4 02 October 2006 rotorua sustainable tourism charter bulletin Kia Ora Eldad The Rotorua Sustainable Tourism Charter is now half way through its funding agreement with the Ministry of Tourism. In the past twelve months Eldad has completed site visits to 31 Charter member businesses with 22 of those businesses having submitted their Statements of Intent detailing sustainable activities they intend to implement over the coming 12 months. Membership in the Rotorua Sustainable Tourism Charter group stands at 36 after welcoming our newest members Alpin Motel, Off Road NZ and Walking Legends and losing Waiariki Institute of Technology as a result of restructuring (but we hope to regain their membership once restructuring is complete). The Ministry of Tourism has set the Rotorua Charter group a goal of achieving 50 members by October 2007. We d love one of those members to be your business, so go on flick us a return email expressing your interest in finding out more and perhaps we ll let you in on the secret that 36 Rotorua businesses already know! I invite you to read on to find out more about Charter activities and opportunities for you to further integrate sustainable practices into your business. Kind regards Harvey James Chairman Rotorua Sustainable Tourism Charter Eldad Collins Sustainability Assessor APR Consultants Gina George Research Co-ordinator Destination Rotorua Tourism Marketing in this issue throwing in the towel simply sustainable top of the class visitor expectations of sustainability sustainable supply chains BA5 supplier charter sponsor function charter member marketing benefits charter assessment process status charter membership october 2006 consider this =========================== 26% of visitor respondents said they would always choose sustainable tourism businesses (Source: Rotorua Regional Visitor Monitor Jan-Jun 2006 ) throwing in the towel Millennium Hotel Rotorua has taken a major step to reduce the number of plastic bags it throws away each day. Instead of lining the rubbish bins in guest rooms with plastic bags, the hotel now places a single paper towel at the bottom of each bin. This has resulted in a reduction of 100-200 plastic bags going to the Rotorua landfill daily! Sustainability assessor Eldad Collins raised the problem of a high volume of plastic bags
from hotel guest rooms going into the landfill with local supplier Packaging House. After considering various options the simple paper towel solution was presented to Millennium Hotel Rotorua s General Manager Pipiana Whiston and Executive Housekeeper Diann Burgess who agreed to try out the idea as it fitted with the hotel s sustainability ethic. Diann says There were some difficulties initially in switching from plastic bags to paper towels, however the system is now working without a hitch. As a founding member of the Rotorua Sustainable Tourism Charter it s great to see Millennium Hotel Rotorua leading the way in diverting a major waste stream from the landfill. simply sustainable simply sustainable Discover the business benefits of sustainability by clicking on the Simply Sustainable model on the Ministry for the Environment website. Here you can find facts and information about building sustainable and commercially sound processes into your business. There are a number of ways viewers can use the Simply Sustainable model from browsing by subject or industry to viewing an animation of the model. Check out these five easy steps to quickly get you embracing sustainability: 1. Switch off when not in use 2. Green your office stationery 3. Recycle all that you can 4. Choose greener and safer cleaning products 5. Choose energy efficient equipment and appliances top of the class Congratulations to Rotorua Sustainable Tourism Charter member businesses Polynesian Spa and Solitaire Lodge for achieving world recognition within their respective industry sector. Readers of Britain's prestigious Conde Nast Traveller magazine have ranked Rotorua's Polynesian Spa 15th in the destination spa category of the recently announced 2006 Readers' Travel Awards. And for Solitaire Lodge accolades came by way of two major honours at the 2006 World Travel Awards, where it took out both Australasia s Leading Resort and New Zealand s Leading Resort. Click here>>> for more success stories by Rotorua Sustainable Tourism Charter member businesses. visitor expectations of sustainability www.lonelyplanet.com Well known traveller s guide 'Lonely Planet' has produced a Responsible Travel Guide to help travellers determine which tourism companies are sustainable and which are just going through the motions. Some of the Lonely Planet recommendations include asking tourism businesses the following questions:
What are the main environmental issues for the business and what are they doing about them? How does the business minimise their environmental impact? Do they have a green purchasing policy? What work do they do with the local community? Perhaps it might be worth considering taking a look at Lonely Planet s Responsible Travel Guide to better understand how visitor expectations of sustainability are being shaped and how you can prepare your business for delivering on those expectations. sustainable supply chains During Eldad s site visits with Charter businesses, many operators have expressed an interest in improving the sustainability of their supply chains. In response to that demand Eldad has developed a template letter, sustainability policy and sustainability criteria that can be customised to individual business needs and sent out to suppliers. There are two versions of the letter where one is a formal letter and the other has a more friendly approach. In both instances it notes that from now on the Charter business will not only be considering cost and function in the selection of products and services, but also environmental performance and encourages suppliers to provide a range of sustainable product choices. Download the template letters from the Charter website: Click here >>> for the FORMAL template Click here >>> for the FRIENDLY template To discuss the sustainability of your supply chain contact Eldad on DDI (07) 349 8325 or eldad.collins@apr.co.nz BA5 supplier charter sponsor function Suppliers of Charter member businesses and Rotorua Chamber of Commerce members have been invited to a Charter function that seeks to raise the profile of the Charter in the wider business community and to pitch the opportunity for sponsorship deals with the Charter group. Date: Wednesday, 25 October 2006 Time: 5.30pm 7pm Place: Millennium Hotel Rotorua, Corner Eruera & Hinemaru Streets RSVP: By 18 October 2006 to gina@rotoruanz.com So do come along to learn more about the Charter, whether you re an existing Charter member, are considering becoming a Charter member, are interested in sponsorship options or perhaps you just want to network with business colleagues, everyone is welcome. Spaces are limited to 100 complimentary tickets and are subject to confirmation. Catering costs have been generously sponsored by Millennium Hotel Rotorua. charter marketing activity
The Charter website serves a dual role where the home page is targeted at visitors desiring to participate in a sustainable visit driving them to choose Charter member businesses over other tourism operators. Supporting pages provide credibility to being a member by explaining the Charter philosophy and member obligations. www.sustainablenz.com Charter members have a stylish Charter membership plaque to display at their business. The plaques are printed on ready to hang block mounted stretched canvas (no framing required). The Charter member logo is affixed to the i-site brochure racks of members, displayed on rotoruanz.com operator listings and in their operator listings in the Rotorua Visitor Guide, Rotorua Product Directory, and Rotorua Conference and Incentive Planner. Adjacent is the 2000x850mm i-site poster on display in the i-site brochure rack area. The poster invites visitors to play a part in making Rotorua a sustainable destination through the actions they take and suggests they look for operators identified in the brochure racks as being members of the Rotorua Sustainable Tourism Charter. Advertisements have been placed in Rotorua destination guides ie. Rotorua Visitor Guide, Rotorua Product Directory, Rotorua Conference and Incentive Planner. Visitor Guide The advertisements invite visitors to play a part in making Rotorua a sustainable destination by choosing those operators that have committed to sustainable business practices. A 2000x850mm popup banner has been produced for the Charter group for use at trade and consumer shows. All Charter member businesses are welcome to borrow the banner for occasions where the Charter will receive favourable exposure to interested parties. Contact gina@rotoruanz.com for details and to book the banner. Product Directory To gain community support for the Rotorua Sustainable Tourism Charter and to embrace local residents in the sustainability chain when hosting visitors in their homes opportunities for local publicity are sought. Displayed here is the District News editorial and APR Consultants Charter branded company car. Other activities in this area include local business functions, Powerpoint presentations to local schools and quarterly media releases to media in the Bay of Plenty.
charter assessment process status There are four key actions members need to complete as part of their sustainability assessment in order to become a full member of the Rotorua Sustainable Tourism Charter. These are: 1. Complete a Preliminary Sustainability Assessment (PSA). 2. Receive a site visit from the Sustainability Assessor. 3. Receive an Assessment Report. 4. Commit to actions in an annual Statement of Intent (SOI) A reminder to those Charter members who joined the Charter before mid 2006 your Statement of Intent is now DUE Currently there are 36 Charter members of which: 22 have completed the assessment process and committed to actions in their Statements of Intent. 7 have received their Assessment Reports and are deciding which actions to include in their Statements of Intent for the October 2006-October 2007 year. 2 have had a site visit and are waiting for their assessment report. 5 are still working on their Preliminary Sustainability Assessment. charter membership october 2006 Attractions & Activities Agrodome Waikite Valley Thermal Pools Buried Village Waimangu Volcanic Valley Elite Adventures Walking Legends Hell s Gate & Wai Ora Spa Wet n Wild Rafting Company Ltd Kaitiaki Adventures Whakarewarewa The Thermal Village Kawarau Jet Rotorua Accommodation Mamaku Blue Blueberry Experience Alpin Motel NZONE The Ultimate Jump Heritage Rotorua Off Road NZ Millennium Hotel Rotorua Paradise Valley Ventures Royal Lakeside Novotel Rotorua Polynesian Spa Solitaire Lodge Rainbow Springs Ltd Sport of Kings Motel River Rats Rafting & Adventures Treks Rotorua Rotorua Duck Tours Supporting Businesses Rotorua Museum of Art and History APR Consultants Skyline Skyrides Destination Rotorua Tourism Marketing Tamaki Heritage Experiences Rotorua Regional Airport Te Puia Tourism Rotorua Travel & Information Centre Volcanic Air Safaris TravelCafe recipient details We have collected your contact details. This information is collected to enable us to keep you up to date with tourism news pertinent to the Rotorua tourism market and keep you informed of the activities of the Destination Rotorua Tourism Marketing office. We will not disclose your contact details to third parties. unsubscribe If you do not wish to receive this newsletter please reply to this email with UNSUBSCRIBE
Charter Bulletin noted in the subject line. sender details Destination Rotorua Tourism Marketing Private Bag 3007, Rotorua Phone +64 7 348 4133 Fax +64 7 349 4133 marketing@rotoruanz.com www.sustainablenz.com