The Global Sustainable Tourism Council gave global recognition to the Costa Rican Tourism Insitute’s Certification of Sustainable Tourism (CST) program.
The Global Council for Sustainable Tourism gave Costa Rica global recognition for its ongoing efforts in the development and consolidation of sustainable tourism. Accreditation is for the Certification of Sustainable Tourism (CST) program of the Costa Rican Tourism Institute (ICT).
The main advantage of obtaining this award is the increased international credibility of the CST standard, which is aligned with the universal criteria for sustainable management, social and economic benefits for the local community, the preservation of cultural heritage, and the reduction of pollution. The Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) manages the GSTC Criteria, a global baseline standard for sustainability in travel and tourism, and acts as an international accreditation body for sustainable tourism certification.
Our country has been globally recognized as a destination that wagered on sustainable tourism as a differentiating and fundamental element for the positioning of the destination, evolving ecotourism year after year, to a more comprehensive conceptualization that promotes in tourism enterprises the rooting of ecological and environmental awareness, with tangible actions of sustainability and balance that is reflected in the communities, to generate productive chains, as well as unique and valuable experiences for tourists.
"The Global Sustainable Tourism Council is one of the most important bodies in its branch. This week, we received the great news that the ICT’s Certification of Sustainable Tourism program was granted the recognition, making it official that our technical tool meets the highest standards,” explained Virgilio Espinoza, Head of the ICT’s Department of Certifications and Social Responsibility of Tourism.
Espinoza expressed his satisfaction with the work done to obtain this international award that places the CST in a higher rank. "This recognition tells the world that Costa Rica continues to strengthen with great dedication its transversal axis of sustainability that has stood out in the world in recent years," he concluded.
Country Gains Credibility
The official GSTC letter received by ICT states: "The Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC) is pleased to report that the standard entitled Certifications and Socially Responsible Tourism of Costa Rica, CST Standard 2.0 has been fully recognized as equivalent to the full set of GSC Industry Criteria (GSTC-I)".
It further stresses that the purpose of the GSTC programs is to reward the true sustainable tourism professionals, which in turn generates confidence and credibility from consumers; allowing the CST standard to be validated as a global standard of sustainability by way of the GSTC criteria.
These criteria set standards for sustainability in travel and tourism globally, and contribute to a tourism destination being recognized as sustainable in the field of travelers, business development, international volunteer programs and serve as a starting point in the development of governmental, non-governmental and private programs to expand on the basic requirements of sustainable tourism from a holistic perspective. According to the GSTC, the key pillars of the criteria are the social, cultural and environmental impact, as well as the management of sustainability pillars that intertwine and coincide with the pillars that gave life to the standard of the Certification of Sustainable Tourism created by the ICT.
CST’s Sustainability Footprint
Created by the ICT in 1997, the CST standard is a technical tool, whose objective is to strengthen sustainable tourism activity in Costa Rica. It is a recognition of the excellent management of lodging, gastronomic, tour operating companies, theme parks, car rental companies, coastal marine operators, tour operators, thermal water and spa companies, institutions and organizations, as well as protected areas that are actively working to mitigate the impacts resulting from their operation. This voluntary certification enhances the strengthening of social, cultural, environmental, economic and development work in tourist destinations.
CST has a validity of two years and the criteria and indicators that are valued to award certification include: business management, social, cultural and economic management, environmental management and management of specific indicators according to category, the whole process is digitized to get the basic or elite level. Currently CST is comprised of approximately 400 tourist companies, which will retain their certification until January 2021, as support from ICT during Covid-19 and as long as the companies do not lower their standards.
Vicky is the co-founder of TravelDailyNews Media Network where she is the Editor-in Chief. She is also responsible for the daily operation and the financial policy. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Tourism Business Administration from the Technical University of Athens and a Master in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Wales.
She has many years of both academic and industrial experience within the travel industry. She has written/edited numerous articles in various tourism magazines.
