KIRKLAND, WASH.—Sustainability has been at the forefront of family-owned, boutique hotel brand Noble House Hotels & Resorts’ ethos since its inception. The brand is announcing several achievements across its portfolio, which spans 29 properties throughout North America from Napa Valley’s wine country to Jackson Hole’s ski resorts and Florida’s luxury vacation destinations. “Increasingly, climate change and environmental sustainability, as well as the impact of tourism on communities, are becoming some of the most important issues for travelers, particularly Millennials and Gen Z,” says Stefan Műhle, VP, Regional Managing Director of Noble House Hotels & Resorts. “At Noble House Hotels & Resorts, we...

YORK, ENGLAND—B-Corp real estate investor and developer, Lamington Group, is delighted to unveil details of its next project under the award-winning, eco hometel brand, room2, with a York property that started site development this summer and will open in early 2026. This will be the brand’s first in the North of England and continues the group’s leading commitment to take real action on climate change by building and operating net-zero carbon properties. Located inside the city’s castle walls, room2 York will offer 116 guestrooms, a meeting space, laundry room, gym, and new Winnie’s cafe and bar concept specializing in home cooked...

CALGARY, CANADA—Carbon Upcycling Technologies, Inc., a leader in decarbonization and carbon capture and utilization (CCU) for hard-to-abate industries, along with the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) and the National Road Research Alliance (NRRA) has successfully completed a three-year study on the use of low-carbon cement in highways. The results highlight Carbon Upcycling’s ability to be a drop-in solution for reducing carbon-intensive cement in concrete. The study, managed by Sutter Engineering LLC and sponsored by the National Road Research Alliance (NRRA), rigorously tested 16 unique concrete mixtures in real-world conditions on an active Minnesota highway to identify options that could reduce the carbon footprint of...

For the first time in history, the UN Climate Change Conference (COP29) will focus on the tourism sector’s role in global climate action. The event, scheduled for November 20 in Baku, Azerbaijan, will see Tourism Ministers join the dialogue, highlighting the sector’s significance in climate action. This opportunity was facilitated by the combined efforts of the State Tourism Agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the World Tourism Organization (UN Tourism). It also reflects the shift towards a science-based approach in guiding the tourism sector on climate action, building on the Glasgow Declaration Initiative and the One Planet Sustainable Tourism...

THE HAGUE, NETHERLANDS—The Sustainable Hospitality Challenge (SHC), by Hotelschool The Hague, announces the Winner of its 2024 edition, revealed during the grand finale at the Future Hospitality Summit World in Dubai. This year’s competition, which brought together seven visionary student teams from across the globe, celebrated groundbreaking innovations set to reshape the future of hospitality. The 2024 edition saw an incredible level of competition, with a remarkable turnout from industry leaders eager to participate as jurors. Teams presented their innovative concepts to a distinguished panel of 19 current industry leaders, making this year’s challenge one of the most competitive...

MCLEAN, VA.—Hilton, a global leader in hospitality, reported the significant impact of its annual Travel with Purpose Week, a global week of community engagement among its nearly half a million team members around the world. Every year, Hilton’s global community of team members come together to give back to the communities where they live, work and travel. By partnering with local organizations, Hilton’s corporate and property-based team members support local destination stewardship, career development, community resilience and other social and environmental priorities. This year, more than 1,200 events were held in communities around the world, contributing approximately 72,500 volunteer hours in...

INTERNATIONAL REPORT—“Net-zero hotels” are something no one had heard of ten years ago, but now an increasing number are redirecting their efforts to reduce their carbon footprint and achieve this gold standard in hospitality sustainability. While this is an encouraging step—you might call it a breath of fresh air—the wider environmental challenges facing the hotel sector remain stark. According to the Sustainable Hospitality Alliance’s Global Hotel Decarbonisation Report, the sector must reduce its emissions by two-thirds by 2030 and 90 percent per room by 2050 if it’s to contribute to the goals set out in the Paris Climate Agreement. These ambitious...

LONDON—The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) reports a significant decrease in the climate footprint emissions of travel and tourism. Despite this positive development, the WTTC urges the sector to continue to innovate and invest in green technologies. WTTC’s latest Environmental & Social Research (ESR), created in partnership with the Ministry of Tourism of Saudi Arabia, reveals that in 2023 Travel & Tourism accounted for 6.7 percent of all emissions globally, down from 7.8 percent in 2019, when Travel & Tourism was at its peak. The research showcases an important achievement with the sector’s economic contribution growing faster than its environmental impact. Last...

TROY, N.Y.—Audubon International—the environmentally focused nonprofit organization offering members numerous certifications and conservation initiatives to protect the areas where we all live, work, and play—announced that it is one of 49 organizations to meet Travalyst’s criteria for lodging industry sustainability certification through its Green Lodging and Green Hospitality Programs. Founded in 2019 by Prince Harry, The Duke of Sussex, Travalyst is a not-for-profit coalition of some of the biggest brands in travel and technology including Booking.com, Expedia Group, Google, Skyscanner, Travelport and Trip.com Group. The coalition works to bring sustainability information to the forefront to help travelers make more informed choices on where they spend their dollars. “Being included among...

NATIONAL REPORT—Certified B Corporations have long been recognized globally as companies that meet high standards of social and environmental performance, transparency, and accountability for business-driven positive impact, yet they remained relatively under the radar within the tourism sector. However, the travel industry has witnessed significant growth in B Corps in the last few years, marking a pivotal shift towards the adoption of more sustainable and responsible business practices. This trend has been further solidified by the recent inclusion of B Corp Certification on Travalyst's first-ever list of sustainability certifications, standards, and schemes compliant with its discerning criteria. Travalyst is a not-for-profit global...