Airbnb India, Southeast Asia, Hong Kong and Taiwan general manager Amanpreet Bajaj said the home-sharing platform wanted to recognise and celebrate local tourism accommodations that incorporated sustainability practices in their daily operations.

Among the criteria for the awards are the use of green products, solid waste management techniques and conservation techniques to maintain the natural habitat ecosystem.

“These are some of the top requirements we will be looking at. The idea is to encourage them to become more sustainable with the support of Airbnb,” he says.

“Sustainable travel is indeed growing and has great potential especially in Malaysia. The government has identified sustainable tourism as one of the key growth areas, because there is plenty to offer.”

“As interstate travel is being allowed again, this can be a new lever to help build up the tourism industry again,” he said during the virtual “Rebuilding Malaysia Tourism with Sustainable Travel” panel discussion today.

According to Amanpreet, awareness has also been on the rise among both individuals and corporations. A survey conducted earlier this year showed that being closer to nature was among the attractions Malaysians looked for when choosing a travel destination.

“Some 60% of Malaysians consider environmental sustainability when choosing destinations, and this is a good time to address this issue and encourage property owners to start taking small steps towards the conservation of the environment,” he said.

Additionally, Global Sustainable Tourism Council Asia-Pacific director Mihee Kang said the collaboration between the public and private sector had to be emphasised.

“Sustainable tourism must see policies being enforced, or it will just be a document. Both the public and private sectors need to support each other,” she said.