Sustainability has moved to the front of the agenda for economies, companies and the world at large. It is also a priority for the business travel industry, as revealed in new research from the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) where almost 9 in 10 industry respondents say sustainability is already a priority for their company.
Choice Hotels International, Inc. (NYSE: CHH), one of the world's largest lodging franchisors, today announced the recipients of the Your Community, Your Choice. Choice Hotels Local Business Grant Program. The program, which was re-launched this year, underscores Choice's longstanding commitment to local businesses, while recognizing and empowering hotel owners who make a positive difference in their communities.
The environmental impact of new construction is both dire and intensifying. Not only do buildings account for nearly 40 percent of greenhouse emissions in the United States, but the world builds the square footage of New York City every 35 days. Seeking to circumvent this trend, real estate developer Urban Villages is envisioning a first-of-its-kind hotel opening in Denver next year. Designed by Studio Gang, the 265-room Populus will become the country’s first carbon positive hotel thanks to sustainable construction and a substantial ecological effort offsite that involves planting trees across 5,000 acres of forest.
Historic Hotels of America have some of the most magnificent and beautiful storybook gardens. Multigenerational guests select a historic hotel, resort, or inn to explore, experience, and discover their own ever-blossoming memories in beautiful gardens where multigenerational hosts have cared for gardens over the centuries.
For greater context, the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) was originally signed by 150 government leaders at the 1992 Rio Earth Summit, committing a dedication to promoting sustainable development and recognizing humanity's reliance on biological diversity. The UN Biodiversity Conference serves to address the CBD and the main objective of the conference now is to adopt the post-2020 global biodiversity framework. The first session of the 2020 UN Biodiversity Conference took place in October 2021 and the second session will resume at the end of this month (April 2022). There is increasing global momentum organizing around a rallying cry to protect 30% of land and sea by 2030, a rapidly approaching deadline.
Yes, we need hospitality development to both cater to growing demand and to ensure conservation of biodiversity. It is not sustainable to rely exclusively on tax or donor funded conservation. We need the business community to be a part of it, and to make it financially viable.
The central question posed to the panel is: should the hotel industry refrain or not from developing in remote or rich natural areas? Although I may be accused to have imbibed too much of the Dutch directedness, my immediate answer would be that it should!
I believe the answer to these questions lies in the desired reason for a new project build, and the intrinsic ethos of the decision makers. If the anticipated outcome for development is purely economic, then the planned tourist accommodation build should not take place.
JW Marriott, part of Marriott Bonvoy’s portfolio of 30 extraordinary hotel brands, today announces the debut of three herb gardens envisioned and planted by renowned landscape designer Lily Kwong as part of the brand’s JW Garden program. Kwong, whose reverence for nature comes to life through her breathtaking botanical installations, is the founder of Studio Lily Kwong, a next-generation landscape design studio with a mission to reconnect people to nature. JW Marriott is guided by similar principles, with a commitment to mindfulness that allows guests to be present in mind, nourished in body and revitalized in spirit – pillars that directly align to the JW Garden experience. Kwong’s JW Garden projects are currently growing at JW Marriott Desert Springs Resort & Spa; JW Marriott Orlando Bonnet Creek Resort & Spa; and JW Marriott Essex House New York.
Employees from Hilton Grand Vacations (HGV) on Oahu will join Honolulu Habitat for Humanity to build a home for a local family in Waimanalo, HI.
Hilton has released the latest installment of its new “Extending Our Stay” video docuseries, which is focused on sustainable travel and creating meaningful change in the world as part of the company’s “Travel with Purpose” environmental, social and governance (ESG) strategy.
As the United States is in the midst of a severe blood supply shortage, Atrium Hospitality is proud to continue to collaborate with the American Red Cross through an extended national partnership to host blood drives across the United States at Atrium-managed hotels. Alpharetta, Georgia-based Atrium Hospitality is one of the nation’s largest hotel operators and ranked #1 in customer satisfaction among third-party hotel management companies in the J.D. Power 2021 Third-Party Hotel Management Guest Satisfaction Benchmark. The company manages a portfolio of 82 hotels in 28 states, representing well-known brands such as: Hilton, Marriott, IHG, and Wyndham and operates more than 20,000 guest rooms/suites and approximately 3 million square feet of event space.
In order to grasp a vision for a preferable future, it might be useful to rewind to our past. According to Prof. Em. Conrad Lashley, the origins of tourism and hospitality lie in "hospitableness", or the human faculty to welcome and host strangers.
Of course, the question is a false dichotomy. We must do both - Think and act locally; think and act globally.Global standards, like the GSTC criteria, provide comprehensive frameworks designed to ensure holistic approaches to sustainability.
Certifications that I am familiar with that have the most flexibility are EarthCheck and ISO 14001. As management systems, they are not points-based checklists that many times allow a property to be doing well in one area, without a focus on other areas.
The American Hotel & Lodging Foundation (AHLA Foundation) raised over a record $822,000 at its annual gala to fund programs aimed at grooming and growing a diverse industry workforce. Each year, the Night of A Thousand Stars gala celebrates the hotel industry’s most important VIPs – the property-level talent that makes the industry so unique. Throughout the evening, industry leaders commemorated the 2022 Stars of the Industry Award winners and the diverse individuals that embody the spirit of hospitality, while raising critical funds to support Foundation programs.
For the technical stuff, a GSTC accredited certification organization. For sustainability leadership insights, stories, advice (e.g. how to get started, how to succeed, pitfalls to avoid,..) the Sustainability Leaders Project, Sustainability-leaders.com.
I was finding it hard to explain the difference between net zero and carbon neutral in an easy way that everyone would understand. Everything I found online was too long, too complicated or just not succinct enough until I found a fantastic blog by Ecologi that puts it into simple and understandable terms.
I don't have go-to websites for sustainability matters but we launched last year the Hospitality of the Future Think Tank, focusing on providing information and actionable tools and ideas around sustainability and following the UN SDGs.
John De Fries still recalls fishing the waters off Waikiki Beach in Oahu as a kid in the 1960s. “Growing up, my family fishing grounds were a source of food first and recreation second,” he says. “Today they’re a playground surrounded by hotels.”
The AHLA Foundation today announced it is awarding $175,000 in total to community-based organizations that help change the lives of Opportunity Youth by preparing them for future careers in hospitality. Through a combination of continued and newly started partnerships, the AHLA Foundation will join forces with organizations in Los Angeles, New Orleans, Orlando, and Washington DC to help train an estimated 370 youth for hotel jobs.
Restoration and regeneration are seen by many as the next frontier of sustainability in general and sustainability in hospitality and tourism in particular. NHL Stenden Hotel Management School (Leeuwarden, the Netherlands) has joined forces with Smart Travel Lab and the Ryerson University Hotel Management School to launch a challenge for hospitality management students: "The Regeneration Collection".
Hospitality businesses should develop detailed plans that enable them to eliminate their carbon emissions in the next one to two decades. The plans should include the achievement of periodic milestones. There are three steps to eliminating carbon emissions, and they don't need to be completed in order.
Tackling climate change and biodiversity loss can seem like a huge challenge and getting started is often the hardest part. I believe concrete action number one starts with you, the business owner. The process of integrating more sustainable practices that help tackle climate change and biodiversity loss into a business does not have a start and a finish.
Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, the world’s largest hotel franchising company with approximately 9,000 hotels across nearly 95 countries, is honored for its environmental and social responsibility practices in Newsweek’s list of America’s Most Responsible Companies for 2022. From the thousands of companies considered for this award, only 500 made the final list, and Wyndham is represented as one of just 15 companies in the category of “Hotels, Dining & Leisure.” This recognition comes on the heels of Wyndham being named as one of the Most Loved Workplaces by Newsweek, ranking #4 out of 100, and being identified as one of the best places to work in its home state of New Jersey by NJBIZ earlier this year.
It’s been 20+ years since unlucky-in-love advice columnist Carrie Bradshaw stepped into our lives – in stilettos, no less – on Sex and the City. As anticipation builds to revisit the beloved character in her newest chapter, And Just Like That…, Sarah Jessica Parker is adding Airbnb Host to her repertoire and offering fans a once-in-a-lifetime stay at Carrie’s apartment – lust-worthy closet included.
Sarah Jessica Parker will host two, one-night stays for up to two guests each at a recreation of Carrie’s brownstone on Nov. 12 and 13 for only $23* a night, in honor of the 23 years since we were first introduced to the fashion-forward icon and her friends.
“The Carrie Bradshaw character is near and dear to my heart, and revisiting her world for the continuation of the Sex and the City story has been such a joy,” said Parker. “I’m excited for our audience to experience Carrie’s New York like never before and walk in her shoes, quite literally, for the first time.“
So we couldn’t help but wonder…what would a night at Carrie’s look like? During their stays, guests will be immersed in a quintessentially Carrie experience with:
To celebrate Carrie’s return to television screens, Airbnb will make a one-time donation to The Studio Museum in Harlem, a contemporary art museum championing the work of artists of African descent.
Those looking to book should note that this stay’s rules require strict adherence with local COVID-19 guidelines. Onsite staff will follow applicable local, state and federal guidelines as well as Airbnb’s COVID-19 Safety Practices, which include wearing a mask and practicing social distancing when required by local laws or guidelines, and abiding by our five-step enhanced cleaning process. Guests are responsible for their own travel to and from New York City.***
Sex and the City fans interested in walking in Carrie’s shoes can request to book these stays beginning Monday, Nov. 8, at noon ET at airbnb.com/sexandthecity.
*Plus taxes and fees
**The one-night stays are not a contest
***Those who request to book must currently live in the United States.
Airbnb is closely monitoring New York City infection rates and government policies, and will offer the booking guest a $1,000 USD Airbnb travel credit if it becomes necessary to cancel the stays.
About Warner Bros. Consumer Products
Warner Bros. Consumer Products (WBCP), part of WarnerMedia Global Brands and Experiences, extends the company’s powerful portfolio of entertainment brands and franchises into the lives of fans around the world. WBCP partners with best-in-class licensees globally on an award-winning range of toys, fashion, home décor, and publishing inspired by WarnerMedia’s biggest franchises from DC, Wizarding World, Looney Tunes, Hanna-Barbera, Game of Thrones, Cartoon Network and Adult Swim. With innovative global licensing and merchandising programs, retail initiatives, and promotional partnerships, WBCP is one of the leading licensing and retail merchandising organizations in the world.
Four Seasons Resort Maui at Wailea announces the 31st Annual Day of Hope Run/Walk, with proceeds benefitting Pacific Cancer Foundation, Kapi‘olani Medical Center for Women & Children, and American Cancer Society’s Hope Lodge. Following a hiatus in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Resort has reimagined the fundraiser, with safety top of mind. This year, a virtual 5K and 10K run/walk and streamed ceremonies will allow participants worldwide to be a part of the Resort’s tradition.
Earlier this year, Airbnb.org committed to provide temporary housing to 20,000 Afghan refugees worldwide. As thousands of Afghans continue to resettle in communities around the world, Airbnb.org announced today it is partnering with Calgary Catholic Immigration Society (CCIS) to support efforts across a national network of 34 resettlement agencies.