Pacific Tourism Organisation Encourages In-house Sustainability Initiatives

The Pacific Tourism Organisation (SPTO), as an advocate for sustainable tourism in the region, has voted in its 2023 Green Committee members who will drive the organisation’s Corporate Sustainability Programme this year.

Aligned to Goal 4 (Healthy Islands and Oceans) of the Pacific Sustainable Tourism Policy Framework and guided by the SPTO Corporate Sustainability Policy, the Green Committee will facilitate the integration of sustainability practices into the organisation’s work culture.

In encouraging staff engagement and ownership, the Committee, comprising representatives from each of the five divisions, plans to rotate its leadership every quarter.  This year will also see the Green Committee taking on the monitoring and reporting role, completing a full year of piloting, a process led by the Division of Sustainable Tourism.

The Committee will engage Corporate Social Responsibility specialists in the first quarter to share their experiences and learnings, particularly in developing monitoring systems, fostering buy-in and inspiring behavioural change.

An internal audit of the organisation’s progress since the introduction of the CSP is also planned to verify the baseline data for the initiative.  This will include utility usage (energy consumption, the fuel consumption of the SPTO vehicle, printing usage, and staff engagement in the past CSP activities.

SPTO CEO, Christopher Cocker, noted the importance of these initiatives given SPTO’s role as the driver of regional sustainable tourism development.

“With the PSTPF implementation beginning to gain momentum, we need to be leading by example, beginning in our backyard so to speak. It is important for SPTO to fully embrace sustainable practices so that we can confidently support our membership and stakeholders with their efforts”, he said.

The 2023 committee members are Lusia Matairakula (Chairperson), Arieta Kaisevusevu (Secretary), Muni Krishneel Achari, Atama Tamanilo, and Josese Ragigia.

This year’s programme will close with a Sustainability Champion Award at the end of the year.