Grupo Piñero celebrates its first edition of the "Most Ecocentric" awards, distinguishing 7 companies in the tourism sector at Fitur 2023
- Air Canada Vacations, Baleària, Despegar, Expedia, Meliá Hotels International, Salesforce and TUI Group have been the award-winning companies, excelling in sustainability.
- These awards are part of the Group's "We Are Ecocentric" movement, through which it aims to generate a positive impact by promoting "regenerative tourism", as well as inviting other stakeholders to "bring out the ecocentric in them".
- The ceremony, hosted by Sandra Gallego, founding partner of the sustainability magazine Ethic, was attended by Isabel Piñero, Chief Sustainability Officer of the Group, and Cristina Almodóvar, renowned sculptor and designer of the award.
Madrid, January 19, 2023.- As part of the Fitur 2023 trade fair and under its own "We Are Ecocentric" movement, Grupo Piñero has presented its "Most Ecocentric" awards to 7 companies in the tourism sector with the aim of recognizing the great work they do in the field of environmental sustainability: Air Canada Vacations, Baleària, Despegar, Expedia, Meliá Hotels International, Salesforce y TUI Group. The selection process involved listening to the Group's employees, in an exercise led by the company's Sustainability Division, which sees culture and talent as two of the fundamental pillars of its success.
The ceremony, which took place at stand C03, located in Pavilion 3 of the IFEMA fairgrounds, was hosted by Sandra Gallego, founding partner of the sustainability magazine Ethic, and included the intervention of Isabel Piñero, our Group's Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO), who said a few words and presented the awards, as well as Cristina Almodóvar, renowned sculptor and designer of the awards.
Before presenting the awards, Isabel Piñero reflected on the evolution of the Group and the important role that sustainability currently plays in the business strategy: “In 2015 we started working on the implementation of a CSR model. It wasn't easy, but we can assure that our sustainability approach is now at the heart of our strategy, which is broken down into 3 main lines of action: Governance, People and the Planet”.
She also explained the aim of the "We Are Ecocentric" movement: “We wanted to elevate our commitment and channel it through this movement that conveys our strategy of environmental sustainability while also seeking to involve society by bringing out the 'ecocentric' in all of us. A movement aimed at everyone who, like us, notices and feels that this planet is also theirs.” It is in this context that Isabel Piñero highlighted the importance of the awards, with which they aim to “build alliances in favor of a transformative change in the sector, which will enable us to achieve a more sustainable, fair and egalitarian planet, facing collective challenges such as climate change and the challenges of the 2030 Agenda”.
For her part, Almodóvar explained the process of fabricating the award itself, which in turn forms part of her "Proliferations" series: “The deciduous leaves represent the cycle, clean and perfect, of the recycling of natural life. That is why this award is a leaf made of PET plastic from bottles, cut out and heat-modeled, and finally painted with the cleanliness that white gives, imitating nature in its regenerating capacity.”
Finally, Isabel Piñero thanked Teresa Pereira, Director Product Development at Air Canada Vacations; Baleària; Matias Zelaschi, VP Commercial Non Air Partners & Media Solutions at Despegar; Luis Hurtado de Mendoza, Director Strategic Accounts at Expedia; Manuel Melle, Regional VP Sales at Salesforce; and Richard Pavelka, Purchasing Manager, at TUI Group, for "being ecocentric".
In this respect, all of the companies have implemented good practices in terms of environmental sustainability: Air Canada Vacations with its Climate Action Plan; Baleària and its reduction of CO2 emissions; Despegar, which promotes and raises awareness of sustainable tourism; Expedia, which joined the Travalyst Coalition and signed the Glasgow Declaration for Climate Action in Tourism; Meliá Hotels International, recognized for its long-standing track record in integrating ESG criteria into the company; Salesforce, for driving solutions aimed at achieving carbon neutrality with 'Net Zero Cloud'; and TUI Group, for its implementation of best practices in energy efficiency and decarbonisation within the company.
“They say that we are selfish by nature. That is why we should be aware of our impact—both positive and negative—on our land, which we love to explore, enjoy and savor so much. Let's all be a little more 'ecocentric', for our own well-being and that of our loved ones. Out of pure selfishness," adds Sandra Gallego.
Spearheading "regenerative tourism" with an investment of +€6 million in 2023
Aware that its properties and tourism activities take place in natural environments and understanding the responsibility that this entails for the environment and the communities in which it operates, Grupo Piñero promotes responsible leadership aligned with the 2030 Agenda, contributing to the Sustainable Development Goals.
So much so that Grupo Piñero will invest more than €4 million under the Natural Capital strategic axis, specifically in its Integral Coastal Management Plan in all its Caribbean destinations, and an additional €2.5 million in the Energy and Climate axis, for energy control and savings in the resorts.
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