in travel.”
Suzanne Neufang, chief executive of the Global Business Travel Association, suggested: “Business travel can be the tip of a spear for this industry. It has the most coordinated buying power and there is a drive to increase sustainable practices.”