What is sustainable development?
Sustainable development has become a way of thinking and living aimed at satisfying current needs without negatively affecting future generations. It also requires our awareness of how our actions affect the environment and our surrounding communities. This means that the development of a country cannot be based on the uncontrolled exploitation of its natural, cultural or social resources in order to meet the basic needs of the people since such resources are the only platform on which future generations will be able to meet their needs. Education is a key factor for the success of a life style based on sustainable development.
What is CST?
The Certificate of Sustainable Tourism –CST-- is a program of the Costa Rican Institute of Tourism (CIT), which is designed to categorize and differentiate tourist businesses according to the degree to which they meet a standard of sustainable development relative to the utilization of natural , cultural and social resources which are based on the following four factors:
Physical-biological environment
Evaluation of the interaction between the business and the environment with special attention to the implementation of policies and programs related to sustainable development and protection of the environment.
Physical plant
Evaluation of the business’s practices relative to the handling of waste materials and the utilization of technologies to save electricity and water.
Clientele
Evaluation of what management does to invite its clientele’s participation in the implementation of the sustainable development policies of the company.
Socioeconomic environment
Evaluation of the identification and interaction of the company with surrounding communities. This section of the evaluation may include, for example, an analysis of how tourist companies respond to the growth and development of the region by creating employment or other community benefits.
Hotel Bougainvillea was granted the Certificate of Sustainable Development because of its collaboration, especially with the community, relative to the awareness of the importance of making an adequate use of the presently available but limited natural resources.
For more information on this program, please visit www.turismo-sostenible.co.cr
Our commitment: What can we do?
Having a continued awareness of environmental problems and of the role that citizens, especially private businesses, must play to solve them, Hotel Bougainvillea has been working diligently toward environmental sustainability.
As a recipient of the Certificate of Sustainable Development granted by the Costa Rican Institute of Tourism, a program of the transformation of energy sources and social attitudes has been implemented which reflect our philosophy.
Our sustainable development policies
- Utilizing of natural resources in the best possible manner
- Honoring the socio-cultural authenticity of the communities
- Engaging in economic activities that are long-term viable and provide fairly distributed socioeconomic benefits to everyone who participate in the hotel activities. Such benefits include stable employment opportunities, as well as social benefits and services for the surrounding communities, thus contributing to the reduction of poverty.
- Creating the Bougainvillea Foundation to carry out actions intended to reduce school dropout and to offer better learning experiences in support of the programs of the Ministry of Public Education.
- Following up on the activities relative to sustainable development as required by the Certificate of Sustainable Tourism.
- Communicating relevant information such as rules and regulations related to sustainable development to different groups. .
Sustainable Practices
At Hotel Bougainvillea, the conservation of natural resources has allowed us to reduce as much as possible the impact of the business operations on the environment. Our physical plant has gone through important changes in order to fully meet our commitment to sustainable development.
Listed below are some of the practices that we implement:
- Composting part of the organic waste from the kitchen and the restaurant.
- Informing and training the hotel personnel regarding gathering and recycling glass, paper, cardboard, aluminum, and other materials. This effort includes the separation of such materials in our gathering center, as well as working in cooperation with the recycling program of the municipality of Santo Domingo de Heredia and the ADOGA Association (Asociación Domingueña de Gestión Ambiental), a Santo Domingo association devoted to the environmental matters.
- Sending organic waste materials to a pig farm to be used as feed for the pigs.
- Purchasing products in bulk to reduce waste.
- Utilizing biodegradable materials for washing and cleaning.
- Using soap dispensers in the bathroom in order to reduce waste.
- Using natural fertilizers from the compost area for the maintenance of the gardens instead of agrochemical products such as pesticides, herbicides, and fungicides.
- Using sheets of paper on both sides and shredding paper when it is not used anymore.
- Using recycled paper in the sales areas.
- Implementing an energy-saving program that includes efficiency lighting, electrical panels that balance current surges, and solar panels to heat the water in the swimming pool.
- Using damaged towels as rags to clean floors.
- Replacing laundry plastic bags with cloth bags and not depositing plastic bags in trash cans.
- Disposing of technology-related materials with the assistance of professional companies that are specifically devoted to such tasks.
- Implementing a program of reforestation of green areas on a farm located in Sarapiquí.
- Implementing a non-smoking policy for the majority of the guest rooms and common areas.
- Providing support to local artists and companies in all areas of the hotel including the restaurant and the souvenir shop.
- Urging our guests to save water and energy by reusing towels and sheets and turning off lights when not needed.
- Informing our guests about the natural attractions of Costa Rica and how to act when visiting them for their protection and conservation.
Activities with the Community
We firmly believe that business enterprises and society are interdependent and that they should participate in achieving common goals relative to sustainable development. For this reason, Hotel Bougainvillea has established connections intended to improve the quality of life of the surrounding communities by contributing to the well-being of their people.
As a result of our social commitment, we presently employ 110 people, 80% of whom are from nearby communities such as Santo Domingo, Santo Tomás, Heredia and the surrounding areas. Most of these employees have been working for the Hotel for many years.
As evidence of our social commitment we can point out that Hotel Bougainvillea is the main sponsor of Fundación Debra de Costa Rica, a non-profit organization devoted to improve the quality of life of children who suffer from Epidermolisis Bulosa (EB). In addition, the van der Wielen Pastel family created the Bougainvillea Foundation on April 11, 2008 in order to facilitate the coordination of all the social responsibilities of Hotel Bougainvillea. Its goal is to promote and support the education and the social assistance of children and young adults of limited resources. They are given the opportunity to engage in academic and technical studies leading to the improvement of their own and their families’ socio-economic conditions.
Every year, since its creation, the Bougainvillea Foundation has been granting scholarships to 50 primary and high school students from the province of Heredia.
On September 30th 2010 the Ministry of Finance authorized this foundation to accept donations and made such donations deductible from income as per regulation # ATH-415-10.
Thanks to our financial support, institutions such as the Santo Tomás Public School and the Cristóbal Colón School have been able to add classrooms and improve their buildings. It is important to point out that both schools are recipients of the Bandera Azul (Blue Flag) ecological award.
Additionally, we donate beddings and other items to Hogar Casa de Pan in Cartago and to Hogar María in Santo Domingo de Heredia. Such items are no longer being used at the hotel, but they are in good condition.
Memberships
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