Six Senses Con Dao has received the Positive Community Impact Award at the 2025 HICAP Sustainable Hotel Awards. Judges commended the hotel for its dedication to supporting the local community, preserving cultural heritage, and promoting environmental stewardship in and around the property.
Since 2007, the HICAP – Hotel Investment Conference Asia Pacific – has recognized just four hand selected hotels from the Asia-Pacific region annually. Its shortlist highlights those properties adopting innovative new methods, strategies and technologies to face today’s sustainable development challenge. Winners also exemplify tangible, sustainable best practices which can be replicated and adapted by others across the region.
Six Senses properties globally are connected by their commitments to local communities and mother earth. Lived, breathed and constantly evolving, sustainability and wellness have been rooted in the brand’s DNA from its inception in 1995 – long before they were a trend. Everything is considered to demonstrate that uncompromisingly gorgeous hideaways can live in harmony with local communities and ecosystems with each Six Senses designed to weave into the local fabric. Guests are immersed in it and ultimately become part of it.
Six Senses Con Dao demonstrates this commitment to sustainability through its operations, with its model of responsible and purposeful tourism benefiting both the island and its people. Community impact starts with a deep respect for place, culture, and long-term resilience with projects are designed to address immediate needs and preserve local identity, build capacity, and support systemic change.
Jeff Smith, Six Senses Vice President of Sustainability said: “This recognition reflects the indelible bond between Six Senses Con Dao and its community. Sustainability for Six Senses has never been a standalone initiative, but a way of being that connects our hosts, guests and neighbouring communities. The team in Con Dao continues to demonstrate how tourism, when grounded in intention and care, can have a genuine, meaningful impact.”
All Six Senses properties have a dedicated Sustainability Fund, which channels 0.5 percent of the hotel’s monthly revenue directly to community initiatives of the property’s choice. At Con Dao, a further 50 percent of in-house water sales, 100 percent of mascot toy sales, and all guest donations bolster this contribution.
Meaningful, measurable benefits
With limited access to safe drinking water for many residents and community facilities on Con Dao, the Water for All program provides schools, hospitals, and other essential services with reliable, clean water. Eleven purification systems have been installed across the island, benefiting over 3,194 people year-round and supporting healthier, more sustainable water use for the wider community.
Environmental stewardship extends further through initiatives such as the 2R Station Project, launched with the Youth Union of Con Dao and WWF Vietnam in 2024, which has diverted 441 kilograms of waste from the environment and inspired a community-wide shift toward circular economy practices.
Empowering youth and future leaders remain a priority. Since 2017, free English classes have equipped over 150 local children with valuable language skills, opening doors to education, career opportunities, and cross-cultural exchange.
Social enterprise and community empowerment remain another key focus, taking shape in 2025 through a partnership with the Take Wing Center, part of the Maison Chance Foundation. At the resort boutique, guests now find handwoven brocade turtles crafted from traditional Vietnamese fabric by people with special needs or from disadvantaged backgrounds. Every stitch carries a story of resilience, skill, and hope, with proceeds boosting the Sustainability Fund to support conservation, uplift local communities, and nurture a greener future beyond the resort.
The resort has also sparked new conversations about dignity and well-being through Vietnam’s first hotel-led Menstrual Health Awareness & Sustainability Initiative. By providing reusable products and practical workshops, the program promotes sustainable living and empowers young women with knowledge and confidence. Earlier this year, Six Senses expanded its wellness focus further with Female Wellness Programs across many of its resorts, offering both guests and hosts insights and support during key life stages.
Compassion extended even further to the island’s four-legged residents. In partnership with Laws for Paws Vietnam, the Animal Welfare Initiative delivered vital veterinary care, including vaccinations, deworming, and parasite treatments.
Together, these projects reflect a simple truth: that true hospitality cares not only for guests, but for the land, the people, and even the animals who share this home. At Six Senses Con Dao, every initiative is a step toward a future where community and nature thrive side by side.
Erkaiym (Aika) Tabyldieva, Sustainability Manager at Six Senses Con Dao said: “We are delighted to receive this award, which reflects the dedication of our team, partners, and guests to creating lasting positive impact in Con Dao. It recognizes that sustainability goes beyond environmental care into education, health, cultural preservation, and community empowerment. We hope it encourages continued positive change within our community.”
Six Senses Con Dao follows a run of Six Senses winners of HICAP Sustainable Hotel Awards including Six Senses Ninh Van Bay (2024, for climate and biodiversity action), Six Senses Vana (2023, for sustainable design), Six Senses Yao Noi (2020, for positive community impact and 2009, for project design), Six Senses Krabey Island (2019, for sustainable design), and Six Senses Fiji (2018, for climate action).
