Sustainable Travel International is a company dedicated to promoting sustainable tourism and environmentally responsible travel. The Leading Hotels of the World, Ltd. is a company dedicated to finding the right luxury hotels and resorts for the most elite group of leisure travel, family vacation, and luxury business travel seekers. The Leading Hotels of the World - with its emphasis on luxury day spas and the best golf resorts - may not seem to have much in common with the sustainable travel and eco-tourism promoted by Sustainable Travel International. However, even the most elite leisure travel companies are growing aware of the negative impact hotels and the travel industry has been having on the environment, and some are stepping up to make a positive change.
The Leading Hotels of the World has partnered with Sustainable Travel International. STI offers a carbon offset program, and Leading Hotels of the World is the first international luxury hotel brand to take part in this program. Its new Leading Green Initiative helps its hotels and resorts strive towards becoming carbon neutral; a donation of 50 cents is made, by LHW, to Sustainable Travel International's carbon offset program. Travel Green, launched in 2007 by STI, calculates energy consumption to be around 50 cents per room, per Leading Hotels of the World's individual luxury resort sites. By donating that 50 cents per room (per night), Leading Hotels helps leisure travel become that much more carbon neutral. The money is invested in supporting clean, renewable energy resources. This 50 cent per guest investment goes directly towards solar and wind power. The overall quantity of greenhouse gases is reduced, once more energy efficient power sources are utilized.
Sustainable Travel International has other programs available for the travel and tourism industry and leisure travelers, to assist in making eco-friendly travel attainable:
- Advisory Services - An experienced consulting team specializes in business and sustainable travel tourism development.
- Book Travel - STI's eco-directory helps book environmentally responsible travel. The eco-directory guides users throughout making leisure and business travel plans.
- Buy Local Products - Sustainable Travel International works with a new company, Brighter Futures, which finds fair trade and artisan crafts to sell through STI's website.
- Carbon Offsets - This is the program with which Leading Hotels of the World has partnered. Clean energy investment and support for tourism and sustainable development is key to becoming carbon neutral.
- Education and Training - Through U. Colorado's Center for Sustainable Tourism, a curriculum has been created for travel and tourism businesses, non-profits and more. Sustainable tourism development is a burgeoning field.
- Green Travel Market - An online B2B service for widely available sustainable tourism products. The Green Travel Market is a free database.
- Membership - Joining Sustainable Travel International shows commitment to cultural responsibility, environmental conservation, reduced greenhouse gases, and economic profit within the green travel and tourism industry.
- Travel Philanthropy - Also called Altruistic Travel, this STI program helps make leisure and luxury business trips have a more positive impact on travel destinations. Travel Philanthropy is specific to each destination, and includes donating anywhere: Education programs in Nepal and rain forest conservation in Brazil are just two of many of the Altruistic Travel programs.
Leading Hotels of the World features 5-star hotels and resorts for luxury travel fans. It's great to know that elite leisure travel can also have a positive effect on the global environment. Leading Hotel's Green Initiative makes it easy.
Related, on Suite 101:
Fairmont - A Leader in Sustainable Tourism
Luxury Ecotourism Destinations
A Resort for Eco Travel in Belize
Copyright Jennifer Miner and Suite 101. All rights reserved.
Jennifer W. Miner - Jennifer has years of travel writing experience, spoken at several national conferences, and more. See Jendeavor.com for more details.
