Sustainable businesses

Jungfrau Region

• The Interhome Group supports a bee project in Austria and has leased 100,000 m2 of flowering meadows for bees for two years. Instead of potatoes or vegetables, flowering meadows are planted here to attract all kinds of bees and provide them with their optimal plants. The meadows are left to nature. In addition, Interhome customers worldwide can completely offset their stay in the holiday flat or holiday home. For this purpose, Interhome works together with "myclimate", the money flows completely into the M climate fund. Interhome is also in the process of classifying the holiday flats according to sustainability. However, this will take some time.

Haslital

• The "Chalet Briinigstein West" in Hasliberg Reuti has been insulated, the oil heating has been replaced with a heat pump and a solution has been sought (and found) with the Heritage Society to install solar panels. The last thing to be purchased is a salt battery. Thus, the holiday home will be able to manage without external energy for nine months per year. Guests are also encouraged to travel by public transport. If they come by car, there is an electric charging station at the house. Guests are also encouraged to shop locally. Shopkeeper Thomas Meyer brings the groceries to the holiday flat free of charge. Even the wine is made here. It comes from the highest vineyard north of the main ridge of the Alps.
• The YMCA Centre on the Hasliberg uses only green electricity throughout the entire operation.  Consistent waste separation with own compost. In-house woodchip heating. Own forest with biodiversity (measure for the preservation of biodiversity). Over 80 percent of the food/accommodation materials come directly from the Bernese Oberland or Switzerland.
• The Handeck and Grimsel Hospiz hotels have been IS0 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 45001 certified for some time. Since this winter, Grimselwelt (to which the two hotels belong) has been one of the first companies to be awarded the new Swisstainable label from Switzerland Tourism with the highest level III, as it already has a comprehensive, recognised sustainability certification. Among other reasons, because chef Roman Crkon and his team celebrate their creative field, forest and meadow cuisine at the Grimselhotels. To this end, they rely on local and regional products and, since 2021, on a regional network as a purchasing association in order to minimise supply chains and transport routes and to support local producers. And last but not least, local spring water (carbonated or non-carbonated) is offered in the Grimselwelt restaurants and businesses - without any transport routes at all.

Wengen

• By voluntarily participating in the programme of the Energy Agency for Industry, the Wengen Classic Hotels are committed to actively reducing CO2 emissions and optimising energy efficiency. The target agreement has been recognised by the federal government, the canton and partners in the economy.

Grindelwald

• The B&B an der Egg heats with wood pellets, thus doing without oil and gas. The breakfast includes many regional products, including from "Eigermilch".
• The Derby Swiss Quality Hotel has rooms with a water tap attachment, which ensures less water consumption. Bread, milk, etc. are regional. All lamps are energy-saving lamps. The take-away dishes are from Handelsgrün and plastic-free. In general, plastic is avoided wherever possible. Instead of Nutella, the hotel offers a palm oil-free chocolate spread. The washing-up line and kitchen appliances have been renewed in an environmentally friendly way, including dishwashing detergent with regulation. A new carpet cleaning machine that "works" sustainably supports the housekeeping team.
• At the Hotel Glacier, chef Robert Steuri, who has been awarded 15 Gault Millau points, has put together a menu with as many regional products as possible. Almost all dishes are based on home-made basic products and are adapted to the seasons. Several dishes include preparation steps such as fermentation, smoking or dry-aging. These processes often take more than a month. Only then can the kitchen team start working its magic.
• For the self-produced "Schoenegg Pommes Chips", the Parkhotel Schoenegg grows its own potatoes. Own compost to recycle most of the kitchen waste itself (used as fertiliser for the potatoes). Cultivation of peppermint (for Hugo, tea, decorative dishes, desserts, etc.). Cultivation of onions. Heat recovery in the cooling systems. Connection to Grindelwald district heating. With the leading sustainability label Ibex Fairstay, the Hotel Glacier has reached the highest level Platinum at the end of 2022.
• The Hotel Belvedere is one of three hotels in Switzerland that has achieved Platinum status with the IBEX sustainability label. It actively offers its guests the opportunity to make their overnight stay at the hotel CO2-neutral. This is thanks to a collaboration with "my climate" and "cause we care". The Belvedere is the first family-run hotel in the canton of Bern to cooperate with "my climate". In addition, a hybrid car was purchased to pick up guests from the station and bring them back to the station after check-out. During their stay, guests have the option of using the air-cooling system in their room, which works like an air-conditioning system but is cooled by groundwater and thus does not consume a lot of electricity. The hotel's electricity comes 100 per cent from hydropower. In addition, a heat pump was connected to the air-cooling system, which produces hot water for the indoor swimming pool. The Hotel Belvedere is heated with Holzwärme Grindelwald. Through regular renovation work in the hotel, the insulation is improved everywhere and triple-glazed windows are used so that the heat remains inside the hotel in winter and outside in summer.
• The Jungfrau Lodge is part of the HGW network and heats the hotel with wood heat from Grindelwald.
• For years, the Swiss Youth Hostels - and thus also Grindelwald Youth Hostel - have been committed to sustainability in practice together with the IBEX label. The new food concept emphasises vegetarian and vegan cuisine, with meat only available as an option. For years, guests have voluntarily paid a compensation of 30 centimes. This money is used to finance sustainable buildings and equipment (e.g. solar systems) of the Swiss Youth Hostels. Grindelwald Youth Hostel already has a solar system on its roof, its own spring and a large garden.

Haslital

• Since the 2021 summer season, guests may be transported from the Hospiz to the Oberaarsee on the longest working railway in Grimselwelt, the Oberaarbahn. This means that the Oberaar region is now also accessible by public transport and a transfer from the Oberaar road to the railway could already be observed in the first year.

Grindelwald

• With the fly-line on the Pfingstegg built in 2019, the water supply in the Pfingstegg supply area has simultaneously been made more environmentally conscious. The storage volume of the mountain spring water has been increased and the flushing systems of all toilets have since been fed with rainwater. The rainwater is collected at the mountain station and stored in a 50 m3 reservoir. From there, it is distributed to the sanitary facilities via a pump system.

Haslital

• The Wollreich Haslital processes its own sheep's wool into various products, such as pillow fillings for sleeping pillows, breastfeeding and bedding rings, nugginuschis, fleece for duvets and bed pads. In addition, the Haslital wool kingdom ensures the sustainable development of flora and fauna through summering on the various alps.
• The Aare Gorge is committed to sustainable tourism: With combined public transport offers, the promotion of biodiversity, the use of regional wood (processed in the Schwarzwaldalp sawmill), with regional employees as well as the support of regional artists. The Aare Gorge has also achieved Level 1 of Swisstainable.
• The Grimsel Cantonal Nature Reserve, the fauna and flora and the ecological achievements of Kraftwerke Oberhasli AG (KWO) are the subject of all Grimselwelt power plant tours, so that guests are made aware of the importance of protection and the KWO's commitment in these areas. For school classes, the KWO offers free guided tours of the Innertkirchen I power plant throughout the year to demonstrate an understanding of renewable energies and the process "behind the socket". The KWO provides financial support for public transport in the region to ensure that the service remains attractive for locals, guests and also for its own employees, and that it is a genuine alternative to travelling by private car. As a producer of hydroelectric power, the KWO is also a role model in the expansion of the e-mobility infrastructure. The range of e-mobility charging stations is being continuously expanded. Last but not least, Grimselwelt is part of the regional network for cross-sector cooperation between hotels, restaurants and other industries. This is to strengthen the regional economy by promoting sustainable cooperation.

Grindelwald

• OUTDOOR Switzerland AG strives to make all its offers as climate-friendly as possible and to optimise its internal processes to this end.
• Reduce - Reuse - Restore, less plastic, less waste, less CO2: this is the motto of the Bus Stop Bar. Drinks are served in glasses, little is bought, instead what is available is used. The bus was once rescued from the scrap yard, many things are built from pallets, second-hand purchases are made and returnable bottles are used. In general, the Bus Stop Bar uses natural and recyclable materials whenever possible and makes sure that they are properly separated.