With a focus on sustainable development
“We want the Åsnen area to develop in a balanced and long-term sustainable way. The development should contribute to Åsnen being a wonderful place to visit and to live for future generations. Our guests should be met with both delightful activities and calm, restorative experiences.”
Karin Nilsson, Destination manager Destination Åsnen
OUR VISION
Destination Åsnen’s vision, our guiding star in our work, has been developed together with entrepreneurs, residents, and municipal representatives in the area. Together, we have decided what we want Åsnen to represent!”
A PURPOSEFUL EFFORT
Since 2019, Destination Åsnen has been working with Green Destinations and has been part of their Award program. In 2022, they were awarded the Platinum Award, the highest recognition in the program. This is proof that they meet 9.0 or more out of 10 possible points when evaluating about 100 sustainability aspects of the destination. At the latest revision in 2024, Destination Åsnen scored 9.3.
This purposeful effort has also led to Åsnen being featured on an international website, The Good Travel Guide, which caters to people who want to travel to places where there is an active commitment to sustainability.”
E-biking around Åsnen
“The Åsnen area has also been placed on a Top 100 list of inspiring sustainability initiatives on four occasions. The most recent activity that put Åsnen on the Top 100 list was an e-bike project. The project was very successful as it helped reduce CO2 emissions, decreased traffic on rural roads to the benefit of residents, and contributed to the local economy through the involvement of businesses.”
Sustainability always on
All development that occurs at the destination level is always reflected against sustainability aspects to ensure that long-term development occurs in a respectful and balanced way. This means that various initiatives in the area involve participation from the destination’s stakeholders, including public, commercial, and nonprofit entities.
This work is also reflected in Destination Åsnen’s communication on their website and in social media channels. Here, visitors can, for example, get tips on how to contribute to the site’s sustainability as well as information about special rules that apply in the area to protect nature and wildlife.”
Green Destinations
Green Destinations is a global organization created in the Netherlands to support sustainable destinations, their businesses and their communities. They evaluate a destination’s sustainability performance, nurture it through virtual training modules, coaching programs, and support toolkits, and offer global recognition for accomplishing the ascertained benchmarks.
The Green Destinations Top 100 Stories is an annual competition that collects and celebrates initiatives from destinations globally, inspiring responsible tourism leadership.
Green Destinations is a GSTC-accredited certification body.
GLOBAL SUSTAINABLE TOURISM COUNCIL
The Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC®). GSTC establishes and manages global standards for sustainable travel and tourism, known as the GSTC Criteria. They are the result of a worldwide effort to develop a common language about sustainability in tourism. They are arranged in four pillars: Sustainable management; Socioeconomic impacts; Cultural impacts; and Environmental impacts. Since tourism destinations each have their own culture, environment, customs, and laws, the Criteria are designed to be adapted to local conditions and supplemented by additional criteria for the specific location and activity.
