A SPECIAL SHOUTOUT TO THE MILLENNIALS ~ GAMECHANGERS FOR THE ENVIRONMENT SUSTAINABILITY
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Sustainability and Hospitality:
It all started in 1980, where organizations and people gradually started realizing the threats they cause to the environment whilst their inventions. The importance of sustainability and going green in business expanded over the years and impacted younger generations, after all, its to make the earth a better place to live.
In spite of being an expensive initiative, a big hats off to the hospitality industries who are now trying to adopt environmental sustainability in their business. In the long run, being sustainable will not only benefit the planet but also people and profit thus leading to the "TRIPLE BOTTOM LINE".
How does it work?
The highly-rated hotels that try to be environmentally friendly are termed as "LUXURY ECO HOTELS". These hotels maintain high ratings by providing excellent customer satisfaction along with the reduction of waste and water by adopting sustainable practices. Irrespective of the disadvantages that technologies cause, they also tend to contribute to an eco-friendly organization. Wastage of paper has been reduced since the invention of e-receipts, bottled water has been eliminated, refillable bottles in the bathroom for shampoos and soaps are being introduced, usage of natural cleaners and much more. The best part about going green in hotels is the customers who equally contribute and value the effort. Apart from these high-end hotels, the smaller ones are also equally trying to contribute to a happy environment.
Organic Foods:
One important fact about hotels that cannot be denied is the wastage of food. Unfortunately, the rate of food wastage is high in hotel industries due to unavoidable reasons. To overcome this issue, hotels are growing their own organic vegetables and ensuring the food they serve is fresh and not precooked.
Energy Consumption:
Nearly 5% of carbon emissions occur in the tourism industry due to hotel stays by tourists. The preference of eco-friendly hotel stay by customers has forced the organizations to change to renewable energy sources. Solar panels are a great source of renewable energy to generate electricity which also results in fewer electricity bills. Hotels use solar panels to save energy and grow plants on the wall to reduce the room temperature.
Who did it?
- Hotel Hilton measures the use of their water and energy with the help of a performance measure platform with which they were able to save energy worth power 112,520 homes for a whole year, water that could fill 5.272 Olympic-sized swimming pools and 29.1% of reduced waste between the years 2009 and 2015.
- Out of 5700 properties of hotel Marriott, 142 were LEED(Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified in the year 2015, where they encourage resource-efficient buildings and fewer utility costs.
- Six Senses is committed to sustainability in their resorts, spas, and hotels by using a portion of their revenue from the sustainability fund to support community projects and local charities.
- 1Hotels are one step ahead when it comes to sustainability. The theme of this hotel is "NATURE", hence they use reclaimed wood, natural light, hemp mattresses and live green moments. Every customer receives a fresh hotel stay experience in their hotels.
- Hyatt has a CSR rating of 57% for its sustainable practices where they focus on waste and water reduction, stewardship, and stakeholder management. This organization also encourages its employees to be a part of their eco-friendly practices.
- Accor Hotel invented a program known as "Accor's Planet 21 programme" in which they demonstrated their goals for 2020 and how the program will involve its employees, partners, and customers to be a part of the development process of sustainability. Fairmont, Raffles, and Swissotel joined hands with the Accor hotel to be a part of their new initiative. This hotel only offers food that is sustainably sourced.
- Sandos Hotel has interesting initiatives in regards to sustainability such as onsite recycling, water conservation, onsite herb garden, interactive reforestation program, onsite reproduction programs for endangered species, electrical energy programs, green guest rooms, and eco-clubs.
- Kimpton Hotels are often known for their unique design and ambiance and they are certified by the Green-Key Eco-Rating.
- Marmara Hotels and Carlton City Hotels educate their guests about the reduction of ecological footprint, their environmental policies and enables them to be a part of their environmentally sustainable practices.
- In addition to these, hotels like Nordic, Tallinn, and Estonia own beehives having about 60,000 bees on its roof and making it an attraction for their guests to observe the honey-making by bees with the installation of the webcams.
Is it benefiting?
Due to these practices adopted by the hospitality and tourism industry, the organizations are not only earning profits and saving the planets, but they are also being welcomed and celebrated by the newer generations.
Conclusion:
Somewhere, as human beings, we are responsible for the harmfulness created to the environment and we must resolve it. Being sustainable should start within your home to make the earth a better place for your kids or siblings. In my opinion, the going green decisions by the hospitality industries would make a great impact in the future.
References:
Hosey, L.(2017). A Brief History Of 'Sustainability'. Retrieved February 10, 2020, from https://www.huffpost.com/entry/a-brief-history-of-sustai_b_12787800
Longhurst, B. (2018). Luxury Eco Hotels: How the Hospitality Industry Is Going Green. Retrieved February 10, 2020, from https://www.greenandgrowing.org/luxury-eco-hotels-hospitality-industry-going-green/
Witness, G. (2017, October 31). Going Green In The Hospitality Industry[Blog Post]. Retrieved February 10, 2020, from https://www.thewitnessgroup.com/blog1/going-green-hospitality-industry/
School, I. (2011). Going Green In The Hospitality Industry. Retrieved February 10, 2020, from https://www.hotelschool.co.za/going-green-in-the-hospitality-industry/
Fitzsimmons, A. (2017). Sustainable Luxe: 5Hotels Doing It Right. Retrieved February 10, 2020, from https://www.nationalgeographic.com/travel/top-10/five-luxury-hotels-sustainable-ecotourism/
Foster, M. (2019). The 5 Best Sustainable Hotel Brands. Retrieved February 10, 2020, from
https://www.tripsavvy.com/best-sustainable-hotel-brands-4126786
Catering, H. (2018). Go Green: Hotels, Trends, and Sustainability. Retrieved February 10, 2020, from https://www.hospitalityandcateringnews.com/2018/08/go-green-hotels-trends-sustainability/
