Tourism Victoria and Vancity have partnered together to offer visitors to British Columbia’s capital city 100% Canadian made, 100% Victorian designed reusable shopping bags made from 100% recycled material.The bags will be handed out to visitors at the Visitor Centre 100% free.

This morning, the first bag was handed out along with a celebration of the artist who designed the beautiful logo on each of the bags. Kathy Guthrie, a local Victoria resident and visual artist/calligrapher was the chosen winner for her design. Kathy’s submission included this comment: “In my design I used a variety of hand drawn lettering styles and stylized drawings to depict some of the many things Victoria has to offer.  I enjoy making my art designs fun to look at and can envision happy people shopping with this design on their reusable bag!”

What makes this project even better is that even the ink is earth-friendly. Earthlimits is a small family owned Victoria business that produces earth awareness usable products. They focus on using a combination of fair labour, organic cotton and water based inks to provide top quality products that are gentle on our planet and its people. They collaborate with other small Canadian businesses to provide goods that are strictly 100% manufactured and printed in Canada.

Tourism Victoria is now contributing to the greater cause with more impact than ever demonstrating and promoting sound environmental practices. Tourism Victoria encourages visitors to use the cloth instead of plastic bags while shopping in Victoria and back at home. Furthermore, the bar has been set for local businesses to jump on board and offer their guests a reusable bag option.

The tourism industry as a whole in the Greater Victoria and Vancouver Island region are continuously raising the bar in Sustainable Travel. As locals we are all so proud of who we are and where we live. Most of us don’t even think about it anymore, we just grab our cloth shopping bags from the cupboard just as we grab our keys from the key rack on our way out to the grocery store. This routine has simply become a part of who we are.

I feel obliged to mention that I work for Tourism Victoria but that doesn’t mean that I’m any more proud of this initiative than I would be as a citizen reading the paper. We are all locals first. The vision of a sustainable city is one that takes every individual to actualize, and we really are getting there, one-step-at-a-time.

Last week at Tourism Victoria’s Annual General Meeting and Awards Ceremony held at the Inn at Laurel Point, we crowned the 2009 Environment Award winners. These awards recognize the efforts to preserve the environment for the benefit of residents and visitors alike, and for seeing the future through the eyes of tomorrow’s children. Tourism Victoria presents three Environment Awards each year at the organization’s Annual General Meeting.

Congratulations to our 2009 Environment Award Winners!

Individual: Jennifer Davies

2009 Environment Award - Individual

Jennifer Davies is a dedicated member of the community currently expanding her business – The Hair Garden Salon- due to a demand for her services. Jennifer offers an eco-friendly salon environment that focuses on using natural products that are gentle and non toxic. Natural hair dyes, makeup, skin care and even cleaning supplies are just a few things you can find at the Hair Garden. Jennifer is affiliated with such groups as The Green Collective, which offers a chance for the Vancouver Island community to choose eco-conscious products and services. She continually participates in the effort to promote environmental awareness and donates generously to several local events and charities. Jennifer is a leader in the green initiative and will continue to be a role model for business women, environmental efforts and Entrepreneurs alike!

Corporate: Maple Leaf Adventures

2009 Environment Award - Corporate

Maple Leaf Adventures is designed from inside out as an ecotourism organization: in a 360- degree view of the company, every action should have low/no impact on the environment, enhance conservation, support local communities and educate. Maple Leaf Adventures donates at least 1% of gross sales to coastal conservation – the first cruise company in the world to be part of 1% For The Planet. Canada and BC, along with the Wilderness Tourism Association(WTO), have recognized Maple Leaf as a steward of the environment. Maple Leaf donates hundreds of hours a year to foster ecotourism, including working with government on behalf of operators, serving in wilderness tourism organizations, and co-founding the Commercial Bear Viewing Association, to develop a responsible bear viewing industry and guides. Maple Leaf trips have no impact on coastal habitat. Voluntary conservation programs include bilge filtering, holding tanks, recycling, underwater noise reduction, and the ultimate fuel conservation: sailing. Maple Leaf Adventures is proving themselves as leaders in proving that ecotourism is a fun, inspiring – world-leading industry in BC – and that you can design a prosperous business while preserving the environment!

Organization: Fisherman’s Wharf Community Association

2009 Environment Award - Organization

The Fisherman’s Wharf Community Association is the official organization of the approximately 50 residents who live in the 33 float homes at Fisherman’s Wharf. They have a sincere respect and appreciation for their unique marine environment and actively work towards Environmental stewardship. The Environmental Committee has been active for 3 years in its work towards seeking an increased connection to the environment and adopting practices that promote a greener and more environmentally respectful lifestyle. The committee identifies four areas that they actively pursue their desire to have as minimal impact on the environment as possible. Through community education, lifestyle, gardening and transportation they are proving a green lifestyle is rewarding both personally and globally.

We here at Tourism Victoria are very extend our most sincere congratulations to all of the 2009 award winners. For more information on the awards and to read about the Miracle Award Honouree, you can visit www.tourismvictoria.com.

April 22 marks an International awareness campaign led by the Earth Day Network. They have a global reach with more than 1 billion people participating in Earth Day activities in some way or another.  Earth Day is the largest secular civic event on the globe and 2010 marks her 40^th birthday!

We all have an ability to participate in some way, to raise awareness and contribute to Earth Day initiatives across the globe. Our humble city takes great pride in this annual event and every year I see new initiatives and events spring into action.

One new initiative this year caught my attention because it’s such a natural partnership. The Land Conservatory of BC (TLC) is celebrating a new partnership with Adrena Line Zip Line Adventure Tours  and Five Star Whale Watching for Earth Day 2010. Both of these wilderness adventure companies will be donating proceeds from their tours on Earth Day (Thursday, April 22, 2010) to TLC’s Wild Hills and Beaches Campaign to help purchase Western Forest Products lands in the Jordan River and Sooke Hills area.

 Another new Earth Day initiative in Victoria will take place at Parkside Victoria Resort & Spa. The recently awarded hotel in both Resort Design and Site Plan Design & Utilization categories at the 2010 American Resort Development Association (ARDA) Convention and Exposition Award Gala, have a whole day of events planned to celebrate the Earth, nature and sustainability in a fun, educational and festive setting. They are inviting the Community to their Lights Out Party & Earth Day Extravaganza They are also recruiting members to join their Living Planet Community group  on World Wildlife Fund and are offering a chance to win two free nights stay at their hotel. 

There are so many events and initiatives that it would be impossible for me to tell you about all of them in this post. I did however find the following links helpful in exploring the different events taking place in Greater Victoria: Earth Walk | Royal Roads University | University of Victoria | The Bay Centre | Easter Seals Earth Day Concert | Pacific Northwest Raptors | 2010 Earth Day Taste Challenge

We are taught in life that taking responsibility for our actions is always the right thing to do. In this post I’ll use Victoria’s Inn at Laurel Point as a fine example of leadership within the tourism industry in doing just that.

Recently, one of Victoria’s finest resorts announced that they are now British Columbia’s only Carbon-Neutral Property. This is wonderful news, and not just for Victoria! Before I list a bunch of reasons why this is a huge step in the right direction, you may be wondering what exactly does this mean?

Well, after some investigative internet research I have learned that declaring oneself as Carbon-Neutral is NOT just buying one’s way out of polluting the environment, nor is it just a slick marketing tactic. It’s a commitment. In fact, it is first and foremost, the responsible way to acknowledge that there are certain environmental impacts that cannot be avoided while conducting a business.

Let’s talk about Offsetters (this is the company that the Inn at Laurel Point has partnered with in order to declare themselves as Carbon Neutral). As referenced on www.offsetters.ca, “Offsetters helps individuals and companies understand, reduce, track, and offset their climate impact – in that order”.

First, Offsetters and the Inn at Laurel Point work together to determine the property’s carbon footprint (ie: the total set of greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions caused by their business). Using an Offset Calculator of sorts, a dollar figure is then determined (in this case, 500 tonnes annually at $20 per tonne = $10,000) and the Inn at Laurel Point invests this dollar figure into Offsetters. I’d also just like to add that you can bet your bottom dollar that the number of annual visitors to the resort was considered in the process… thus every visitor to their resort is participating in this initiative at no additional cost!

In turn, Offsetters now invests these dollars into initiatives that are able to reduce the amount of GHG entering the atmosphere. (In attempt to keep my word count down, you can check out the projects right here) In essence with every project, Offsetters facilitates the feasibility and environmental and social benefit of emerging energy saving technologies. This is big stuff, really big stuff, considering one of the most globally accepted concerns is the environment!

I’d like to congratulate the Inn at Laurel Point for taking the first step on behalf of the accommodation sector in British Columbia. The transportation industry has been doing this for a while now (see Harbour Air Seaplanes) but one can only imagine the amount of extra considerations, steps, research and commitment this property has taken to get this far. I take my hat off to them in hopes that others will see the benefit beyond their bottom line!

If you are curious to see what other steps the Inn at Laurel Point has made in their commitment to environmental, economic, and social responsibilities check out www.laurelpoint.com.

Furthermore, the other day I read a neat blog entry on http://green.tourismvi.ca that discussed new proof that sustainable and green travel options are deemed important to travellers themselves. Travelling is often a time for us to nurture our soul and rejuvenate our minds. It is refreshing to see that travellers are now aware of the implications of their leisure time activities and are willing to follow this through with environmentally sound travel decisions.

Tigh-Na-Mara Seaside Spa Resort & Conference Centre in Parksville, British Columbia, has been recognized on the national stage from the Hotel Association of Canada, becoming one of only 84 hotels in British Columbia to receive the prestigious “4 Green Key” Rating.

A “4 Green Key” rating is awarded to a hotel that has shown national industry leadership and commitment to protecting the environment through wide ranging policies and practices. The Hotel has mature programs in place that involve management, employees, guests, and the public, and which have shown substantial and measurable results.

In the last 2 years, Tigh-Na-Mara has made dramatic changes in the way it conducts business- specifically ensuring all purchasing considerations, construction plans and community action plans have environmental sustainability as part of the decision process.

“Tigh-Na-Mara’s mission vision and value statements all incorporate a commitment to create exceptional guest experiences while supporting our community through sustainable practices.” says Paul Drummond, Tigh-Na-Mara Seaside Spa Resort General Manager. “We are very proud to be recognized as the only 4 Green Key Certified Property in Oceanside.”
The Resort is fully committed to greening both our business and our guest experiences, while not compromising the service our guests have come to know and expect from Tigh-Na-Mara.

A Few Examples of our Green Changes:

• Complete overhaul of kitchen dishwashing equipment to biodegradable cleaning products
• Complete switch to environmentally friendly cleaning products used by our housekeeping team
• Complete switch of laundry cleaning products to environmentally friendly, biodegradable products
• More than 70% of all collateral produced is printed on recycled paper. Several pieces were also printed using biodegradable inks.
• Cooking oil is recycled
• Kitchen waste is 80% composted

Tigh-Na-Mara Seaside Spa Resort is an all-season destination Resort offering accommodations, an award winning full service spa and three unique West Coast inspired restaurants. Tigh-Na-Mara’s Grotto Spa is the #1 spa in B.C., offering signature treatments with a focus on natural ingredients.

For more information on Tigh-Na-Mara visit tourismvictoria.com or go to www.tigh-na-mara.com