Leaders of environmentally responsible business were awarded in Astana.

PRESS RELEASE – Leaders of Sustainable Business Awarded in Astana

The fourth awards ceremony for the Smart Plastic Zone project, an environmental initiative aimed at reducing plastic footprints and implementing sustainable business practices, was held at The Ritz-Carlton, Astana.

At the event, the new Smart Plastic Zone Platinum label was presented for organizations that comply with the international Green Key and Marriott Serve 360 ​​standards, as well as for companies that have expanded their sustainable practices to their subsidiaries.

We are pleased to announce that the Platinum label has already been awarded to The Ritz-Carlton Astana, The Ritz-Carlton Almaty, The St. Regis Astana, Rixos Borovoe, and AK Altynalmas Corporation. An additional 15 participants were awarded the Smart Plastic Zone Gold and Silver labels.

The total area of ​​the projects exceeded 5.1 million square meters. The participants represented eight regions of Kazakhstan: Almaty, Astana, Pavlodar, Aktobe, and the Akmola, Karaganda, Zhambyl, and North Kazakhstan regions.

A second webinar was also held as part of the awards ceremony, where project participants presented their case studies on waste management, the implementation of plastic-free solutions, and the transition to Green Office/Campus principles. Speakers included representatives from The Ritz-Carlton (Astana), The Ritz-Carlton (Almaty), Baiterek National Managing Holding, The St. Regis, Pavlodar Petrochemical Plant, AlmaU, KEGOK, and the GreenUrban Association.

“We are very pleased that the Smart Plastic Zone project not only unites industry leaders striving to reduce their plastic footprint, but is also becoming a new process for assessing and understanding the status of Green Office implementation within companies and their subsidiaries.” “We also provide a wide range of businesses with the opportunity to learn about practical examples of sustainable development through webinars featuring representatives from various industries. We see growing interest and opportunities to replicate these success stories,” noted Yulia Yakupbaeva, Partner at the GPI Group of Companies.

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The project has been implemented since March 2025 with the support of Coca-Cola Kazakhstan LLP, the GreenUrban Association, and GPI-Lab LLP. The initiative’s main goal is to build a network of responsible businesses implementing practices to reduce plastic use and transition to sustainable management models.

Project partners and participants include hotels, banks, manufacturing facilities, offices, shopping centers, educational organizations, and others that demonstrate a tangible contribution to developing a culture of responsible plastic use.