Two resorts in St. Lucia recently earned the Travelife Gold certification for adhering to and promoting safe and environmentally friendly principles. The Anse Chastanet and Jade Mountain resorts earned the certification from the global certifying system, for meeting guidelines in sustainability. The honor is awarded to tourist destinations throughout the world that practice safe conditions and promote green standards, and that is something important for the hospitality industry, said the resort’s executive director.
“Respecting the people, nature, and cultural aspects of St. Lucia and showing guests how it’s done at Anse Chastanet and Jade Mountain was central in achieving Travelife Gold Certification,” said Karolin Troubetzkoy.
Both retreat sites use non-toxic cleaning products, aim to reduce waste, protect nearby shores, and save energy. The pathway to getting the certification is not hard to achieve when a pro-green mindset is already ingrained in the company’s motto, said property manager Carl Hunter.
“We didn’t do an awful lot — but since I’ve been with Nick and Karolin Troubetzkoy, that’s been one of their passions,” he said. “One of the main reasons I love working for them is that they make clear of their passion for all things sustainable.”
In the age of climate change, it is extremely important more than ever to apply safe and sound procedures for the future, said Hunter.
“There’s absolutely no denying climate change and the fact that we are a coastal destination, we often think about the impact of climate change on our operations,” he added. “We have a social responsibility not only for the reduction of co2 emissions, but in order to sustain viability for tourism.”
Through their environmentally-conscious mission, the owners are also helping out the local economy. The resorts are able to prioritize St. Lucians and their livelihood, as well as creating a safe environment for them as well.
“We are the largest employer in the community and for each one person we employ, by extension we are probably touching additional people in the community,” said Hunter.
Hunter said one of the ways they continue to be considerate to their community is through implementing foolproof initiatives such as how they access water. At the Jade Mountain Resort in particular, he said a water installation eliminated the need to create another avenue to get water to the locations, reducing the need for a more difficult method.
“We rehabilitated this ancient reservoir and we installed water under the World Health Organization’s guidelines for water, and we utilize that for 100 percent of the resorts’ needs and effectively removed ourselves off grid,” said Hunter.
In addition, he said this process ensured water access to the resorts without negatively affecting the community.
“Not only does this give us a security of water and the ability to sustain ourselves, but it also removes the impact of us insisting on lifting water daily from the community,” said Hunter. “Because in order to get water to us they would have to shut off great sections of the community and otherwise it would be severe.”
