Sustainability Hub

Our Promise of Greater Good is about continually improving as an industry and region, as well as introducing how our community has been making efforts in sustainable business (tourism) practices to limit our footprint and proactively give back through research, conservation, and regeneration projects.

Latest News

The latest sustainable industry news

Newsletters
12 Jun 2025
Sustainability Leaders News – 12 June 2025
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Newsletters
3 Mar 2025
Sustainability Leaders News – 3 March 2025
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Newsletters
14 Jan 2025
Sustainability Leaders News – January 2025
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Newsletters
5 Dec 2024
Sustainability Leaders News – December 2024

Welcome this month to all our new members.

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Newsletters
24 Oct 2024
Sustainability Leaders News – October 2024
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Newsletters
17 Sep 2024
Sustainability Leaders News – September 2024
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Newsletters
10 Jul 2024
Green Island Resort wins Queensland Hotel Association Award for Excellence

From employing solar energy on a rainforest covered island to innovative waste management practices turning food waste into organic fertiliser, Green Island Resort has taken out top honours for “Best Environment and Energy Efficiency Practise” in the 2024 Queensland Hotel Association Awards for Excellence.

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Newsletters
10 Jul 2024
Sustainability Leaders News – July 2024

Australia faces a pressing waste management issue, impacting every sector including the tourism and hospitality sectors. Annually, our nation produces 2.5 million tonnes of plastic with up to 5% of this leaking into marine environments.

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Newsletters
6 Jun 2024
The Tourism Emissions Reduction Program

Does your business hold Sustainable Tourism Accreditation Business (STAB) through the Quality Tourism Framework? The Tourism Emissions Reduction program is now available and currently free of charge for STAB operators!

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Newsletters
6 Jun 2024
Tropic Wings Wins Environmental Innovation Award

Tropic Wings Cairns Tours & Charters have constantly been striving towards greener and more eco-friendly tours, a focus they have had at the core of their business ethos since they launched in 1981! With a mission to foster passion for nature and deliver transformational experiences, multi-award-winning, Tropic Wings has recently been awarded the Environmental Innovation Award at the 2024 Queensland Bus Industry Council (QBIC) Industry Awards.

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Newsletters
6 Jun 2024
Sustainability Leaders News – June 2024

In the current landscape, there’s an abundance of resources aimed at supporting businesses in enhancing their sustainability practices, whether it’s through upskilling, certification, or gaining valuable data-based insights. TTNQ’s Sustainability Hub serves as a centralised and regularly updated online resource for our members, offering a wealth of tools, resources, grants, and opportunities tailored to our destination.

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Newsletters
26 Apr 2024
Small World Journeys’ waste initiatives

It’s no secret that no one really likes cleaning out our office compost bin. It’s full of limp vegetables, bruised bits of fruit, and the remnants of last Tuesday’s lunch. Guides are also not thrilled about picking the forbidden piece of salami out of a pile of food destined for our big compost bin (where meat doesn’t belong). Despite this, each week the team at Small World Journeys carefully sorts not only our food scraps but our recyclables, landfill waste and soft plastics.

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Newsletters
26 Apr 2024
Sustainability Leaders News – April 2024

This month our EDM is all about data! It’s a topic that some of us love and some of us are a little nervous about, but in the sustainability space it’s a wonderful way to look at the position of a business in order to set meaningful goals, to benchmark and to utilise information to tell the good stories of achievement as they are met.

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Newsletters
20 Feb 2024
Sustainability data systems with Twinsition

Twinsition is a Cairns-based Sustainability advisory firm providing sustainability data systems and carbon accounting consulting services. We help organisations optimise systems, empower people, and streamline processes for the collection, management, visualisation, and reporting of energy, carbon, water, and waste data.

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Newsletters
20 Feb 2024
Sustainability at Cairns Airport

Cairns Airport is half way through a five-year Environment Strategy focusing on climate change, waste reduction, water efficiency, biodiversity protection, pollution prevention, and working with the local community. These initiatives led to Cairns Airport being crowned Airport of the Year twice in 2023, winning the Major Airport of the Year category at the Australian Airports Association (AAA) National Airport Industry Awards and being named Airport of the Year at the Australian Aviation Awards. Cairns Airport also took out the Airport Excellence Award for Sustainability for their Australia-first Sustainability Linked Loan agreement, which features a unique target committing to regenerating threatened species.

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Newsletters
20 Feb 2024
CEO Message | Sustainability Leader Cluster Group Notice

TTNQ’s vision is for Tropical North Queensland to be the leader in ecotourism in Australia. Our mission is for every visitor to leave our destination as a custodian of the region’s stories. We recognise you as one of the operators with the greatest commitment to sustainable tourism who takes the time to share the stories of how we are looking after TNQ’s unique natural and cultural places and I would like to welcome you to TTNQ’s new Sustainability Leaders Group. Each of you has made a significant commitment to sustainable tourism through the accreditation or certification of your business and you have been working for many years in engaging our visitors with the region’s story.

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TTNQ Sustainability Report 2024

TTNQ has delivered the destinations first Sustainability Report.

Download Report

TTNQ Pathways to Sustainable Tourism booklet

Learn how to adopt sustainable business practices and plan your journey towards the greater good.

Download toolkit

Reforest Dashboard

Partners and Organisations

The following Australian organisations are actively working towards achieving sustainable goals and providing significant resources and support to businesses for sustainability.

 

Waste and Procurement

Food Waste Matters – Find out how to turn waste into profit

Reduce Food Waste at Your Business – For businesses in the food service industry, consider these steps to help you reduce food waste

Stop Food Wate Australia – Help businesses fight food waste and build a more sustainable, resilient and profitable food system

Boomerang Alliance  – Plastic Free project that works with communities to help reduce single-use plastic packaging

Rethink Business Waste – Business Waste Incentives aimed at halving waste to landfill

 

Community and Culture

Queensland Tourism Industry Council – Best Practice Guide for Working with First Nations Tourism

 

Transport

Queensland’s Zero Emissions Vehicle Strategy – 10-year strategy and plan to accelerate Queensland towards a cleaner, greener transport future while making sure the energy networks support the transition to zero-emission vehicles

Queensland’s Electric Super Highway – Connects electric vehicle drivers across our state and includes fast charging locations at a range of coastal and inland locations

 

Natural Environment and Climate

Climate Council of Australia – Australia’s own independent, evidence-based organisation on climate science, impacts and solutions. View the latest reports, podcasts, infographics and myth-busting guides about the climate

Take 3 for the Sea – An award-winning Australian charity on a mission to rid the oceans of plastic pollution

Tangaroa Blue Foundation – An Australia-wide not-for-profit organisation dedicated to the removal and prevention of marine debris: one of the major environmental issues worldwide

Parley for the Oceans – Based in Cairns, the team operates along the Great Barrier Reef and beyond to conduct cleanups, conservation and education

Rainforest Rescue – Their projects include re-establish rainforests through planting, maintenance, and restoration programs, as well as purchasing and protecting high conservation value rainforests and preserving their biodiversity

Envirocare – Is involved with many different projects with multiple organisations, all of whom are working towards the protection & regeneration of rainforests

Terrain National Resource Management – An environmental management organisation working in Australia’s Wet Tropics region of Tropical North Queensland

Reforest – Helping businesses and events take authentic climate action by planting trees in local reforestation projects through our web platform

 

Carbon Credits

Aboriginal Carbon Foundation – Aims to achieve economic independence and social and emotional health and wellbeing for First Nations people through carbon farming and cultural fire credits

Green Collar – Reef Credits is a voluntary environmental market that addresses the issue of poor water quality at the Great Barrier Reef by paying land managers for improved water quality resulting from their on-farm actions without compromising the productivity of their land.

#EXPLORETNQ

The kind of place you dream about… then realise it’s real. Perched above South Mission Beach, @elandraresort offers front-row views to the Coral Sea and the islands beyond. Hands up if you have stayed here?

📸 @permanentlywandering 

#exploreTNQ #explorecairnsGBR #thisisqueensland #seeaustralia @queensland  @australia @cassowarycoastaustralia 

ID: A tropical pool setting complete with palm trees, sun lounges and a view looking out the Coral Sea.
Is this as close to island perfection as you will find? We think so...let us introduce you to #FitzroyIsland 🌴🤿.

🎥 @amys.camera.lens 

#exploreTNQ #explorecairnsGBR #thisisqueensland #seeaustralia @queensland @australia @fitzroyisland @fitzroyislandadventures @sunloverreefcruises 

ID Aerial footage of Fitzroy Island shows boats anchored in clear turquoise water, white-sand beaches backed by rainforest, and swimmers enjoying the water.
There’s cheese boards… and then there’s @mungallicreek cheese boards. Think creamy farm-made cheese, house-baked sweets, seasonal fruit and organic ice cream churned just metres from where it’s served. Pull up a chair on the verandah and settle in, this is what slow food looks like on the @athertontablelands.

#exploreTNQ #explorecairnsGBR #thisisqueensland #seeaustralia @queensland 
@australia 

ID A couple visits Mungalli Creek Dairy. They browse the café’s cake display, order a large cheese platter, and enjoy it on the verandah overlooking the mountainous countryside.
Low tide magic on the Great Barrier Reef Drive. 

🎥 @kellerdiaries 

ID Drone footage of the Great Barrier Reef Drive between Cairns and Port Douglas, featuring low tide sandbanks, winding coastal roads, turquoise waters and rainforest.

#exploreTNQ #explorecairnsGBR #thisisqueensland #seeaustralia @queensland  @australia  @portdouglasdaintree
Wow! Can you feel the energy from this morning’s IRONMAN Cairns start?
It was next level… who else got goosebumps? Big congrats to young guns Bailey Tuddenham and Madi Toovey 🏊‍♂️🚴‍♀️🏃‍♂️ for taking out the IRONMAN 70.3. The full IRONMAN is far from over, so don’t miss a minute of the action on the Cairns Esplanade today 🎉🔥. 

#exploreTNQ #explorecairnsGBR #thisisqueensland #seeaustralia @queensland  @australia @visitpalmcove 🎥 @ironman.cairns 

ID A video showing the electric atmosphere at the IRONMAN Cairns start line. Athletes run into the water as the race begins, surrounded by cheering crowds, event flags and the early morning light over the Coral Sea.
Not a bad spot for a winter dip. Just saying.

📍Cairns Lagoon

📸 @myholidaycentre 

ID Cairns Lagoon at sunset, featuring people swimming and relaxing in the water. The sky is painted in pastel pink and purple hues, with the iconic silver fish sculptures standing along the waterfront.

#exploreTNQ #explorecairnsGBR #thisisqueensland #seeaustralia @queensland  @australia
We know where we would rather be 😉. Trev’s out here road testing both ends of the thermometer, what’s your pick? Beanies or boardies? 

🎥 @trevs_gone_outdoors

#exploreTNQ #explorecairnsGBR #thisisqueensland #seeaustralia @queensland  @australia 

ID The video follows a man transitioning between two extreme landscapes, the tropical rainforest of Tropical North Queensland and the snowy mountains of southern Australia.
When the whales are this curious, you don’t need to chase the moment, it finds you 💙. Dwarf minke season has arrived, bringing the gentle giants of the deep back to the Great Barrier Reef. 

Known for their calm nature and surprising curiosity, these sleek swimmers often circle boats and snorkellers, creating once-in-a-lifetime encounters you will never forget. The #GreatBarrierReef is the only place on Earth where you can swim with dwarf minke whales and it only happens for two months a year, right here in Tropical North Queensland.

Seen one? Dreaming of it? Tell us👇

🎥 @pablocogollos_photography and @oceanearthstudios via @gbrmarinepark 

#exploreTNQ #explorecairnsGBR #thisisqueensland #seeaustralia @queensland  @australia 

ID Underwater footage of a dwarf minke whale in the clear waters of the Great Barrier Reef.
Heli views, river crossings, red dirt, waterfalls, beach camps and one cracking sunset. Cape York, you’re a wild one and we love it!
 
📍Creb Track to the Tip
🚙 Pack the recovery tracks
🌴 Stay for a good time, not a long time 

🎥 @_lanicooper_ 
 
ID A compilation of Cape York adventure scenes featuring 4WD vehicles crossing creeks, navigating muddy tracks and driving along red dirt roads.