Green Globe awards Movenpick 'global leader' tag

Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts has been titled as a “global leader” in certified sustainable practices by Green Globe.

The certification body’s 2015 report on Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts revealed the Swiss hospitality firm has an overall average compliance score of 84%, 2.5 percentage points higher than the average of all Green Globe certified members worldwide (81.5%).

It cements Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts’ position as the leader among Green Globe certified hotel companies worldwide, with 63 of its 83 properties worldwide now Green Globe certified.

Green Globe CEO Guido Bauer said: “Green Globe has certified Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts in 19 countries worldwide. This is a tremendous accomplishment when we consider the variety of countries and cultures, as well as the different types of properties and their diverse markets.”

The Green Globe report also commended Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts for its "great passion for the development of its employees and supporting local communities”, highlighting Shine, the group’s global corporate social responsibility programme, which focuses on environment, employer and social sustainability, with an emphasis on education.

Mövenpick Hotels & Resort president and CEO Jean Gabriel Pérès said: “In Nepal we collaborate with Right4Children, offering disadvantaged young people intensive vocational and life-skills training, and subsequently offer them job opportunities as part of our Shine initiative. Around 25 students participate in this programme every year.”

Green Globe’s Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts 2015 report found the group’s top-performing hotels were all located in Germany, with Mövenpick Hotel Münster and Mövenpick Hotel Stuttgart Airport & Messe both achieving an exemplary compliance rate of 98%, followed by Mövenpick Hotel Hamburg and Mövenpick Hotel München-Airport, with 97% each.

Stand-out examples of ‘best practice’ identified by Green Globe in Europe, ranged from car-share initiatives at Mövenpick Hotel Berlin to ‘green meetings’ at Mövenpick Hotel Nürnberg-Airport where even the pens are biodegradable.

In the Middle East, the highest-scoring property was Mövenpick Resort Al Nawras Jeddah, Saudi Arabia with a 92% compliance rate, while in Africa and Asia, the top performers were Mövenpick Hotel & Casino Cairo-Media City (92%) in Egypt and Mövenpick Resort & Spa Karon Beach Phuket (86%) in Thailand respectively.

Some of the most innovative projects Green Globe highlighted include an employee-led harvesting initiative at Mövenpick Resort & Spa Dead Sea, Jordan, where each year the team harvests 2,000 kilos of oranges from the resort gardens, some of which the chefs make into marmalade that is served at breakfast; underwater clean-ups and diving restriction measures designed to preserve the marine environment at Egypt’s Mövenpick Resort El Quseir; and the introduction of a hybrid-limousine fleet and electric tuk tuks at Mövenpick Resort & Spa Karon Beach Phuket, Thailand.

“I am immensely proud of the dedication our colleagues have shown to our Green Globe commitments through pioneering sustainability practices, which are not only important to our company, but to a world where resources are increasingly scarce and many communities are underprivileged,” Pérès added.

“As we review our achievements, it is also important we rise to new challenges, striving to operate an even cleaner, greener and more sustainable business.” The aim is for all Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts properties worldwide to be Green Globe certified within two years, added Pérès.