Jacqueline Kuehnel has worked in the tourism industry since 1980 where she has held senior positions in areas of planning, development and operations of outbound leisure travel. Until 2004, she was Vice President of Product and Operations at Signature Vacations, Canada where she was responsible for the strategic development of tourism destinations in the Caribbean and Mexico.

In 2005 Jacqueline established JK Consulting Enterprises (JKCE) where she consults on climate change, corporate social responsibility and sustainable business strategy to a wide range of companies in and outside of the travel and tourism sector.

Jacqueline is also a regular lecturer on business and tourism at Ryerson University.

Articles by JACQUELINE

Sustainability: A Game Changer for the Hospitality and Tourism Sector

The Next Megatrend: Sustainability as a Game Changer for the Hospitality and Tourism Sector was the theme of the 2011 Barbados Hotel and Tourism Association‘s Annual General Meeting lunch held at the Hilton Barbados on June 8. The AGM lunch keynote address was given by Jacqueline Kuehnel of JK Consulting Enterprises from Toronto, Canada. Ms. Kuehnel ‘s presentation drew from a wide range of business management literature as well as hospitality and tourism trend studies that see sustainability strategy as an essential part of business competitiveness and long-term survival.

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Greenwashing in the Travel and Tourism Industry

Ever since “greenwashing” officially entered the Oxford English Dictionary in 1999, the definition of “disinformation that is disseminated by an organization so as to present an environmentally responsible public image” has an instantly recognizable term. There is no question that the ominous presence of this “bête verte” is increasingly problematic to businesses and regulators, while NGO’s and consumer protection groups navigate through a maze of hazy green claims in products and services.

Much of the greenwashing accusations or “sins”, as creatively articulated by TerraChoice’s The Sins of Greenwahsing”, have been focused on consumer household and personal use products. However, there has been no shortage of eco–criticism for the highly fragmented and mostly unregulated global travel and tourism industry.  The majority of travel businesses are small and medium size enterprises, but collectively they are energy, carbon, water and waste intensive, while mass tourism is highly disruptive to the natural environment. In an industry with  eight main sectors and approximately twenty eight subsectors, it is not difficult to make environmental claims that are light on accuracy yet can neither be easily substantiated nor discredited.  While the perpetrators may generally be well intentioned but uninformed tourism operators, large publically traded companies like EasyJet from the UK have also been reprimanded for misleading advertising.

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  • TSSS EVENT: Sport and Sustainability: A Focus on the 2015 Toronto Pan Am Games (FREE Livestream)

    Pam AM TorontoJoin TSSS on April 1st as our panel explores the power of sport to reach people and communities like nothing else can. Topics to be discussed include: Community Engagement, Sustainable Purchasing, Importance of a Clear Vision, Diversity and Inclusion, Branding and Leaving a Legacy. Learn more
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