Colònia Güell

Boosting Sustainable Tourism Through Certification

EUROPEAN GOOD PRACTICE COLLECTION 2021

NOMINATION FORM

Please send until 6^th August 2021 to (herbert.hamele@ecotrans.de / cc diego.nunez@ecotrans.de)

NOMINATING CERTIFICATE

Biosphere Certification

Contact Person:

Patricio Azcárate Díaz de Losada    padiaz@biospheretourism.com

Yolanda Bazán    ybazan@biospheretourism.com

NOMINATED BUSINESS

 Colònia Güell

Internet contact

 http://www.gaudicoloniaguell.org/

Size of business (if known)

-

Category

Visitor attraction

Country

Spain

Destination, with related protected area(s)

Name of the destination: Barcelona

Name of protected area(s) and/or major cultural heritage site(s) (if not the same name as the destination): The crypt has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2005.

Contact Person at the nominated business

Name, email: Angel Diaz adiaz@adleisure.com

OUTSTANDING CONTRIBUTIONS

according to following SDGs on Tourism4SDGs.org:

Please indicate very briefly their exemplary or innovative actions and measurable achievements (including quantified results if known)

SDG 12 - Responsible Consumption and Production

The tourism sector needs to adopt sustainable consumption and production (SCP) modes, accelerating the shift towards sustainability. Tools to monitor sustainable development impacts for tourism including for energy, water, waste, biodiversity and job creation will result in enhanced economic, social and environmental outcomes.

Exemplary or innovative actions:

 Sustainability is part of the basic concept of Colonia Güell's management and tourist value enhancement and its positioning as a cultural-tourist facility of reference. In terms of waste management, there is a specific section in the employee welcome manual. It states that the company's staff is responsible for collecting printer cartridges that have been consumed in the office and taking them to the town's green point for recycling. All cardboard derived from merchandising product boxes is recycled to the nearest cardboard container. Small recycling containers are also available at the interpretation center. On the other hand, all email signatures used by Colonia Güell show respect for the environment by reminding the recipient of the message to use paper responsibly if he/she wants to print the message.

The organization prioritizes the purchase of gift products for the interpretation center store as well as the contracting of external services such as trencadís workshops with local companies that make their own production.

The company has recycling containers inside the interpretation center so that any waste generated is sorted and recycled.

In the management of Colonia Güell everything is recycled, whether it is paper, plastic or cardboard, everything derived from the administrative activity or cardboard boxes in which the gift products sold in the store arrive. The only bottles are plastic water bottles for internal consumption, which are recycled by throwing them in the corresponding container.

SDG 13 - Climate Action

Tourism contributes to and is affected by climate change. Tourism stakeholders should play a leading role in the global response to climate change. By reducing its carbon footprint, in the transport and accommodation sector, tourism can benefit from low carbon growth and help tackle one of the most pressing challenges of our time.

Exemplary or innovative actions:

 The company has created a combined ticket for an audio-guided visit to the Colonia Güell with public transport from Barcelona, through an agreement with the public transport company: Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya. This transport is the only public transport that takes you to the Colonia Güell. The company promotes and markets this combined ticket that on the one hand minimizes the environmental impact of visitors to the Colonia by reducing the use of private cars, while facilitating a comfortable connection with the city of Barcelona.

On the other hand, the customer is always informed that the best way to get to Colonia Güell is by train by purchasing the combined ticket. The Colonia Güell promotional brochure includes information on how to get to the Colonia by public transport as well as the price of the combined ticket.

Measurable achievements: They are starting to measure carbon footprint of their activity, so they can minimize GEI emissions. As they rent their spaces for events too, they inform the event organizers in how to measure and minimize their carbon footprint too.

SDG 14 – Life below Water

Coastal and maritime tourism rely on healthy marine ecosystems. Tourism development must be a part of Integrated Coastal Zone Management in order to help conserve and preserve fragile marine ecosystems and serve as a vehicle to promote a blue economy, contributing to the sustainable use of marine resources.

Not Applicable

SDG 15 – Life on Land

Rich biodiversity and natural heritage are often the main reasons why tourists visit a destination. Tourism can play a major role if sustainably managed in fragile zones, not only in conserving and preserving biodiversity, but also in generating revenue as an alternative livelihood to local communities.

Exemplary or innovative actions:

 The staff of the company informs visitors about the guidelines for behavior in the immediate surroundings of the Colony. On the other hand, the interpretation center has a point with tourist information on the Baix Llobregat destination, where we find information on the Llobregat Delta, a network of protected areas spread over different municipalities in the Baix Llobregat region and home to a great biodiversity. They are also committed to establish the necessary contacts with the Baix Llobregat Tourism Consortium, the organization responsible for the promotion of the Baix Llobregat destination where the Colony is located as well as a great diversity of terrestrial ecosystems in order to coordinate a joint training action for the company's staff, once a year.

The activity of the company takes measures to minimize the acoustic impact, and since the main activity of the company are the guided tours in Colonia Güell, the company offers guided tours for small groups of people and in no case uses any kind of loudspeaker. Small groups allow the guide to make his explanation without having to raise his voice, thus avoiding disturbing other visitors or the inhabitants of the Colonia Güell. Also, they organize the guided tours on asphalt floor so they avoid the impact on the land caused by the development of its activity.

SDG 8 - Decent work and Economic Growth

Tourism, as services trade, is one of the top four export earners globally, currently providing one in ten jobs worldwide. Decent work opportunities in tourism, particularly for youth and women, and policies that favour better diversification through tourism value chains can enhance tourism positive socio-economic impacts.

Exemplary or innovative actions:

They prioritize the procurement of products and services from local companies in their purchasing policy, for example through suppliers of products sold in the store (magnets and bags) of the interpretation center, as well as the mosaic workshops for schoolchildren provided.

 They also have always supported the Festa Modernista, a local festival that aims to recover traditions. For example, the opening concert of the festival took place in the Crypt, and they appear on the program of the Modernist Festival as a collaborating company. They gave the spaces free of charge for the organization of this event. On the other hand, they have also provided space in the interpretation center for the presentation of books by local authors.

Moreover, the company shows flexibility in the work schedules of their employees, especially considering that some of the personnel working at the Colonia combine work and studies. They are also flexible for any type of personal matter. As the team is small, work-life balance arrangements are usually made informally and orally. They try to facilitate, as far as possible, the reconciliation with studies and personal matters, establishing with the same worker the best way to recover or compensate the hours, according to each case. There is an internal document in which each employee is followed up in order to manage this reconciliation. They are working right now on a document through which to collect in a protocolized way the measures that are already implemented, so that they can be known by all the staff of the entity. The format is that of an informative circular that can be extended to all personnel. The aim is to have a tool that promotes transparency and improves the work environment.

SDG 17 - Partnership for the Goals

Due to its cross-sectoral nature, tourism has the ability to strengthen private/public partnerships and engage multiple stakeholders – international, national, regional and local – to work together to achieve the SDGs and other common goals. Public policy and innovative financing are at the core for achieving the 2030 Agenda.

Exemplary or innovative actions:

 Colonia Güell is a member of the Tourism Consortium of Baix Llobregat who organizes training sessions for the tourism sector of different themes, among which we find training sessions on sustainability, through the Chamber of Commerce, and such. Colonia Güell attends the conferences related to sustainability.

They also try to work as much as possible with local suppliers that make a sustainable management of their activity.Given their commitment to sustainability, they are committed to create a letter of request for collaboration to suppliers to join the sustainability commitment they work with.

Link to further information about the nominated business (if available):

 http://gaudicoloniaguell.org/historia/

https://www.biospheretourism.com/es/entidad/colonia-guell/130