NEWPORT BEACH, CALIF.—Earlier this week the first ever Green Travel Summit was held at the Fairmont Hotel in Newport Beach, Calif. It was attended by more than 100 of the travel industry’s top executives. The overarching sentiment of the conference was that “green” is not a destination but a concept that will continue to evolve.
On the second day of the conference the leading corporate travel executives and meeting professionals in attendance collectively arrived at the Top 10 Challenges Facing the Green Travel Industry. The challenges included: how to elevate “green” as a priority for both the consumer and supplier; where to begin; overcoming resistance to change; reporting of standards and metrics—measuring “green”; perception versus reality of the cost of being “green”; getting buy-in from senior management and stakeholders; funding of environmentally friendly travel; return on investment; buy-in from both the travel planner and travel supplier; and greenwashing—truth versus fiction.
Costas Christ, global travel editor and columnist for National Geographic Adventure and Chairman of the World Travel and Tourism Council shared that “the highway of green travel success is littered with wreckage.” He went on to say that “in order to put green into practice it must deliver a profitable business return.” Randy Krumpeck, global sourcing manager—travel & meetings for Sun Microsystems, echoed Christ’s remarks by stating that “a successful sustainable travel model turns on the wheels of a sound, profitable business model.”
While the conference was oriented to the travel industry as a whole, there were some excellent takeaways for the hotel industry. Of key interest were the following:
• Third party validation—Large corporate travel buyers are moving towards developing preferred provider lists comprised of hoteliers that provide third party validation of their environmental friendliness. Soon, a hotel just stating it is green will not cut it.
• Data to support green claims—There is a trend toward requiring data in the RFP process for conferences and meeting venues, which validates a property’s claims of eco-friendliness, especially as they relate to conference and meeting venues. Properties will be expected to provide reduction goals and historical data supporting their efforts.
• It’s about making money—Major hotel chains are investing heavily in improving the environmental performance of their properties because it’s good for business. Commenting about InterContinental Hotel Group’s recently implemented Green Engage, a top-down approach to greening their 5,000-plus properties, David Jerome, senior vice president, Corporate Social Responsibility for the company, said, “It’s not an exercise of how we give our money away but how we make money.”
• Educate the travel buyer—While location and price point will most likely remain the two primary factors influencing the buying decision, sustainability is increasing in importance. For this reason properties need to promote their initiatives within their corporate culture, marketing mediums and to their guests.
• The government’s going green—The Environmental Protection Agency is aggressively pursuing the Green Meeting Initiative which will define mandatory travel and meeting purchase procedures and is working in conjunction with ASTM International to develop standards for environmental procurement under Executive Order 13423 signed by President George Bush. The government intends to create market-driven environmental change forced by the government spending “green.”
While many challenges face the travel industry in going “green,” it was clear from attending the inaugural Green Travel Summit that “green” will be one of the most pressing challenges in the travel industry in the foreseeable future.
Richard Varner is the founder of www.iStayGreen.org.
