GREENMark by GreenTravel.ie – Eco-Friendly Business Information required for a Listing for hospitality businesses that operate Responsibly and

are not members of any GreenTravel.ie recognised sustainability or responsible programme

This form can be used by a business that is applying directly to GreenTravel.ie for the GREENMark by choosing the Option 2 route – no consultant support.

For Option 1 applicants these will be the areas that your consultant will cover and which you need to prepare documentation on to assist the process.

Your Business Name:

Type of Business:

Guidelines for completion.

This simple form is designed to enable you to write down what you are doing. If some sections are not applicable to your business just say so. We are not looking for an essay – we are really looking for the words that you would use when talking to a customer and telling them why your business is responsible.

If you are not doing something within each box it is not a negative – rather maybe you should consider doing something this, or next year, that would enhance your responsible approach and perhaps save you some money or attract new business.

The really important message we need is in the first box – Why should your business feature within GreenTravel.ie – Why/How is it Responsible – this is the section we assess closely – followed by a look at your website where we would expect a Responsible Business to have included their responsible ethos.

Option 1 Applicants - Sending your completed form in to us.

Once you feel you have completed the form send it in to us – don’t wait until it is “perfect” as one man’s average is another man’s brilliance. This information is only for us and if we feel we need more information we will simply come back to you and ask.

We will assess your application and when approved we will launch your business on GreenTravel.ie and provide you with a certificate, logo for use and a window sticker.

Option 2 Applicants – Your consultant will work with you to complete the application

www.greentravel.ie

Application for the GREENMark by GreenTravel.ie

Please give your applicable responses within the box under each section. (As this is a word document the sections will expand as you type into them)

Responsible or Sustainable. Tell us why your product/service is one that should be included within GreenTravel.ie. Your Response should enable any reader to understand how you operate your business/service responsibly (There is no minimum or maximum number of words required here) Tell us here how your business is responsible/sustainable.

Responsible/Sustainable/Environmental Plan. Businesses that are serious about sustainability will have a vision or plan that they can communicate to various stakeholders. Tell us what your Vision/Plan is. (This does not have to be a lengthy response – it should tell us what you are planning to do this year/next year) Tell us here what your plan is and where a visitor to your business will find this plan.

Website Communication. Visitors to the GreenTravel.ie website want to find out what your business is doing that is responsible & sustainable. Having a Responsible or “Green” page within your website will allow them to quickly assess what you are doing and is a vital step for any business that wishes to be recognised for their environmental actions. We will insert a link to this page from your GreenTravel.ie listing. It can also communicate important information to visitors before they arrive and after they arrive. Please provide an URL or “Hotlink” to your businesses “Green” webpage here.

Communicating with your Guests/Visitors. Tell us how you communicate your environmental practices with guests/visitors when they are on your site/service. How do you encourage them to be “green” as well. Tell us here.

www.greentravel.ie

Environmental Regulations and Legislation. Tell us if your local authority, or other state agency, has asked you to make changes to your operation to be compliant with specific local or national environmental regulations and how you have implemented those changes. (Yes/No – if Yes tell us what you have done)

Consumption Information. Every business needs to know how much they are spending/consuming on Energy, Water, Waste Disposal and Food Waste (where applicable). Tell us what your business spent/consumed in the last calendar year for each. EnergyWaterWaste

Tracking Consumption. How often do you measure your Energy, Water and Waste costs/consumptions regularly? Tell us how often you do this – daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, annually?

Energy Management. Have you taken any steps to be more energy efficient? (Where applicable) Tell us what you do.

Lighting. Are at least 75% of your light bulbs LED, CFL or T5/T8 Fluorescent? Tell us – Yes or No

Recycling – Tell us what steps you are taking to manage your recycling. Recyclables – Separate or Mixed (Cardboard, Paper, Plastic, Metal, Glass), Food Waste, Residual Waste, Hazardous Waste. Tell us what you do and what waste streams you separate.

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Waste management. What steps have you taken to reduce the waste you produce? Tell us what you do.

Water management. Have you taken any steps to be more water efficient –use less water? Tell us what you do.

Waste Water Treatment. Tell us how you treat waste water from your property – On Site system or to the local main sewer? If On Site tell us briefly how you check that the system works. Tell us what you do

Towel Re-use Programme. (Accommodation providers only) Do you have a towel re-use plan in place designed to reduce the number of towels being washed? Tell us what you do and how you train your staff and check it operates well.

Linen Re-use Programme. (Accommodation providers only) Do you have a linen re-use plan in place that is designed to ensure linen is not changed daily for stayovers? Tell us what you do and how you train your staff and check it operates well.

Staff Training/Awareness. What steps have you taken to train or create awareness within your staff to support/implement your responsible actions? Tell us what you do.

Green Purchasing. Have you taken any steps to support local producers – food, drink, services, etc.? Do you have a “Buy Irish” policy and look to source products of Irish Provenance. Tell us what you do.

www.greentravel.ie

Code of Practice. If there is a Responsible/Environmental code of practice applicable to your activity you should be implementing it. If Applicable tell us what it is and if you are applying it.

Leave no Trace. Outdoor activity providers must promote the Leave no Trace philosophy. All businesses should promote the Leave no Trace principles. Tell us how you do this and tell us if you are a member of Leave no Trace

Local Community. Tell us if/how you engage with your local community to promote and support sustainability locally. (Tidy towns, Clean Coast, Green Schools, etc…) Tell us here

Biodiversity. Tell us how your business impacts on biodiversity and how you are minimising your impact and any other activities you engage in that preserves or protects local biodiversity. Tell us here

Sustainable Organisations. If you are a member of any other organisation/association/ grouping that promotes sustainability let us know and what your involvement is. Tell us here

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Marketing Information. Complete the Marketing Information sheet so that we can enter your details within GreenTravel.ie

Any other information. If you have any other information that you feel will enhance your application please tell us here – you can include copies of any document within your application. Summarise it here.

GreenBusiness.ie – SME Efficiency and Cost Reduction Questionnaire

This questionnaire will provide you with a unique rating/% score assessing your resource efficiency level. It should be completed annually and should improve as you become more resource efficient.Please answer the questions honestly as only you will see the results. Where you are part of a Green Destination group we will aggregate the scores to see how the destination is improving.You will need to logon and register on the GreenBusiness.ie website. Logon here. And you will be required to provide your score each year to GreenTravel.ie to maintain your GREENMark.

That’s it – now save this as a file and then email it to us along with a completed application form (If we have not received this yet) and

any other documents we have asked you for or you feel will support your application. Here is a quick checklist;

- This form completed

- Marketing Information sheets completed

- Any supporting documents you wish to include

Note: All required documents can be found on our website

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www.greentravel.ie