Cigarettes are harmful to the environment and the smoke themselves as well as who inhale the second-hand smoke. The smoke emitted while smoking lead to the A-group cancer-induced substance, or the most dangerous one and it is also most dangerous toxic created with in the close environment like building. Moreover, cigarettes also cause losses to lives and assets of Thai people. More important, cigarettes are also the major cause of various diseases, which lead to death of Thai people by more than 52,000 persons per year. [Information Center of Action on Smoking and Health Foundation, 2006]


    Smoking in public place danger to not only the smoker but also people who live in near areas. It has been direct effect to business specially tourism business. Tourists stay in the hotel, spend the money for food, service, fresh air and clean condition accommodation and relaxing. For fresh air and clean condition accommodation, Green Leaf Foundation launched the Smoke-Free Hotel Project to upgrade and improve standard of tourism business and hotel by avoiding and reducing smoke in the hotel to take care hotel guests and hotel staffs. Guests of the participating hotel choose non-smoking room. In addition it also helps the hotel to reduce operation expense.

     Throughout times, the Green Leaf Foundation has continuously developed and implemented the activities until we have moved forward and reach the transition period with the idea of “Health Promotion hotel” which is continuous project from “Smoke-Free Hotel Program”. The main idea of this campaign is to promote hotel that are still not member of the Smoke-Free Hotel to join the program and be a part of the smoke-free accommodation. Once those hotels have become Smoke-Free Hotel for some period, they will become the Health Promotion Hotel by adding health and environmentally friendly program such as climate friendly menu, health promotion packages, health promotion spa. These programs help the hotel to become more competitiveness for hotel guests, preserving environment and promote healthy tourism.
The objective of Health Promotion Hotel are described as followed
 
 
Objectives
1.
To promote the significance of Smoke free Hotel and Health Promotion Hotel to be well known in tourism industry
2.
To create awareness, understanding, and responsibility in promoting a business healthy environment
3.
To motivate the tourism business to develop its service process toward health promotion
4.
To create momentum for Smoke free Hotels and Health Concerned Hotels to become Heath Promotion Hotels
5.
To promote and enhance roles of hotel developers, hotel employees, hotel customers, material and service suppliers, and community members to develop their ability to collaboratively help conserving environment and health promotion.
 
 
 
Benefits
1.
The honoraries of Smoke-Free hotels and Health Promotion hotels are recognized from other country by promoting in hotel directory.
2.
Hotel will not effort any expense for Smoke-free hotel and Health Promotion hotel
3.
People health and saving environment are supported by Health promotion hotel campaign
4.
Hotel gets the stronger health employees and proud in their business
5.
The Tourists are interested in Smoke-Free Hotel and Health Promotion hotel by advertisement from various media: website, document, Poster, etc.
 
 
 
Activities of Health Promotion Hotel Program
    Health Promotion Hotel Program uses a practical approach providing operational directions that respond to health promotion in tourism. The Program consists of activities which promote health and conserve environment which are as follows:
 
1. Smoke Free Hotel
    Activities will be organized to reduce smoking in hotels and to promote health of their guests, suppliers, and including their employees. The activities will aim to smoke free and to have those smokers be more responsible for their society and the non smokers will no longer tolerate with the second-hand smoke.
 
2. Climate Friendly Menu
    Menus which are climate friendly by emphasizing on foods and drink which are cooked and served in the hotels that are good for the guests’ health. The guests will participate in conserving the environment and will not be part of an increase of global warming condition. Consumption of meat will be reduced or completely cut down because the emission of greenhouse gasses starts from feeding to cooking those animals. The recipes will use more of local and seasonal vegetables, fruits, and herbs which are organically grown that are free from pesticide and useless water and transportation.
 
3. Green Spa – Health Promotion Spa
    Hotel and spa businesses are always together. The spa development can be energy conservative and health promotion. The spa products should be natural degradable, free from chemical mixtures, and packaged by environmentally friendly materials, which are perfectly blended with nature.

    The same practices also include in spa food and drink services, welcome drinks and refreshment. The most important element is to think carefully of the origins or sources of raw materials, production process which should still maintain their natural and nutritional substance. Those products should also embody the uniqueness of Thai tradition and culture which could be strong selling points for the spa.
 
4. Climate Friendly Meeting
    Hotel functions are known to consume a great deal of materials and resources. The hotel should always keep in mind of how to arrange a function which is climate friendly such as set up meeting rooms without stationary or serving glasses of water on the table but leaving the glasses empty upside down with a bottle of water at its side. The following practices should be considered; reduction of materials in theme set up and exhibitions, not using style foam for backdrops, avoid using cut flowers because they are not recyclable. If a wedding couple uses flowers to decorate the rooms, they will be the loving couple who build up waste problem to the world tremendously.
 
5. Health Promotion Fitness and Outdoor Activities
    Fitness is one of the activities which directly help promoting good health. The hotels should organize group fitness or for individuals who need weight control or muscle build up. Fitness facility and activities can be done while conserving energy and resources such as consuming more of natural light, using plants as green insulation to reduce internal heat, and increase clean air to those who love their health.
 
6. Green Hotel Engineer
    Engineering team is considered as one of the most important team to help saving expensive energy and reducing emission of greenhouse gasses which is a major cause of global warming. The Green Leaf Foundation has strongly concerned about the global warming, considers that the Engineering Team can play very important role in this, and therefore establishes the Climate Friendly Engineer.
 
7. Health Promotion Package
    Tourism can be activity which promotes health. Health Tours are therefore required a very thorough organization of activities which starts from travelling plan, selection of transportation, traveling routes, fuels, food, amenities such as swimming pools, spas or fitness centers, even the accommodation which must be environmentally friendly. Once everything is well organized, it could be one of rewarding truly health tours.
 
8. Climate Friendly Transportation
    Climate Friendly Transportation can be one of interesting activities which is driven within the Health Promotion Hotel Program. The activities include car pooling whenever if possible for both hotel’s guests and employees, promoting use of alternative energy rewarding by offering discounted room rate or other services. Especially those guests who use bicycles as their transportation should be well rewarded.
 
9. Climate Friendly Hotel
    Tourism activities are one of causes of emission of greenhouse gasses to the atmosphere and of global warming which affect changes to the humanity and the earth. They result to the melting of rivers of ice and polar ice, epidemic of deadly diseases, unpredictable of seasonal climate, including heavy rains causing mud slides and floods. Those directly affect the tourism industry and hotel business which result to cancellation of travels and hotel reservations which lead to more domestic travelling within their own countries.
 
Next time you are looking for the Health Promotion Hotel and Smoke-Free Hotel symbol, do find:
 
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