INTERNATIONAL REPORT—Hotels around the globe are making efforts to help the planet and communities in need. LEED certifications, going plastic-free and charitable donations are all some of the ways the industry is staying sustainable:
Wyndham Headquarters Recognized for Green Efforts
Wyndham Hotels & Resorts has received a Gold recertification from the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program for the company’s headquarters in Parsippany, NJ. The recertification designates Wyndham Hotels & Resorts corporate campus as one of the highest-performing green buildings in the country.
Wyndham Hotels & Resorts achieved a Gold LEED recertification through site-related credits such as:
- Open habitat protection—The building has native vegetation covering a minimum of 25% of the total land area. These natural areas provide a habitat and promote biodiversity.
- Storm water management—The company implemented a storm-water management plan to ensure runoff is effectively retained onsite from at least 15% of all precipitation for an average weather year, while also accounting for the potential of above-average rain totals.
- Water-efficient landscaping—The building eliminated irrigation on mature plant life and utilized natural and adaptive plantings on-site to further minimize water usage.
IHG to Remove Plastic Straws and Introduce Bulk Amenities
InterContinental Hotels Group will remove plastic straws from its global estate by the end of 2019, representing more than 5,400 hotels in nearly 100 countries. Plastic straws have already been removed from nearly 1,000 hotels in its Europe, Middle East, Asia & Africa (EMEAA) region and IHG is introducing bulk-size bathroom amenities to several hotel brands in the Americas, as part of broader efforts to reduce waste.
As part of its longer-term plans, there are other waste reduction efforts already underway:
- Through partnerships with Clean the World in the Americas and Soap for Hope in Asia, nearly 450 IHG-branded hotels have collectively prevented nearly 200,000 kg (440,925 lbs.) of soap from going to waste. Instead of heading to landfill, the soap has been recycled into nearly three million new bars for redistribution to communities in need.
- IHG Green Engage system, its online sustainability program, recommends ways for IHG-branded hotels worldwide to manage waste more effectively. This includes guidance on how it can handle, store, recycle and dispose of waste both on and off-site, to minimize environmental impact and costs.
Hotel Nia Receives LEED Certification
Hotel Nia, a newly opened Autograph Collection property in Menlo Park, CA, has achieved an LEED Silver building certification. Developed by Ensemble Investments with architectural design by Cuningham Group Architecture and LEED Engineering by Integral Group, the presentation of this award represents a milestone achievement for the 11-story, 250-room hotel.
Along with adhering to sustainable attributes throughout the construction process—including more than 85% waste diversion and 28.8% of total building materials manufactured via recycled materials—Hotel Nia also kept construction as local as possible, with 38.41% of the total building materials manufactured and extracted within 500 miles of the project site. This represents a decrease in virgin materials needed and in environmental impacts from production.
Hersha Hotels Aids in Providing Clean, Sustainable Water
Hersha Hotels and Resorts revealed that EarthView, their corporate social responsibility platform, will be providing support to the Waterboys program—the hallmark initiative of the Chris Long Foundation. Hersha will donate $1 from the sale of each EarthView water bottle that is purchased at its hotels toward the funding of wells in East Africa.
Launched in 2015 by the Philadelphia Eagles’ Chris Long, Waterboys unites NFL players from across the league in service. The charity provides underserved rural communities in emerging economies with clean, safe and sustainable water.
