Seventeen judges reviewed 142 applications and considered how well the companies measured up to their social responsibility in five areas: environmental and/or cultural preservation, alleviating poverty, education, wildlife conservation and health. Thirty-eight finalists were nominated and the winners were ranked by compiling the panel’s final scores.
The finalists were honored at the World Savers Awards ceremony at the 2nd Annual Condé Nast Traveler Convention, in New York city. The Cristalino Lodge was listed in the September 2008 issue as one of 38 businesses around the world that was considered a leader in terms of social responsibility.
Special projects editor Dorinda Elliott said that, “These finalists are the most important examples of how hotels, airlines, shipping companies and tour operators worldwide can inspire their partners to improve the world in which we live”. She added that, "The efforts of these World Savers, in building schools, providing medical supplies, repopulating wildlife reserves, offering microcredit, are examples for the entire tourism industry".
Vitória Da Riva Carvalho, the owner of Cristalino Lodge, said, “We are proud to have been honored internationally by Condé Nast Traveler magazine for the environmental conservation work that is being carried out at the Cristalino RPPN (Private Natural Heritage Reserve)”.