Ecole Travel receives Elite Level of Tourism Sustainability Certification

Ecole Travel became one of the first travel agencies in the country to receive the Elite level of Tourism Sustainability Certification (CST), that is, the highest rating that a company can obtain, after change of the standard to CST 2.0.

This certification was given by the Costa Rican Tourism Institute (ICT), after analyzing, evaluating and validating the voluntary actions in sustainability of Ecole Travel. The CST 2.0 is a technical standard that seeks to strengthen and recognize the management of companies in the tourism sector at the organizational, social, cultural, environmental and economic level. But, in addition, it evaluates the continuous improvement of the different procedures and the external impact that the company makes at the level of destinations and communities.

Thanks to the actions implemented, since 2017, the company has managed to reduce by 41% the consumption of electrical energy and by 38% the consumption of water in its offices. During 2018 and 2019 the company has allocated 3143-man hours in internal training, external training, and professional and technical courses of its employees. Additionally, through its Ecolina Educational Program, it has trained 290 entrepreneurs and community leaders in Turrialba, Monteverde, La Fortuna, San José and Samara.

“This certification is a great recognition of the effort we have been making constantly to validate our environmental and social commitments, and give greater transparency and credibility of our actions to our public of interest. Looking for continuous improvement to bring our business management closer to sustainability, benefiting the communities and tourist destinations in which we work”, says Astrid Cremers, General Director of Ecole Travel.

As part of this whole process, Ecole Travel developed a sustainability management system that allows to establish objectives, actions and goals that can be measured over time through indicators, in order to know the impact of the work that is carried out and the improvement areas to continue contributing to the sustainable development of the tourism sector and the country.