Green Economy – An Integral Support System for Green Human Resource Management

MN7234ES - People and organisations: principles and practices in global contexts

Introduction

 

The United Nations has declared that the entire civilization of the world today stands at a threat of already visible dire climate change. In their article on 'Metrological Day 2024,' the UN's World Metrological Organization (WMO) states that "urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts is relevant now more than ever as everyone needs to be "at the frontline of climate action." WMO Secretary-General Professor Celeste Saulo further stressed by saying that "the lives of future generations are in our hands. Our efforts today will ensure a safer, healthier world for future generations- where children thrive in harmony with nature." (WMO, 2024)

World Met Day  (Source: WMO, 2024)

 

What is a Green Economy?

The United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) defines the Green Economy as a "low carbon, resource efficient and socially inclusive" economy where "growth in employment and income is driven by public and private investment into such economic activities, infrastructure, and assets" to "allow reduced carbon emissions and pollution" and " enable enhanced energy and resource efficiency" that prevents "the loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services."

 

Green Hotels - for a much-needed sustainable future.

 

There is a rising trend among travelers to select and visit eco-friendly hotels as more and more people are becoming aware of the adverse effects of tourism on the environment. Travelers wish to reduce their carbon footprint and are likely to stay in properties that have sustainable practices. Therefore, the popularity of Green hotels is growing as many hotels rely on renewable energy sources such as solar and wind, promoting water conservation schemes, reducing waste, and recycling while using eco-friendly amenities and biodegradable products. Green practices also extend to hotels' Food and beverage departments, focusing on sourcing food locally and sustainably.

Apropos of the popular misconception that Green Hotels are budget or backpacker places, we see even high-end hotels going green in recent hotels. For example, luxury hotels in Spain are now switching to a new body drying technology introduced by a company called 'DARID' (DARID, 2021) that saves water, avoids detergents, and reduces carbon dioxide emissions from washing towels.

 

Government Support to Going Green

Globally, governments are taking initiatives to head towards sustainability by implementing green reforms in places such as Sweden, Finland, Norway, Germany, New Zealand, Iceland land, and Australia, to name a few. Examples of countries going green, closer to Sri Lanka, are countries such as India - issuing E-tourist visas on mobile applications, as confirmed by Kwatra (2023), Japan, South Korea, and Brunei. 

Singapore Green Plan 2030 (Source:SkillsFuture Singapore)

However, the two pioneers of all countries that are going green are Singapore and Bhutan. Singapore is restructuring itself on building sustainability "as a way of work, play and life through the Singapore Green Plan 2030" as per the website SkillsFuture (2022) which was unveiled in February 2021.  "Megatrends of decarbonization and electrification with energy and power sector" is at the forefront of changes in the green economy" of Singapore. (SkillsFuture, 2022)

Bhutan. Bhutan can be considered one of the finest examples, as the government, people, and most of its organizations have supported each other in a collaborative green movement. According to Weforum (2023), "Bhutan is already 72% carbon negative, meaning it absorbs more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere than it produces."

 

Bhutan UN News - Global prespective Human Stories (Source: UN News, 2022)

Bhutan levies a tourism tax on its tourists to prevent over-tourism and uses the money to improve infrastructure to preserve natural and cultural treasures. They also have paid officials patrolling the country's forests and mountain trails with a lookout for any litter tourists throw. Bhutan is investing in electric transport to reduce its dependency on fossil fuels. Limiting tourist numbers and using tax money to ensure that a destination is not degraded is an excellent effort to promote sustainability.

 

Following Bhutan's example, New Zealand 2019 introduced a tourist tax of approximately NZ$35, otherwise known as the "International Visitor Conservation and Tourism Levy" (Travelpulse, 2022). Indonesia, too, has recently imposed a $10 tax on its tourists for Bali as the island's former governor, Wayan Koster, had said, "This tax will fund initiatives to preserve Bali's environment and cultural heritage (Lonely Planet, 2024)

 

In Europe, countries like Italy, particularly 'Venice as the famed city of canals," are set on capping tourists by "June 2024" to reclaim and preserve the city's cultural heritage from mass tourism (EuroNews, 2024). Other cities with a tourist tax include Barcelona and Valencia in Spain and Paris in France.

 

Conclusion

 

We see through this study that a country's policies can impact its hotel and tourism sector and other organizations to take a step toward building a green economy. Many countries are moving towards this goal as they see the importance of preserving their sites of culture and heritage. Going Green, therefore, is a movement, and hotels must adapt this sooner or later if it fits their brand beliefs. The implementation of Green Human Resource Management within a Green economy is a propelling success factor in the long term if hotels or other organizations plan to make use of it.

References:

Brady, S. et al. (2024) Traveling to Bali? prepare to pay a tourism fee, Lonely Planet. Available at: https://www.lonelyplanet.com/news/bali-tourists-quota-system-tax (Accessed: 25 March 2024).

DARID (2021) Home, DARID. Available at: https://darid.es/en/ (Accessed: 20 March 2024).

Environment, U. (2024) Green economy, UNEP. Available at: https://www.unep.org/regions/asia-and-pacific/regional-initiatives/supporting-resource-efficiency/green-economy (Accessed: 19 March 2024).

Euronews with AP (2023) Venice puts further limits on tourists to protect the city, euronews. Available at: https://www.euronews.com/travel/2023/12/31/venice-puts-further-limits-on-tourists-to-protect-the-city (Accessed: 25 March 2024).

Guest Author (2022) Destinations Funding Sustainability Through Tourist Taxes, Travel Pulse. Available at: https://www.travelpulse.com/news/features/destinations-funding-sustainability-through-tourist-taxes (Accessed: 25 March 2024).

Kwatra, M. (2023) Green Hotels for a sustainable future - ET hospitalityworld, ETHospitalityWorld.com. Available at: https://hospitality.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/speaking-heads/green-hotels-for-a-sustainable-future/98679524#:~:text=Green%20hot (Accessed: 24 March 2024).

SkillsFuture Singapore (2022) The Green Economy Explained: Trends, Skills & Jobs You Need to Know About, My Skills Future . Available at: https://www.myskillsfuture.gov.sg/content/portal/en/career-resources/career-resources/job-skills-insights/the-green-economy-explained--trends--skills---jobs-you-need-to-k.html (Accessed: 26 March 2024).

WMO (2024) World meteorological day 2024, World Meteorological Organization. Available at: https://wmo.int/site/world-meteorological-day-2024 (Accessed: 25 March 2024).

World Economic Forum & Reuters (2023) How Bhutan aims to balance economy and environment through tourism, World Economic Forum. Available at: https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2023/09/bhutan-sustainable-tourist-destination/ (Accessed: 25 March 2024).