Criteria Revision 2025: External Hearing Phase (10/10 - 10/11/2025)

2.Introduction and Explanations

Green Key is pleased to invite you to share your input on the revised global sustainability criteria — the foundation of one of the world’s leading environmental certification programme for tourism and hospitality, which all tourism businesses seeking certification from 2027 onwards must follow.

The proposed new criteria are now available for review, and this open consultation welcomes input from all — whether you are a certified establishment, National Operator, partner organisation, sustainability expert, policymaker, academic, NGO representative, or simply passionate about sustainable tourism.

Important information before starting the survey:

The updated Green Key criteria are divided into the following categories:
  1. Environmental Management
  2. Staff Involvement
  3. Guest Information
  4. Water
  5. Washing and Cleaning
  6. Waste
  7. Energy
  8. Food and Beverage
  9. Indoor Environment
  10. Green Areas
  11. Corporate Social Responsibility
  12. Green Activities / Responsible Tourism
You are welcome to only select those areas, that you are interested to give feedback on throughout the survey.

Steps for the review of the individual criteria
  1. Review Each Criterion Individually: You will be presented with each criterion one at a time.
  2. Read the Explanatory Notes: Below the main text of each criterion, you will find explanatory notes that provide additional context and details.
  3. Provide Your Suggestions: Use the comment box provided to suggest any changes or improvements to the criterion and/or its explanatory notes.
How to save the survey as a draft
You can save your progress and return to the form at any time. Simply click “Next/Save” at the bottom of the page — your answers will then be saved automatically when leaving the page (please make sure to do so every time you make changes, as otherwise, your updates will not be recorded).

To access your survey again later, just click the same link you received in the original invitation.

Please complete your review by 10th of November; 8.00am CET.

Thank you for your participation! Your feedback will help ensure that the updated criteria reflect diverse perspectives and real-world applications from across the global Green Key network and the wider sustainability community. Feedback gathered through this external hearing will directly inform the final version of the criteria, which are expected to take effect towards the end of 2026.

The Green Key Team
Your personal data (such as name, email address, organization, and country) will be collected solely for the purpose of analyzing survey responses and, if necessary, for follow-up communication related to this consultation.
All information will be processed in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (GDPR).
Your responses will remain confidential and will be used only in aggregated form.
By submitting this survey, you consent to the processing of your data for the purposes described above.
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