This week I would like to draw your attention to two well-known companies: Radisson Hotel Group and Club Med. As part of its Responsible Business Report 2021, Radisson Hotel Group just released news that it intends to reach net zero value chain GHG emissions by no later than 2050, in line with the SBTi Net-Zero Standard. In 2021, the Group reduced its carbon footprint by 23 percent per square meter and reduced 13 percent of its water footprint per square meter (vs. 2019). In line with the Group’s renewable energy transition strategy, more than 56 properties run 100 percent on renewable electricity. In 2021, Radisson Hotel Group properties were equipped with more than 500 electric car charging stations. Radisson Meetings continue to be 100 percent carbon neutral and have offset 37,800 tons of carbon since 2019. A total of 238 hotels are eco-labelled.
Key to Radisson’s progress is the action of its associates—its team members. Says Radisson’s 2021 report, “RHG works to promote active engagement and motivation in all team members as we strive to reduce our carbon footprint. We encourage every team member to be energy conscientious by switching off appliances and lights when not in use. And our ongoing communication strategy helps employees develop good energy-use habits. RHG’s preventive maintenance program ensured a guest experience free of negative surprises—while generating significant savings. Preventive maintenance tasks include the regular cleaning of air vents and filters, plumbing, water supply inspections and electrical checks.”
Adds Radisson in its 2021 report, “To make RHG properties future proof we have expanded our construction guidelines, by consolidating the best of three of the most important and widely used sustainable building certifications: LEED, BREEAM, and EDGE. Aligned with the building certifications, RHG has defined its own Build Planet levels. Build Planet Hotels are constructed or renovated based on a series of sustainable conditions from the preliminary assessment phases, up to the operational phase. This includes the use of sustainable materials and an efficient use of resources.
Be sure to take a look at Radisson’s Responsible Business Report 2021.
Club Med & Happy to Care
I recently had the privilege of interviewing Sophia Lykke. She is the Public Relations & CSR Manager for Club Med North America & Caribbean. Be sure to read that article. I learned a lot about Club Med’s activities in Corporate Social Responsibility thanks to Sophia. Did you know, for example, that Club Med is one of the first hospitality companies to have its own foundation? “We have been committed to ours more than 40 years already,” said Sophia, who is probably the only CSR manager on the planet to also have “Public Relations” in her title.
Sophia leads Club Med’s Happy to Care CSR charter. “CSR is part of our corporate DNA,” she told me. She is responsible for eight resorts in North America and the Caribbean.
In my article I highlight some of Club Med’s initiatives. In 2019, for example, the company started its “Bye Bye to Plastics” program. Items such as plastic cups and cutlery were included in the first phase. In the second phase the focus was on guestrooms with amenities replaced with non-plastic versions. In the next phase, which Sophia says she is currently working on, plastic bottles will begin to be eliminated. Two properties—Club Med Québec Charlevoix and Club Med Michès Playa Esmeralda—are already plastic free.
Certification is also important to Club Med. All its resorts in the United States and Caribbean are Green Globe certified. Club Med has also utilized BREEAM construction standards and participates in ATR (Acting for Responsible Tourism) certification.
Since 2008, Club Med, in partnership with AGRISUD, has promoted local extensive agriculture and agroecology near several of its resorts. This partnership aims to support very small farms to develop them in a viable and sustainable way nearby Club Med sites. Hundreds of producers are trained to apply the principles of environmentally friendly agriculture and benefit from support and training in the management of their production. Producers can access new markets, such as Club Med.
These are just a few examples of Club Med’s sustainability efforts. To learn more about Club Med’s Happy to Care program and to access the company’s latest CSR report, click here.
Green Lodging News Adds Advanced Vapor Video to Home Page
Green Lodging News has added a new video from Advanced Vapor Technologies to the Featured Vendor Video section of its website. The video explains the technology at the heart of the company’s steam vapor cleaning systems—TANCS. TANCS stands for Thermal Accelerated Nano Crystal Sanitation, a factory-installed internal component that uses the minerals found in tap water to break down pathogens at a molecular level including viruses, bacteria, and fungi. It is designed to kill microscopic organic matter in just seconds.
In a study published in the American Journal of Infection Control, researchers in the School of Environmental Health at the University of Michigan found that TANCS-equipped steam vapor systems achieve a greater bacterial biofilm kill rate in 3 seconds than a 20-minute exposure to bleach. The company’s continuous refill system allows water to be added at any time. Simply open the reservoir cap, which is not pressurized. The boiler still holds superheated steam when water is sought from the reservoir. This allows one to work non-stop.
To learn more about Advanced Vapor Technologies, go to https://www.advap.com/ or call (800) 997-6584.
Who is Your Sustainability Champion?
Green Lodging News is always looking to profile sustainability champions in our Personnel Profile section. If you would like to nominate someone for this section of Green Lodging News, contact me at (813) 510-3868, or by e-mail at greenlodgingnews@gmail.com.
Looking for Guest Columnists
Every two weeks Green Lodging News posts a new guest column on its website. (Click here for examples.) The guest column also appears in the weekly e-newsletter. Green Lodging News is currently in need of industry experts to contribute occasional guest columns. Experts may include consultants, architects, designers, suppliers, and those who own or operate green lodging establishments. Columns may be articles that take a stance on a particular subject or be strictly educational in nature. Columnists benefit by having their photo included along with a one paragraph description of their company. Interested in writing a column? Contact Glenn Hasek, publisher and editor, at (813) 510-3868, or by e-mail at greenlodgingnews@gmail.com.
Get in the Green Suppliers Spotlight!
Green Lodging News, lodging’s leading environmental news source, publishes Green Suppliers Spotlight, an e-blast to 22,206 subscribers that features the lodging industry’s leading green products and services. The e-blast features multiple vendors—unlike the current Green Supplier Spotlight that allows one supplier to “own” the Green Lodging News subscriber list for one e-blast. (Click here for a Green Suppliers Spotlight sample.)
Green Suppliers Spotlight is published weekly on Thursdays to general managers, owners, management companies, directors of sustainability, directors of engineering, facilities managers and many others who are either in purchasing positions or who influence purchasing decisions. Suppliers of green products and services throughout North America and beyond are invited to participate in the e-blast. (Minimum two suppliers per e-blast.) Green Suppliers Spotlight was created to give vendors an opportunity to reach a high number of industry purchasers at a very low cost—as low as $200 per e-mail. (Click here for rate sheet.)
Those advertising in Green Suppliers Spotlight can include up to 100 words, one image, contact information and multiple links to their website in their ad. At the end of each week, a report will be sent to each supplier with information on delivered e-mails, opens and click-throughs.
Planning Advertising for 2022?
Green Lodging News is accepting reservations for advertising spots for 2022. Many excellent spots are available on our website and in the weekly e-mail newsletter. Many Green Supplier Spotlight dates are also available. Interested in receiving a 2022 media kit? Be sure to contact me as soon as possible at (813) 510-3868, or by e-mail at greenlodgingnews@gmail.com. A media kit can also be accessed by clicking here. Thank you to all those companies that consistently support Green Lodging News.
Newsletter & Green Supplier Spotlight Circulation
The circulation of our weekly e-newsletter and Green Supplier Spotlight currently stands at 22,206. Thank you to our new subscribers for signing up. Be sure to encourage your colleagues to do the same. There are “subscribe” links on the Green Lodging News home page. You may also e-mail greenlodgingnews@gmail.com to be added to our list.
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As always, I can be reached at greenlodgingnews@gmail.com.
