In 2022, the Singapore Hotel Association (SHA) and GSTC Member Singapore Tourism Board (STB) announced the launch of its Hotel Sustainability Roadmap, which outlines hotels’ journey towards sustainability.
Aligned with the Singapore Green Plan 2030, the roadmap outlines specific goals and strategies for hotels to integrate sustainability into their operations. This allows the industry to support sustainable development goals, seize opportunities from the growing Green Economy, enhance business resilience, and attract new visitor segments. Through this roadmap endorsed by the Hotel Sustainability Committee (HSC), the STB and SHA envision a hotel industry that:
- integrates sustainability as a core value across the entire hotel ecosystem,
- is established as a living lab and uses sustainability to drive business competitiveness and growth,
- and is recognized as a leader in environmental sustainability in the region.
Hotel Sustainability Roadmap targets for the industry:
- By 2025 its goal is for 60% of hotel room stock to achieve hotel sustainability certification through a GSTC-Accredited Certification Body.
- For hotels to reduce emissions by 2030, to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050
As of August 2023, about a quarter of the hotel room inventory in Singapore has either obtained or embarked on efforts to get internationally recognized sustainability certification, according to Travel Weekly Asia’s news.
As at the end of 2024 Q2, there are 58 hotels that achieved accredited certification by GSTC-Accredited Certification Bodies. Several Singapore hospitality groups obtained accredited certification for all their hotels within Singapore, and are looking to extend this success to their overseas properties. This includes notable hospitality groups like Pan Pacific Hotels Group, Far East Hospitality, and Resort World at Sentosa. The Ascott Limited gained the GSTC-Committed status and aims to have 100% of its global portfolio of properties certified by a GSTC-Accredited Certification Body where applicable*.
Hotel Sustainability Roadmap – key areas of focus:
STB and SHA have highlighted four key areas of focus within hotel operations to guarantee that their sustainability initiatives lead to meaningful environmental results:
- Water Conservation (e.g., implementing smart water meters, reverse osmosis water recycling for laundry facility, water-efficient toilet fit-outs in guest rooms)
- Waste Management, Recycling, and Circular Economy (e.g., artificial intelligence (AI) powered food waste management solutions, food digestors)
- Sustainable Sourcing and Procurement (e.g., in-house farms, locally sourced produce, assessing vendors based on sustainable practices)
- Energy Conservation (e.g., district cooling systems, solar panel technology, smart energy meters, trigeneration plants)
Read more about Singapore’s Hotel Sustainability Roadmap here, and the launch video from Singapore Hotel Association here.
GSTC’s Global Sustainable Tourism Conference in Singapore
Every year, GSTC’s Global Sustainable Tourism Conference travels to a new destination to bring the latest sustainable tourism insights to stakeholders. This year, along with the strong determination of the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) towards sustainable hospitality development, the GSTC Conference will be held in Singapore. From November 13-16, 2024, join the event for a unique chance to meet industry leaders in person. Network, learn, and be inspired by the best in sustainable tourism.
The conference and pre-conference training will be held at the Equarius Hotel, which is certified against GSTC Industry Criteria for Hotels located within Resorts World Sentosa, certified against GSTC Destination Criteria. Additionally, both Sentosa and Singapore are also certified as sustainable destinations, further enhancing the credentials of the event’s setting.
More information about the Conference can be found here: https://www.gstcouncil.org/gstc2024singapore/
Learn More on Why and How to be Certified as Sustainable
Benefits of accredited certification
Businesses certified by a GSTC-Accredited Certification Body, meeting all the GSTC Criteria have the highest level of assurance and credibility available. With an accredited certification, customers and buyers are assured that the business was certified in a credibly verified procedure in a transparent, impartial, and competent manner.
Hotels that follow sustainability standards that wish to stand out with reputable certification as a sustainable hotel, should seek sustainable hotel certification by a GSTC-Accredited Certification Body.
With the GSTC-accredited certification, the hotel is eligible to be part of the GSTC Market Access Program, in which GSTC collaborates with OTAs/TMCs to promote market access for certified sustainable businesses to travelers and travel providers of hotels/accommodations. The program actively promotes certified hotels, enhancing their visibility in the market. Regular updates on certified properties are provided to OTA partners to facilitate this promotion.
* Managed and branded with more than two years of operations.
