Booking.com has joined forces with UNWTO to launch a new series of free online courses designed to support accommodations on their journey to operate more sustainably.
Geared towards accommodation providers globally, but accessible to the general public as well, a pilot version of the first course, which is focused on community engagement, is now available online. After this initial optimisation period, all four courses will be rolled out and available via the Tourism Online Academy (TOA), managed by UNWTO and IE University.
The four online courses form part of a larger initiative to raise awareness for accommodations on why adopting more sustainable practices is beneficial for their business, guests, environment and local community. Each course will provide practical knowledge around sustainability for accommodations, and will focus on a different topic – local community engagement, energy usage and greenhouse gases, food management, and water management.
The modules also share actionable recommendations that accommodation providers can immediately start integrating into their practices, ranging from how to calculate a property’s energy consumption and reduce its emissions to best practices for community engagement.
The series is led by respected subject-matter experts and academics, and Booking.com accommodation partners are also included in the modules as a way of sharing practical success stories from their own individual sustainability journeys.
Danielle D’Silva, head of sustainability, Booking.com, shared: “Supporting partners, and the wider industry, to integrate more sustainability practices into their operations is a core component of our mission to make it easier for everyone to experience the world. By increasing the supply of more sustainable accommodation options, we are also enabling travelers to make more mindful travel choices. This ultimately benefits the places we visit, the people who live there and the planet.”
“Education and skills development are the foundations for building a more sustainable tourism sector,” added UNWTO executive director Natalia Bayona.
