March 22, 2022
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
The EHMA sustainability prize is awarded in cooperation with Diversey to an EHMA member who successfully implemented an innovative sustainability project during the previous year.
Throughout the award’s more than 10-years history, it is evident that EHMA members have embedded sustainability deeply in their operations and culture. This year’s submitted projects demonstrated again a strong commitment to sustainable development and environmental stewardship, in conjunction with social responsibility and underpinned with strong quantitative results. All applicants showed a clear focus on teamwork, care for the staff, and care for the community in which they operate. Attention to staff training and digital communication with guests has clearly developed further during the pandemic times.
A jury comprised of Verena Radlgruber-Forstinger (EHMA 1st Vice President), Daniel Daggett (Vice President Corporate Sustainability at Diversey), and Arjan van Rheede (Senior Research Fellow in Sustainability, Hotelschool The Hague) chose this year’s winner.
All this year’s applications were compelling and deserving of the award. It was a close call. Yet, the EHMA Sustainability Award 2022 goes to Markos Tzamalis, General Manager Cretan Malia Park, Phāea Resorts, Malia, Crete.
The other selected candidates were:
Ezio A. Indiani - Hotel Principe di Savoia, Milan, Italy
Antonio Pellegrino - Vivosa Apulia Resort, Ugento, Lecce, Italy
Stratos Patsakis - Minos Beach art hotel / Bluegr Hotels and Resorts, Agios Nikolaos, Crete, Greece
Fernando Rojo - SHA Wellness Clinic, Alicante, Spain
Stephan J.A.B. Stokkermans - Grand Hotel Huis ter Duin, The Netherlands.
The Cretan Malia Park, this year’s winner, employs local workers wherever possible, and supports them with many different initiatives. The unique Phāea Farmers Program is designed to support resort staff who also farm their land, for example during the low season. Through collaborations with expert agronomists, these farmers are trained in sustainable & organic farming methods and sustainable land use. The program is creating more value and quality production and the resort can source the highest quality local produce for use in the kitchens while providing guest food experiences that are fresh, nutritional, and environmentally healthy.
About EHMA
EHMA - European Hotel Managers Association was founded in Rome in 1974 by some executives of the hotel industry of undisputed professional ethics with the objective to maintain and increase the image of the hotel heritage. It is made up of top-level hotel general managers who constantly strive to improve their and their staff’s professionalism in luxury hospitality in order to maintain, perfect and innovate services offered to their customers. Currently, the Association has nearly 400 members representing 23 European countries of which about 300 are General Managers of luxury hotels. In figures, this represents around 300 hotels, 85,000 rooms, and 65,000 employees.