Last July 2025, the first information meeting of the Djerba Hotel College brought together 15 hotels, NGOs, and institutional partners around a common goal: making tourism on the island of Djerba more sustainable, collaborative, and aligned with new environmental priorities.

Launched under the framework of Beyond Plastic Med – BeMed, the Djerba Hotel College is an inspiring local initiative aimed at reducing plastic pollution, improving environmental practices, and fostering peer learning across the hospitality sector.

Recognising the strong alignment in values and objectives, the Blue Tourism Initiative has joined forces with this existing platform to build synergies and maximise collective impact. Representatives from our partner, the IUCN Centre for Mediterranean Cooperation, which leads BTI in the Mediterranean, and the local associations AJEM and ASSIDJE, who are implementing the initiative in Tunisia, took part in the meeting to support dialogue and share expertise with local stakeholders.

Through this collaboration, we will work together to:

• Provide training on plastic reduction, water management, biodiversity action and resource efficiency
• Develop practical tools and step-by-step guides for hotel operations
• Enhance hotels’ environmental performance and market alignment

This is a powerful example of how collaborative action between local initiatives and regional programmes can accelerate transformation in the tourism sector.

We thank Iberostar Wave of Change for hosting the meeting, and the many hotels and institutions participating in the Djerba Hotel College.