Winners of Dubai Sustainable Tourism Awards announced

Business Bureau, Gulf Today

Dubai Sustainable Tourism (DST), an initiative of Dubai’s Department of Tourism & Commerce Marketing (Dubai Tourism), has announced the winners of the DST Awards 2019 at an industry event hosted at the InterContinental, Dubai Festival City.

The event gathered members of the travel and tourism industry from across the emirate to celebrate the achievements of hospitality establishments who are driving environmental awareness and adopting tangible measures to ensure enhanced sustainability within the tourism sector.

The fifth edition of the DST awards received more than 200 entries across 15 categories, with nine main awards targeted towards hospitality establishments, and six special awards that recognised the efforts of the individuals that truly embodied the sustainability principles of DST and created remarkable change within their organisations.

Entrants for the nine main awards spanned the city’s hotels, resorts, apartments and desert camps, while the categories of the six special awards included Best Green Team, Best Retrofit Implementation, CSR Record Holder, Green Procurement Patron, Renewable Energy Leader, and Sustainability Champion.

As well as a coveted trophy, the winners of the DST Awards will enjoy a number of benefits, including being highlighted as ‘Dubai’s Preferred Sustainable Hotel’ within publications, opportunities to partake in DST-certified trainings, and invitations to participate in thought-leadership platforms throughout the year.

Yousuf Lootah, Executive Director – Tourism Development & Investments, Dubai Tourism and Vice Chairman of Dubai Sustainable Tourism Programme said: “Guided by the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, the DST initiative underpins the foundations of sustainability best practice, supporting the industry in its pursuit of improved sustainability practices. The DST Awards are a step further in this direction, as they encourage and commend the adoption of energy conservation principles that can effectively contribute to the broader clean energy and sustainable development targets that the city has set out to achieve. We are very happy with the turnout and increase in participation from the industry in the programme and competition, as we go forward to making the hospitality sector a role model for other sectors. It is with great pleasure that I congratulate the winners and participants for the effort and results they have achieved. In addition, I urge other establishments to follow suit as next year’s event will be a milestone for the emirate as we host Expo 2020.”

The winners of the DST Awards 2019 were selected by a prestigious panel of eminent industry experts, with the adjudication process covering both strategic and operational initiatives that were benchmarked against the highest industry standards. The judging panel comprised of: Ivano Iannelli, CEO of Dubai Carbon Centre of Excellence, the Dubai-based environmental economics think-tank in partnership with United Nations and World Bank; Faisal Rashid, Director of Demand Side Management at DSCE, who leads on the energy demand management spectrum of Dubai; Ms. Laila Abdullatif, Director General of Emirates Nature-World Wildlife Fund (EWS-WWF), who leads the organisation locally and represents WWF regionally; Habiba Almarashi, Chairperson of the Emirates Environment Group (EEG), a visionary leader striving for a safer environment and a more sustainable future; and Ali Al Jassim, CEO of Etihad Energy Services, the Super ESCO in the Emirate of Dubai, which is committed to making the emirate one of the most sustainable cities globally.

 The main awards were scored based on a set of strategic and operational criteria for each establishment. The scoring mechanism was also streamlined to allow establishments to score even higher by implementing increased sustainability measures and demonstrating the improvement of their performance year on year.

Dubai’s Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (Dubai Tourism) With the ultimate vision of positioning Dubai as the world’s leading tourism destination and commercial hub, Dubai Tourism’s mission is to increase the awareness of Dubai among global audiences and to attract tourists and inward investment into the emirate. Dubai Tourism is the principal authority for the planning, supervision, development and marketing of Dubai’s tourism sector. It markets and promotes the Emirate’s commerce sector, and is responsible for the licensing and classification of all tourism services, including hotels, tour operators and travel agents. Brands and departments within the Dubai Tourism portfolio include Dubai Business Events, Dubai Calendar, and Dubai Festivals and Retail Establishment.