Royal Djurgården is presented the Green Destinations Platinum Award

Royal Djurgården is, together with Slovenia’s capital Ljubljana, one of the two first metropolitan destinations in the world to receive the sustainability award Green Destinations Platinum Award. The sustainability work done is awarded the highest level of Platinum as Royal Djurgården fulfil 94 percent of approximately 100 sustainability criteria based on criteria set by the Global Sustainable Tourism Council, GSTC.

– “Being an important part of the vibrant Swedish capital of Stockholm, Royal Djurgården offer nature, culture, recreation, and entertainment to over 15 million visitors every year. We want to lead the way for a more sustainable tourism and a sustainable Stockholm. Therefore, we are very proud to be one of the first metropolitan destinations in the world to have received this award”, says Camilla Zedendahl, CEO of Royal Djurgården Society which spearheads the work.

The Green Destinations Award is presented to destinations that successfully work with sustainability issues and meet a wide range of criteria in sustainable management, animals and nature, environment and climate, culture and tradition, social sustainability, and hospitality. The criteria are based on the 17 sustainability goals that the UN has set within the framework of Agenda 2030.

In the independent review, the work Royal Djurgården has done within sustainability issues in all GSTC topics in the last six years is highlighted as “a lighthouse for sustainable destinations worldwide where a destination included in a capital city can focus on all necessary issues in a structured way.”

The sustainability work at Royal Djurgården is driven by a passion to connect the Swedish cultural heritage with future ambitions for a sustainable city and a sustainable tourism industry. Royal Djurgården’s work is done in broad cooperation within the destination as well as with Visit Stockholm and Visit Sweden. The work is guided by long-term goals within four focus areas: fossil-free and traffic-smart, sustainable food culture, being open, accessible, and welcoming and to be an ever-ongoing world exhibition for sustainability.

– “The Green Destinations Platinum Award given to Royal Djurgården in Stockholm is a fantastic acknowledgment on the Swedish determination to reach the vision of Sweden being the world’s most sustainable and attractive destination built on innovation”, says Susanne Andersson CEO of Sweden’s Marketing Company, Visit Sweden.

Facts about the Green Destinations Award
The award is given by Green Destinations, who are accredited by the Global Sustainable Tourism Council for the certification of sustainable destinations based on the UN’s sustainability goals. The award will be presented at the Green Destinations 2022 Future of Tourism Summit in Athens on September 27. There are four different levels of the award – bronze, silver, gold and platinum – depending on what percentage of the Global Sustainable Tourism Council‘s sustainability criteria the destination meets.