Environmental

Radisson Hotel Group and Allego announced a strategic partnership to provide a Green Mobility network throughout Europe.

By committing to adhere to Scandic’s list of ten good habits for summer travel, travelers can earn points for future stays at Scandic hotels. The habits have been developed by Scandic’s sustainability department and cover everything from smiling at fellow travelers to choosing more plant-based food and collecting waste on the go to recycle later.

The unexpected and unprecedented slowdown – in many cases shutdown – of the travel industry in the last year has spurred an acceleration of activity by some stakeholders in the area of sustainability, in effect brought on by a “perfect storm” of pre-existing momentum around this topic coupled with pandemic-induced time for reflection and innovation.

By the end of Q1 2021, the Group had achieved nearly 70% reduction in this annual plastic footprint. Based on estimated plastic stock depletion timelines and supplier delivery commitments, it is expected that all hotels will eliminate SUP by the end of Q1 2022, avoiding 930 tonnes of plastic waste each year.

Surveys indicate a silver lining to the pandemic is a heightened commitment to “sustainable” travel by consumers. But as vaccinations lift travel prospects, hopes for a “green” recovery may have been overblown. Sustainable travel has grown in popularity in recent years as people have tried to mitigate the negative effects of tourism, either by avoiding damaging practices or offsetting them.

Hilton has partnered with social enterprise South Pole to offset the carbon footprint of meetings and events across approximately 60 hotels in Europe, the Middle East and Africa at no extra cost to the customer.

Innovators with ideas to help achieve the Sustainable Development Goals have been celebrated in Madrid. The final of the UNWTO SDGs Global Startup Competition saw 25 entrepreneurs and enterprises recognized for their creativity and commitment to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its 17 ambitious goals.

Last year was undoubtedly one of the worst years in the history of the lodging industry but that bad year saw the continuation of one of the industry’s most notable success stories—Hilton’s Home2 Suites extended stay brand. Designed with 'sustainability being a key pillar,' according to Global Brand Head Leonard Gooz, this year marks the tenth anniversary of the brand.

Upon assuming Presidency of the G20, Italy has drawn on UNWTO data to highlight the impact the pandemic has had on tourist numbers globally and how this translates into lost jobs and revenues, as well as lost opportunities for social development.

Hilton (NYSE: HLT) has released its 2020 Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Report, which highlights the company’s continued commitment to redefining sustainable travel and driving positive impact on people and the planet.