The Interpretation Document of the GSTC Industry Criteria (7 criteria) is underway – Join the public consultation.
The Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) invites you to provide input in creating the Interpretation Document for specific requirements of the GSTC Industry Criteria.
The GSTC Criteria operate as the universal foundation for sustainability standards in travel and tourism. It has been meticulously established through a comprehensive global effort to introduce a universally understood and adopted language around sustainability within our industry.
The purpose of this document is to clarify the GSTC Criteria’s intent and provide additional information on how a requirement should be interpreted and how a hotel can comply with the criteria below:
- B.3. Local Purchasing: policy, fresh food and beverage
- B.7.Decent work: living wage
- D.1.1. Environmentally preferable purchasing: policy, green product purchases – share and category, assessment of suppliers
- D.1.2. Efficient purchasing: Zero single use plastic practices
- D.1.3. Energy conservation: LED, electric car charging stations, vegetarian/vegan menu, linen reuse, carbon-free electricity use
- D.1.4. Water conservation: water-efficient equipment, towel reuse
- D.2.4. Solid waste: elimination of use of Styrofoam, water refill station, policy for waste reduction to landfill
We invite GSTC members, hotels, certification bodies, consulting organizations, tourists, and all members of the general public to provide feedback on this Interpretation Document.
In order to provide your feedback, please complete the following survey, where you can read and download the entire document and then provide comments in the field below the document. Another option available is to go through each criterion with the correspondent additional interpretation and leave a comment for each criterion. Please note that you DO NOT have to comment on every criterion.
Please respond and submit any time before the closing deadline of August 26, 2023.
We would also appreciate it if you could help us spread the word about this consultation. Please share this invitation with anyone you know who is directly or indirectly involved with tourism and sustainability. That could include tour operators, travel agents, hoteliers, event organizers, policymakers, academics, non-profit organizations, community representatives, or even individual travelers.
Thank you in advance for your contributions to this important initiative. Together, we can continue to drive the conversation around sustainable tourism forward and make real, impactful changes to the way we all meet, travel and operate in this industry.
Let’s shape the future of Sustainable Tourism for the better, one criterion at a time!
