Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/236916
35 Events maltatoday, Sunday, 5 January 2014 Hotel Phoenicia awarded green credentials Hotel Phoenicia have received notification that the 70-year-old property located at the gates to Valletta has been awarded MTA's new international ECO-certification, a significant achievement for Malta's first 5-star property. The ECO certification is the national scheme for ensuring the environmental, socioeconomic, and cultural sustainability of hotels on the Maltese Islands and has been recognised by the Global Sustainable Tourism Council as fully reflecting the GSTC criteria. The Phoenicia's eco-friendly strategies have been a mission for General Manager Charles Azzopardi and his management team, and the hotel's Chief Engineer Tony Saliba has been the champion for this and previous eco-projects. Phoenicia's investment in MTA's new eco-certification process required significant effort by all hotel departments. "While they may be hidden to the eye, Hotel Phoenicia's environmental commitments are everywhere. We are doing this because we believe in sustainability and as a leading Maltese tourism entity we have to walk-the-talk, if we do not lead on this type of issue how can we expect other tourism stakeholders to take an active interest in changing their work practices? In short, green is part of our Phoenicia Brand, it's part of who we are," Charles Azzopardi said. Chief Engineer Tony Saliba says that "eco-sustainable methods have been the first choice for the Engineering Team at Phoenicia for over 20 years, whether the facility is third-party certified or not. This is evident by the small cards in the hotel's rooms that suggest guests reuse their towels coupled with energy and water-saving techniques that were employed well ahead of the current eco-curve, either for sustainability reasons or just for efficiency reasons, like saving on the power bill. In addition, Phoenicia was one of the first hotels in Malta to participate in MTA eco-programmes when they were brought to the local market a decade ago, Hotel Phoenicia have been awarded MTA's new ECOcertification and remains a "green" hotel renowned for its luxury and advanced service levels given the fit with our management philosophy around this subject." Saliba added, "sustainability measures, when applied correctly, cut overhead, and they match guest sentiment for reducing the environmental impact of their visit, even in hotels like ours known for their luxury accommodation in every sense of the word. "Some aspects of the MTA's ECO certification were pre-empted by our existing practices, we are very green and natural in our kitchens, for example, and Executive Chef Halevi has the gardeners very busy with over 5000 square metres of kitchen gardens so that fresh food arrives on every plate. Most of that food is almost 100% organic, and we have aligned all of our purchasing, both for food and beverage as well as all other inbound purchases, based on ideas like reducing the amount and type of chemicals we use, making sure that biodegradable is the main focus, and ensuring that if we use a chemical in our 7.5 acres of garden that they are not harmful to bees and that our gardeners always have the required safety equipment when mixing chemicals. The devil is in the detail, we have to be that exacting to meet the Phoenicia's brand criteria, that puts us in a good position to then look at participating in thirdparty certification programmes," Saliba said. For further information see www. phoeniciamalta.com or www.facebook.com/phoeniciahotel FIMBank supports Malta Global College Malta interns ask peers to support new Gender Red Cross Society Equality Scholarship Jason Zammit, Head of Public and Media Relations, FIMBank plc, with Paulette Fenech the Director General, Malta Red Cross Society FIMBank has announced the renewal of its financial support to the Malta Red Cross Society, which is aimed at enabling this NGO to sustain its extensive activities in Malta and Gozo. Apart from assisting Government in Disaster Preparedness and Response and Health Services, the Malta Red Cross Society, which forms part of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, is also involved in the teaching of First Aid, assisting in migrant camps, providing humanitarian aid as well as tracing services. The work of the Malta Red Cross is undertaken with the full collaboration both of Government and local authorities and agencies. Commenting on the Bank's support for the Malta Red Cross Society, FIMBank Head of Public and Media Relations Jason Zammit praised the work of the Society on the islands, stating that, "the Bank is proud to be associated with such a prestigious institution which despite being run on a voluntary basis, has managed to retain the highest standards in the provision of its services to the community". Paulette Fenech, the Director General of the Malta Red Cross Society, expressed her gratitude to FIMBank plc for its continuous support through the years, stating that "our vision is to promote humanitarian principles and values, to provide first aid coverage and be constantly well prepared in order to assist all concerned entities in case of a mass incident or national disaster. With the support of organisations such as FIMBank, we can continue to carry out this work for the benefit of society". For information about the Malta Red Cross Society, visit www.redcross.org.mt, while for information about FIMBank plc, please visit www.fimbank.com Two young interns at Global College Malta have convinced their Rector, Professor Brian Smart, that Malta is the right place to test a very new and innovative scholarship programme that focuses on a 'Women in Business' Gender Equality Scholarship which covers up to 50% of tuition fees on management courses at Global College Malta. The two bright interns, Lilly Azbaha and Claudia Goncalves, from Rotterdam University put forward to Global College Malta's management team that there should be significant opportunities for women to pursue higher education, but that due to family structure and financial priorities often these opportunities are virtually non-existent for some women, leaving many capable and talented students unable to achieve their academic or professional goals. Global College Malta is committed to provide eligible gender equality scholarship candidates, both female and male, with an opportunity to pursue their higher education at Malta's newest tertiary educational facility located at SmartCity Malta. The courses currently covered by Global College Malta's new scholarship are the flagship MBA, BA in Management and the Foundation Course in Management with English. Lilly Azbaha says that management subjects are well-suited to women's talents and leaves them better prepared to face challenges in the future, "When I came to Malta and started to do my internship at Global College Malta I noticed that a lot of applications came from male students and a few from female students. I decided to combine two problems: the glass ceiling and a lower number of female applications. The management team here have been very responsive and supportive of our ideas. I am delighted to have helped design this new scholarship to stimulate women to study at Global College Malta and to continue aiming for a high leadership position. The new scholarship will be one way to get there." Fellow intern Claudia Goncalves says she is very happy to be able to reach out to her peers through helping with the new gender equality scholarship, "Women can be smart as well, women can be creative, and women can speak with a mind of their own. But, they have to get the chance to show it. That's where this new scholarship programme kicks in, and someone who wants to be a role model encouraging gender equality in management positions and leadership roles will truly have access to the latest teaching resources and facilities here at the college in Malta. This is very exciting for us. I hope others will help us by taking this message viral, spread it through their networks and post it on Facebook and twitter feeds, that way it will reach the right people." Located at SmartCity, Global College Malta offers a sophisticated state-of the art learning environment and gives students the opportunity to study alongside and share Nina Moric Hosted by ROCS Travel and INGLOT While planning Nina Morić's trip to Malta in January, local TV presenter and producer for the popular TV show, One Night Stand, Owen Bonnici chose to utilise the services of ROCS Travel and INGLOT. Morić recently travelled to Malta to plan her future trip here in January, during which time she is expected to appear as a special guest on Owen Bonnici's TV show One Night Stand. Her appearance will air on Tuesday, 14 January 2014. During her short stay, Morić entrusted ROCS Travel with her travelling arrangements. She also made use of INGLOT's make-up services, and was assisted by some of INGLOT's best makeup, hair and nail artists. "We are thrilled to have had the hon- our to host the lovely Nina Morić," said Rachel Vella, ROCS Group Director. "It was a pleasure getting to meet her. We enjoyed the experience and are eager to learn from it so that we can pass the benefits on to all our customers. "When making arrangements for a VIP such as Morić, it is vital to offer only the very best service, and we were very satisfied with the positive results and Morić's response," continues Vella. "Given the fact that she trusted us to help her out shows just how far ROCS Travel and INGLOT have come!" Croatian-born Nina Morić made a name for herself in Italy as a model and TV presenter, and has been featured on numerous international covers of men's magazines, including Maxim. She is also well known for starring in Ricky Martin's music video for 'Livin' La Vida Loca'. The management and the teams at ROCS Travel and INGLOT would like to thank Nina Morić for placing her trust in them and look forward to being of service again in January. To find out more about ROCS Travel and INGLOT, kindly visit our offices in Floriana or Mellieħa, the INGLOT outlet in Sliema, or Perfumes&more in Sliema and Ħamrun. You can also call the ROCS Group on 2015 1515, or check out the ROCS website www.rocsgrp.com. Alternatively, email the team directly on info@rocsgrp.com for more information. You can also visit their Facebook page at ROCS Group. New tertiary teaching facility Global College Malta has introduced a new Gender Equality Sponsorship with the help of visiting interns and an outreach programme to women cross-cultural insights with people from diverse countries. In this environment students will be trained to become leaders and managers in a variety of business and IT sectors, for both global and local markets. Global College Malta is the first European College offering university degrees according to British standards at SmartCity. For more information and to check eligibility visit www.gcmalta.com, while Global College Malta's offices can be contacted by email at enquiries@gcmalta.com or by phone on 21 801252