Pictured: Protea Hotel by Marriott Cape Town Sea Point – front entrance.

Sustainability is increasingly becoming part of how tourism businesses operate, from the way resources are managed to how staff and guests are encouraged to make more responsible choices.

Protea Hotel by Marriott Cape Town Sea Point has been awarded Green Key certification, recognising its commitment to responsible tourism and its ongoing efforts to embed sustainability across its operations. The internationally recognised certification is awarded through the Green Key programme in South Africa, operated nationally by WESSA, following the hotel’s successful completion of the programme’s certification requirements.

At an official handover ceremony, the hotel’s General Manager, Jeremy Govender, received the Green Key plaque from WESSA Senior Sustainability Manager, Tevya Visser.

“The team at Protea Hotel by Marriott Cape Town Sea Point can be proud of this achievement, which reflects a sustained commitment to making responsible tourism part of the way the hotel operates,” says Visser. “Green Key provides a practical framework for turning sustainability commitments into action, and it is encouraging to see the team embracing that responsibility across different areas of the business.”

Pictured above (left to right): Jade Elders – Human Resource Administrator, Tevya Visser – WESSA Senior Sustainability Manager; Jeremy Govender – General Manager; Siyamthanda Frans – Sales and Marketing Manager, Annalien Olifant – Groups and Conferencing Agent, Thembakazi Mangaliso – Front Office Supervisor, Oswald Gabriels – Maintenance Manager

Sustainability in everyday operations

The hotel has developed an extensive sustainability action plan to guide its environmental practices and support responsible resource use across different areas of its operations.

Energy efficiency is supported through LED lighting, with 95% of the hotel’s lights using LED technology. Water conservation measures have also been introduced in bathrooms, including aerators on shower nozzles and taps to reduce consumption without compromising the guest experience.

The hotel has implemented a waste separation and management system supported by dedicated signage and colour-coded bins, while also working to reduce unnecessary waste by avoiding single-use plastic items and cutlery.

A responsible paper-use policy encourages staff to print only when necessary, using double-sided printing and eco-friendly paper where printing is required.

Importantly, sustainability is also supported through staff engagement and training, helping employees understand the hotel’s environmental practices and apply them in their everyday responsibilities.

For Govender, the certification process is as important as the recognition itself.

“We are incredibly proud of achieving Green Key, but for us the real value is in what the process has helped us put into practice,” says Govender. “Sustainability is not something that sits separately from our hotel operations. It is reflected in the practical choices we make every day, from how we manage resources and waste to how we engage our team and encourage more responsible choices among our guests.”

Extending responsible tourism beyond the hotel

The hotel’s sustainability efforts also extend beyond its own operations through a collaboration with World of Azraah, supporting more sustainable tourism through eco-conscious transport and tour recommendations.

The partnership helps introduce guests to more responsible ways of travelling and experiencing the destination.

“This certification represents a significant milestone for our team,” adds Govender. “We hope that our journey encourages other tourism establishments to look at the practical steps they can take to make sustainability part of their own operations.”

For WESSA, Green Key is about helping businesses move from commitments to practical action.

“Sustainability is not a once-off project or something that belongs to one department. It is a way of operating, and it requires people throughout an organisation to participate,” says WESSA CEO Cindy-Lee Cloete. “As WESSA celebrates 100 years of caring for the Earth, it is particularly meaningful to see that legacy continuing through partnerships with businesses that are taking tangible steps towards a more sustainable future.”

Protea Hotel by Marriott Cape Town Sea Point is now among more than 9 000 Green Key certified establishments across more than 90 countries, reflecting the growing momentum around responsible tourism in the Western Cape.

“Green Key enables us to work with the tourism sector to move beyond good intentions and translate sustainability into practical action within everyday operations,” concludes Cloete.

For WESSA, this is ultimately what responsible tourism is about: creating practical pathways for businesses to improve how they operate, while contributing to a culture of environmental responsibility that benefits both people and the planet.

Pictured: Protea Hotel by Marriott Cape Town Sea Point – pool deck

Pictured: WESSA members, staff and partners take part in International Cleanup Day

On Saturday, 19 September, learners, volunteers and partners came together with WESSA to mark International Coastal Cleanup Day, turning a shared commitment to the environment into 90 minutes of practical action along the coast.

The beach cleanup brought together WESSA, Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, Blue Ribbon and Mertech Marine, alongside a group of learners who collected litter from the sand, pebble shoreline and rock pools. Together, they collected 91 bags of waste in just 90 minutes.

The cleanup was also part of WESSA’s centenary year, providing an opportunity to celebrate 100 years of action for nature while encouraging young people to take responsibility for the environment.

Turning responsibility into action

Opening the event, WESSA CEO Cindy-Lee Cloete reflected on what it means to reach 100 years of environmental action.

She reminded those gathered that caring for the environment matters and that protecting it is a responsibility we all share. She thanked the partners and volunteers for taking part, noting that their presence demonstrated a real commitment to the cause.

For WESSA, this sense of shared responsibility is central to its work. Cloete described the work being done today as a legacy for future generations, reminding the learners that WESSA is made up of people caring for the Earth.

She also encouraged the learners to take responsibility and, importantly, to take action.

Learning through doing

There is something powerful about environmental education that happens beyond the classroom.

On the day, learners were not simply learning about the impact of litter on coastal environments; they were actively participating in caring for a coastal space as they walked the shoreline and collected waste.

Pictured above: Learners carrying bags of collected waste along the shoreline, volunteers working across the pebble beach and dune edge, and participants clearing litter from the rock pools

The 91 bags collected in 90 minutes are a tangible reminder of both the scale of the challenge and what can be achieved when people come together around a shared purpose.

A century of caring for the Earth

Pictured: WESSA CEO, Cindy-Lee Cloete, with a young volunteer cutting the centenary cake.

The day ended on a celebratory note, with WESSA staff, partners, volunteers and learners marking the organisation’s 100th year with a centenary cake.

The celebration was a fitting reflection of WESSA’s centenary theme: People Caring for the Earth.

For 100 years, WESSA has worked to connect people with nature through education, advocacy and action. International Coastal Cleanup Day brought that legacy to life in a simple but meaningful way by bringing people together to care for a shared environment and encouraging the next generation to play their part.

The work does not end when the bags are collected.

Every cleanup is also an opportunity to learn, to build awareness and to remind ourselves that protecting the environment is a shared responsibility.

Ninety minutes of action made a visible difference.

More importantly, it gave learners an opportunity to experience what it means to care for the Earth and to recognise that meaningful environmental action starts with all of us.

Pictured: Katherine Imrie, WESSA’s Research & Monitoring Coordinator for our Coastal Programme visit to Glen Hill School.

Helping communities act against ghost fishing

On 14 August, WESSA’s Research & Monitoring Coordinator for our Coastal Programme, Katherine Imrie, visited Glen Hill School to hand over a Stop the Strangle certificate of participation, recognising the school’s involvement in the campaign.

The school has two fishing line bins where learners and members of the school community can deposit fishing lines and other fishing gear found in the area. During the visit, learners learnt more about ghost fishing and the risks posed by abandoned fishing gear to marine life.

A bag of fishing gear collected from the surrounding area helped bring the issue to life before learners took part in an interactive exercise demonstrating how marine entanglements can occur.

Building local action along the Wild Coast

Pictured above: Stronger together! Welcoming new partners to the campaign.

Between 12 and 13 August, the Coastal Programme team visited three Green Coast sites in the Mbhashe Municipality – Lubanzi, Qatywa and Cwebe.

The visits provided an opportunity to introduce local stakeholders to the Stop the Strangle campaign and hand over six fishing bins, which were received with enthusiasm.

Pictured: Out on the Wild Green Coast

Being on site also provides an important opportunity to strengthen relationships with communities and partners working in these coastal areas. These local connections are essential for supporting the environmental changes and practical actions needed to keep coastal environments healthy.

Working with municipalities towards more sustainable coastal destinations

On 4 August, the Coastal Team spent the day with colleagues from Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality (BCMM) discussing potential Blue Flag pilot and full-status sites.

The engagement provided an opportunity to explore how BCMM sites could participate in the Blue Flag Programme and potentially join the Green Coast Network in future.

Breaking the process down into practical, actionable steps helped demonstrate that participating in these programmes can be achievable while offering meaningful benefits for the municipality and its coastal destinations.

Connecting data and partnerships to tackle marine pollution

The Coastal Team is also exploring new ways to strengthen the impact of the Stop the Strangle campaign through discussions with the Global Ghost Gear Initiative (GGGI).

The discussions are focused on integrating Stop the Strangle campaign data into the GGGI database, making the information more accessible while helping to amplify the work being done to address abandoned and lost fishing gear.

The team is also continuing to build connections through the Green Coast Implementer Forum. The third forum of 2026 took place on 2 September and featured world-renowned extreme open-water swimmer Sarah Ferguson, who shared her story and the work of her NGO, Breathe Ocean Conservation, in tackling single-use plastic pollution.

Pictured: Breathe Ocean Conservation recently joined the Stop the Strangle network during the Coastal Team’s engagement in Ballito for the Surfing Pro, creating an opportunity to continue sharing knowledge and strengthening collaboration around marine pollution.

Across these activities, the Coastal Team continues to focus on practical action, local partnerships, and shared learning.

From schools collecting fishing gear to municipalities exploring sustainable coastal programmes, these engagements demonstrate how collaboration can help turn environmental challenges into opportunities for action and change.