Sustainability

“Facing sustainability deprioritization?” I think the concern is justified since a large section of the hospitality sector has traditionally operated on a ‘compliance-first’ approach when it comes down to sustainability commitments.

The delay to the CSRD may offer temporary regulatory breathing space, but it highlights a deeper truth: sustainability in hospitality and tourism must not depend solely on government mandates. If our industry remains reactive, driven only by compliance, we risk falling environmentally, socially, and economically behind.

Indeed, there is a real risk that goals driven by political ambition, political agenda in the best sense of the word, may be deprioritised. I recently wrote a piece titled "Where Do We Stand Now?" to better understand the current state of play.

Hotels have focused their attention on utility-related metrics. As a result, the measurement of hotel consumption data and KPIs feels like a tick-box exercise. However, when it comes to social metrics—such as well-being, employee retention, education, human rights, or the suppliers audited to ensure compliance with the company's code of conduct—these indicators are crucial.

Share price and value are correlated to current and expected future profits, which can depend on decisions from governments with short term priorities who legislate for GDP growth as a solution to most of their problems. We should be pushing for a lasting global commitment to change the collective vision of success, and to accept that success shouldn't be measured in purely economic terms.

What do KPIs, certificates, and ESG ratings have in common? They're all tools we use to measure impact and performance. But can one metric, or even one system, capture everything at once? Probably not. As we navigate ESG reporting, the challenge isn't just what to measure, but how much, how specifically, and how meaningfully.

What a great topic, indeed 'failures' are great learning opportunities for the organisation itself as well as others when shared publicly. A mindset of continouus improvement, that is for example inherent to ISO certifications, would enable companies to shift the 'failure' vs 'success' narrative and culture.

Many SME accommodation owners begin their sustainability journey with enthusiasm but often fail to sustain long-term change. A key barrier is underestimating the time and commitment needed to overhaul operational processes across departments.

To make progress on sustainability, I believe we need to build a culture that values curiosity over criticism, encouraging people to explore what works, what doesn’t, and why. That means treating new ideas as experiments, not tests to pass or fail.