Ewald Biemans, owner of Bucuti & Tara Beach Resorts in Aruba, has earned the title of “Green Hotelier of the Year” in Caribbean Journal’s 2014 Caribbean Travel Awards. This award recognizes Biemans for his leadership in eco-friendly practices and sustainability, which he has been committed to since opening Bucuti in 1987.
As leader of the resort’s green team, Biemans has been committed to playing an active role in the local community and taking leadership whenever possible. This past summer, he led a session aptly named “Boutique Resorts: Innovations and Eco Certifications at The Caribbean Symposium for Innovators in Coastal Tourism” in Grenada. Also this past summer, the resort took the pledge to be a part of the Water Sense H2Otel Challenge. Water Sense is a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) partnership program designed to help save water for future generations. Bucuti is the first and so far only resort outside of North America that has taken this initiative.
Biemans has led the resort to earning the global recognition of more than two dozen environmental awards and certifications, including the Highest Achievement Award as the top-performing sustainable travel and tourism business in the Caribbean by Green Globe and ISLANDS’ top 100 worldwide sustainable organizations. He has been honored on numerous occasions both locally and internationally for his environmental preservation work, including the International Hotel & Restaurant Association’s 2004 Environmental Award (worldwide) for “Innovation in Environmental Best Practices.” Under his guidance, Bucuti has been able to achieve 15 consecutive years of Green Globe Certification and was the first hotel in the Americas to earn the highly coveted ISO 14001 environmental certification every year since 2003. Biemans continues to raise the bar as the resort is currently working to obtain its fourth green certification, LEED.
For more information about Bucuti & Tara Beach Resorts, please visit www.bucuti.com or call 1-888-4-BUCUTI.
