BERLIN—The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) launched a pioneering readiness roadmap, aiming to simplify sustainability reporting in the Travel & Tourism sector. Launched during ITB Berlin, WTTC and Oliver Wyman announced the Sustainability Reporting Readiness Roadmap, a strategic tool to guide businesses through sustainability frameworks, compliance timelines, and readiness assessments, simplifying the journey towards sustainable compliance. This roadmap is more than just a tool; it’s a strategic compass, enabling companies to decode sustainability reporting complexities, identify relevant compliance standards, and evaluate their sustainability data and platform maturity. The call to action is clear: governments must offer sector-specific guidance and phased requirements...

ALEXANDRIA, VA.—The GBTA Foundation, the charitable arm of the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA), has launched GBTA Sustainable Procurement Standards, an educational resource that corporate travel buyers worldwide can utilize to make informed procurement decisions and deliver on their organization’s sustainability objectives. The Standards also align with the Biden Administration’s formal commitment last December to accelerate sustainable travel practices. Additionally, GBTA Sustainable Procurement Standards help ensure suppliers are better prepared to respond to procurement-related requests in a harmonized way by providing a standard set of questions for assessing the sustainability practices of current or potential vendors, partners, and suppliers. The Standards are a free resource...

ST. PAUL, MINN.—Ecolab Inc., a global sustainability leader offering water, hygiene and infection prevention solutions and services that protect people and the resources vital to life, announced the successful sourcing of enough clean electricity to power 100 percent of its European operations, thanks to the completion of a windfarm project with the global renewable energy company, Low Carbon. In 2022, Ecolab and Low Carbon entered into an agreement to develop the Mörknässkogen windfarm, located on the west coast of Finland near the city of Vaasa. Now, the windfarm has reached full commercial operation, and its 30MW capacity will generate approximately...

BERLIN—BeCause, a technology start-up transforming how the global hospitality, travel and tourism industries manage its sustainability data, has digitized the Sustainable Hospitality Alliance’s (the Alliance) HCMI and HWMI methodologies. The new feature, announced during ITB Berlin, will enable hotels to leverage the Alliance’s free industry measurement tools, the Hotel Carbon Measurement Initiative (HCMI) and Hotel Water Measurement Initiative (HWMI). The HCMI, based on the Greenhouse Gas Protocol, is used to calculate a hotel’s carbon footprint, while the HWMI helps hotels calculate water usage on their properties; both are now available within the BeCause centralized hub. HCMI, the only industry-recognized carbon calculation methodology for over a decade, applies...

AMSTERDAM, THE NETHERLANDS—Amidst record-breaking participation from over 70 universities worldwide, the Sustainable Hospitality Challenge (SHC) by Hotelschool The Hague launches its 10th edition, signaling a new era of sustainable hospitality. Recognized as the biggest student challenge in the hospitality industry, the Sustainable Hospitality Challenge champions sustainable impact through collaboration in a “Shark Tank”-style competition. Each year, students from diverse disciplines present investible products ready for market integration, with the platform striving to promote, create, and stimulate investments in sustainable solutions that push boundaries and positively impact the hospitality industry. NEOM returns to the Sustainable Hospitality Challenge this year as the event’s...

BERLIN, GERMANY—The World Travel & Tourism Council’s (WTTC) Hotel Sustainability Basics (Basics), the global initiative helping hoteliers on their first steps to improve their sustainability ratings, has reached a significant milestone with over 1,700 hotels verified across 70 countries worldwide. In her speech at ITB Berlin, WTTC President & CEO Julia Simpson celebrated the achievement and highlighted the commitment of the industry towards a more sustainable future. Basics is a key pillar to making hotels more sustainable and giving the public an at-glance verification. Hotels groups from major travel and tourism destinations such as France, China, Mexico, India, Germany, South Africa,...

PLAYA DEL CARMEN, MEXICO—Sandos Hotels & Resorts announced the completion of 336 nature-inspired and family-focused rooms at its Sandos Caracol Eco Resort. The renovated rooms and suites have been integrated into the property’s signature Eco Collection, which offers three categories of jungle-inspired accommodation options. Nestled amidst the Riviera Maya’s lush coastal landscape, the innovative 941-key property invites guests to explore the region’s mesmerizing flora and fauna from the comfort of its latest ecology-conscious suites, specifically designed with families and the environment in mind. Additionally, as part of this phase of the renovation, two reimagined culinary concepts have been introduced at the...

LAS VEGAS—MGM Resorts International has been recognized for leadership in corporate transparency and performance on climate change by global environmental non-profit CDP, securing a place on the organization’s annual A List. MGM Resorts is one of just 347 companies that received the prestigious “A,” out of more than 23,000 scored, placing it in the top 0.015 percent of reporting companies. Grades are awarded on comprehensiveness of disclosure, awareness and management of environmental risk and best practices associated with environmental leadership. “Our inclusion on the CDP A List is a testament to the strategic importance we place on sustainability,” said Jyoti Chopra, Chief People,...

MALLORCA, SPAIN—RIU has presented its new Proudly Committed sustainability strategy. This change comes after a deep internal reflection on the future of the hotel industry and its impact on the community, the environment, and employees. As a result of this process, RIU decided to transform the company and place sustainability at the center of all the organization’s decisions to ensure that the impact of the company’s activity on both the local community and the surrounding ecosystems is always as positive as possible. Proudly Committed represents a turning point for RIU. The company has always been very proud of its commitment to providing customers...

CHICAGO—For the fifth consecutive year, JLL has been named to Barron’s 2024 list of the Most Sustainable U.S. Companies, which scores companies based on a variety of environmental, social, and governance, or ESG, measures. “We are honored to be consistently recognized by Barron’s for our efforts to embed ESG into our company,” says Erin Meezan, Chief Sustainability Officer for JLL. “Our inclusion on this list underscores how focused we are on shaping the future of real estate for a better world. From setting our own ambitious net-zero climate targets to providing industry-leading sustainability services to our clients, we’re working to accelerate the adoption...