Weeva Sustainability Management Standard Achieves Prestigious GSTC-Recognized Status

Tuesday, March 12, 2024

The Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC®) is excited to announce that the ‘Weeva Sustainability Management Standard‘ version 1, issued in January 2024, has attained GSTC-Recognized Standard status. This achievement signifies its equivalence to the GSTC Industry Criteria.

Weeva, a SaaS platform, empowers tourism enterprises to embrace measurable and comprehensive sustainability practices, enhancing operational efficiency and fostering resilience while generating positive outcomes for both people and the planet. With a focus on 18 parameters spanning Conservation, Culture, Community, and Commerce, Weeva equips accommodation providers with a suite of digital tools, educational resources, analytics, and reporting capabilities to monitor, manage, enhance, and disclose their sustainability efforts.

The GSTC-Recognized status validates the standard itself, confirming that it aligns with the GSTC Criteria for sustainable tourism after rigorous review by GSTC technical experts and the GSTC Assurance Panel. This recognition underscores adherence to the four pillars of the GSTC Criteria: Sustainable Management, Socioeconomic, Cultural, and Environmental principles.

It’s important to note that GSTC Recognition of Standards pertains solely to the standard’s content and doesn’t encompass certification processes or accreditation. Certification involves a third-party audit to assess conformity to a standard, while accreditation ensures that certification bodies operate in accordance with international standards. The scope of the Weeva standard encompasses hotels and other accommodation providers worldwide, and its GSTC Recognition remains valid until updates are made to either the standard or the GSTC Industry Criteria.

“We’re so excited to have achieved this recognition from the GSTC. Our team of experts has worked tirelessly over many months to ensure that our sustainability management system, including all our supporting best-practice educational guides, tools and reporting for continuous improvement, meet the incredibly high standards and benchmarks set by the GSTC.” says Julie Cheetham, Managing Director and Co-founder of Weeva. 

“We congratulate Weeva for embracing the Four Pillars of the GSTC Criteria, which entails adopting a holistic perspective on sustainability; going beyond just environmental factors, and including the deep impact on communities, a broad spectrum of social and cultural dimensions,  and the development of effective management to ensure continual progress,” says Randy Durband, CEO of GSTC.

Currently, 15 destination standards, 20 tour operator standards, 44 hotel standards, and 5 systems have attained GSTC-Recognized status, providing market assurance of their alignment with international norms. However, GSTC Recognition doesn’t guarantee the reliability of certification processes; it signifies equivalence of standards only. Standard owners are encouraged to pursue accreditation to ensure adherence to international best practices, transparency, and rigor in their certification processes.

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