About Us
We work for the benefit of the Green Destinations Community: destinations, representatives, and stakeholders.
About Green Destinations International
Green Destinations International leads the world’s largest community of destinations committed to sustainability, supported by more than 50 program partners around the world. Our goal is to support destinations and businesses in improving quality and sustainability. Over 600 destinations in 60 countries have already joined our programs. The operational team of Green Destinations International consists of two divisions: Green Destinations Foundation, and Green Destinations BV, a LLC also operating as Green Destinations Solutions.
Green Destinations Foundation, established in September 2016, is the world’s leading destination certification organisation: supported by regional partners and representatives worldwide, over 160 destinations in more than 25 countries have joined the Award & Certification Program. Since 2014, more than 600 destinations have successfully participated in the annual Top 100 Stories Competition, the world’s largest showcase of sustainable tourism good practices. Our Certification Program has been GSTC accredited since 2018 for delivering independent certification that follows the highest standards for sustainability reporting and assessment, and the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Our history dates back to April 2014 when Albert founded Green Destinations as a company, as a follow-up to his QualityCoast Awards program. QualityCoast was the world’s first destination standard combining criteria and indicators since 2005, and is still operated under Green Destinations. Within the company various programs were developed: the Good Travel Seal (GTS) for private sector certification, the Good Travel Guide for the promotion of certified destinations and companies, and a global Support team assisting destinations in making progress in sustainability.
Green Destinations Solutions’ advisory work is separated from the accredited destination certification to avoid any conflict of interest. However, the two divisions are working closely together in delivering training courses, communication and social media campaigns, conferences and events since 2016.
Our core values
G
Genuine
Supporting the authentic celebration of local culture and tradition.
R
Responsible & Respectful
Avoiding exploitation of people in tourism, and preventing disruptive mass tourism (overtourism).
E
Economically sustainable
Involving the local business community and enhancing local community employment.
E
Environment & Climate-friendly
Combatting the climate crisis, environmental degradation and pollution, whilst ensuring public health.
N
Nature & Scenery friendly
Protecting scenic views, landscapes, natural habitats and wildlife..
Our Statement on Peace, Universal Human Rights and Justice
Green Destinations believes that peace, universal human rights and social and environmental justice are fundamental pillars of sustainable tourism.
Violation of these values are prohibitive for tourism sustainability.
Green Destinations wishes to guarantee that all destinations and businesses that are in Green Destinations related certification and support programs respect these fundamental values.
Therefore, Green Destinations will deny, suspend or terminate any cooperation with tourism entities that are supporting, owned by or directly linked to governments who are responsible for foreign military occupation and the violation of human rights and environmental destruction.
Our Policies & Procedures
Our values are developed in the form of policies and procedures that enable us to put them into practice. These are:
Protection from Sexual Exploitation, Sexual Abuse and Harassment (SEAH)
Green Destinations is committed to creating a safe and secure environment that is free from sexual harassment and violence. Our SEAH policy outlines the measures we will take to ensure that any form of sexual harassment or violence is not accepted or tolerated. By taking a proactive stance, we aim to prevent it from escalating.
GD Policy on the Protection from Sexual Exploitation, Sexual Abuse and Harassment (SEAH) – Jan 2024/PDF