Hotel Online  Special Report

advertisement
-
 
  Caribbean Alliance for Sustainable Tourism (CAST)
Resturctures; Reiterates Commitment to
Ongoing Environmental Programs
.

PUNTA CANA, Dominican Republic (June 24, 2003) - Following an extensive restructuring exercise involving an overview of its operating systems, programs and services, the Caribbean Alliance for Sustainable Tourism (CAST), environmental arm of the Caribbean Hotel Association (CHA), is pleased to announce a new five-year Organizational Business Plan that seeks to return the organization to its core mission and mandate, with a focus on the development of quality services and programs.  "CAST's new programs and services will center on the driving philosophy of creating 'Positive Impact!'   by promoting environmental best practices and low impact tourism,"  explained CAST Chairman Royston Hopkin, CMG.  "The first two components of 'Positive Impact!' will be the Hotel Environmental Leadership & Performance (HELP) and Friends of CAST.

As a first step, the former membership structure will be phased out to allow CAST to evolve into a full service organization by April 2004.  "This means that former CAST members, hotels and other tourism establishments can access CAST services and products under a structured program that includes promotion and recognition of superior or improved environmental performance," elaborated newly-appointed CAST Director Deirdre Shurland.  "Within this framework, CHA member hotels will have priority access to CAST services," she added.

HOTEL ENVIRONMENTAL LEADERSHIP & PERFORMANCE (HELP)
HELP is primarily a promotional service program that will laud the environmental best practices and performance achievements of participating hotels and tourism establishments.   Properties will be required to progress through 3 levels - commitment, performance, and leadership - with demonstrable commitment to and proof of superior environmental performance within a maximum 2-year period.  CAST will recognize achievements through targeted promotion and publicity at local, regional and international levels.  During CHIC 2003, CAST will introduce HELP to a representative group of Caribbean hoteliers in a focus group session in order to use their feedback to determine program suitability and improve on design and delivery. 

"Once the HELP program is implemented, it is envisaged that there will be a need for development of the requisite skills of hotel environmental staff to ensure the sustainability of program initiatives and vibrancy of green certification schemes," said Royston Hopkin CMG.   "With this in mind, CAST will seek to develop and implement personnel certification programs for professional staff."   This is expected to be unveiled in early 2004.

FRIENDS OF CAST
Through the Friends program, CAST will seek to diversify its traditional funding sources, targeting visitors and organizations committed to the environmental sustainability of Caribbean tourism. 

In addition, a Positive Impact Fund will be introduced in late 2003.  This Fund will involve a number of other contributory systems managed by CHA's Caribbean Hotel Foundation and allocated to specific environmental projects in various Caribbean countries. 

The national hotel associations that make up the CHA federation would be major beneficiaries, involved in the selection and management of in-country environmental projects funded under this the Fund.

CAST Reiterates Commitment to Ongoing Environmental Programs in the Region

With the launch of the ambitious new 'Positive Impact!" theme and work plan, the Chairman of CAST, Royston Hopkin CMG, reiterated CAST's commitment to a range of longstanding and successful environmental programs in the region.  "We do not seek to drop everything in order to reinvent the wheel.  'Positive Impact!'  presents a more focused approach to promoting the best sustainable tourism practices in the region.  It is designed to enhance the range of important programs CAST is already involved with and that are making a significant contribution to our mission," he declared.  "CAST will continue to play a leadership role in documenting and disseminating the lessons learned under the various regional certification and accreditation initiatives and making these available to the industry.  These include: the Green Globe 21, Quality Tourism for the Caribbean (QTC), and the Blue Flag certification schemes, as well as other projects such as Caribbean Hotel Environmental Management Initiative (CHEMI) and the Virgin Islands Environmental Resource Station (VIERS) environmental youth camp. 

  • Green Globe 21 - GREEN GLOBE 21 is the worldwide benchmarking and certification program which facilitates sustainable travel and tourism for consumers, companies and communities. It is based on Agenda 21 and principles for Sustainable Development endorsed by 182 governments at the United Nations Rio de Janeiro Earth Summit in 1992.  CAST will continue to serve as the representative of Green Globe 21 in the Caribbean and be a clearinghouse of information for the region.
  • Quality Tourism for the Caribbean (QTC) - The QTC project formally ended in December 2002 and an extension was approved by the funding agencies until June 2003.  QTC has produced six environmental and one food safety and sanitation standards, which are in the final stages of review by the QTC Standards Sub-Committee and will ready for industry testing and feedback by the third quarter of 2003.  A second phase of the QTC project to design a feasible certification system is now under development.
  • Caribbean Blue Flag - This beach management and certification program is being administered by CAST, in collaboration with the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO) and the Caribbean Conservation Association (CCA) as part of a Caribbean consortium, supported by the Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE), headquartered in Denmark. FEE is the administrator of the highly successful Blue Flag campaign in Europe.  The Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Jamaica and the Bahamas are the four initial pilot countries, with Barbados and Trinidad & Tobago recently joining.  The next meeting of Caribbean Blue Flag national coordinators is scheduled for November 2003. 
  • Caribbean Hotel Environmental Management Initiative (CHEMI)  - This United States Agency for International Development (USAID)-sponsored program focuses on providing key environmental management, improvement, and efficiency services to small hotels in 6 countries of the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) - Antigua & Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, St. Kitts & Nevis, St.Lucia, and St. Vincent & The Grenadines - and in Barbados.  CAST has been a major beneficiary of this project, in terms of institutional strengthening and the development of key programs and services that will continue to be available through CAST, following completion of the CHEMI project in March 2004. To date, CHEMI has completed its target of 200 environmental walk-throughs (EWTs), provided without cost to participating small hotels in the six OECS countries and Barbados. Out of these 200 properties receiving EWTs, 40 will go on to receive further technical assistance under the Small Hotel Environmental Assessment (SHEA) exercise during June and July 2003.  CHEMI is an initiative of CAST, implemented by PA Consulting Group.
  • Virgin Islands Environmental Resources Station (VIERS) - VIERS is a program initiative of Clean Islands International, based in St. John, US Virgin Islands, with the support of American Airlines. Each summer, the Station hosts an environmental youth camp. This year the camp will be conducted from July 23rd - 30th 2003 under the theme: Natural History, Ecology and Conservation on Caribbean Islands. This eco-camp program has been designed specifically to address the needs and interests of Caribbean youth between the ages 12-16.
About CAST (www.cha-cast.com
CAST, a subsidiary of the Caribbean Hotel Association (CHA), was chartered in 1997 to undertake collaborative environmental efforts within the hotel industry, promote effective management of natural resources and to develop expertise in sustainable tourism, assisting hotel and tourism operations in the Caribbean to achieve environmentally responsible operations.  CAST's mission is to lead in the sustainable management of Caribbean resources by catalyzing the tourism and business communities and working with multi-sectorial partners to ensure social responsibility and environmental care for the benefit of its people and visitors.

Contact:

CAST
Deirdre Shurland
1000 Ponce de León Ave., 5th Floor
San Juan, Puerto Rico
00907 / T 787.725.9139
E: [email protected]

Lorraine J. Ortiz-Valcárcel
T: 787.725.9139, x244
E: [email protected]


Also See Caribbean Alliance for Sustainable Tourism Appoints Deirdre Shurland Director; Seeks to Re-energize Environmental Programs / April 2003
Royston O. Hopkin, CMG Appointed Chairman of the Caribbean Alliance for Sustainable Tourism / Dec
 2002


To search Hotel Online data base of News and Trends Go to Hotel.Online Search

Home | Welcome! | Hospitality News | Classifieds | Catalogs & Pricing | Viewpoint Forum | Ideas/Trends
Please contact Hotel.Online with your comments and suggestions.