Hospitality Investor just released a white paper entitled, “Embracing Sustainability in Franchised Hotels.” It is written by Philip Halanen, Head of Sourcing & Sustainability EMEA at Wyndham Hotels & Resorts.
“The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate how sustainability is being embraced in franchised hotels, especially in the midscale and economy segments and in markets such as India, the Middle East and Türkiye. It will also explore the steps we and our owners are taking to accelerate progress,” Halanen says.
The author proves that what is driving interest in sustainability in hotels is consumer and investor demand. Geographically, Europe and the U.S. have been the major driving countries to date.
Halanen notes that Wyndham’s global sustainability program, Wyndham Green, is not only being practiced at luxury hotels but also in the economy and midscale segments.
The author says Wyndham Green was built around five key pillars of sustainability:
- Climate change: Minimizing impact on climate change by reducing emissions.
- Energy efficiency and renewable energy: Becoming energy efficient and increasing the use of renewable energy.
- Water conservation: Increasing water saving activity based on identification of risks and opportunities.
- Waste diversion: Generating a better understanding of waste profiles and using that knowledge to divert more waste from landfill.
- Biodiversity: Recognizing key biodiversity or protected areas and implementing measures to safeguard them.
Wyndham properties are certified from Level 1 to 5 for their efforts. Halanen says Wyndham hotels are increasingly becoming more interested in taking the necessary steps to green their hotels. For example, Across the Middle East and Africa, over 83 percent of franchised Wyndham hotels are registered on Wyndham Green.
“What has become clear from our implementation of Wyndham Green is that the franchise community is serious about sustainability,” Halanen says.
The paper cites Wyndham franchisee Roadchef as a good example of a company that has embraced Wyndham Green. It has recently achieved certification across all 17 of its sites in the U.K. “Some of the key actions we’ve initiated include conducting an energy audit to identify areas of suboptimal efficiency and savings, introducing water saving measures such as low-flow toilets and showerheads, and using environmentally friendly cleaning products,” says Dan Sutton, Roadchef’s Head of Hotels. “These might not appear like huge, game changing events, but by taking things one step at a time these types of measures can really add up to make a big difference.”
Roadchef also operates a highly effective waste and recycling scheme. Named “We’ll Sort It”, the program has enabled the franchise to be officially recognized as a zero waste to landfill company since 2019.
To learn more about Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, you can visit their website. To access the white paper, click here.
