GULF BREEZE, FLA.—Innisfree Hotels’ corporate social responsibility program is called The Hive. Inspired by a line from the company’s namesake poem, “The Lake Isle of Innisfree,” The Hive is a busy place for the Innisfree family to connect with each other—and do good in the world. Since last August Hive activity has picked up thanks to the hiring of Brittney Barnett, Director of Sustainability.
“Before I came on, Innisfree declared itself a triple bottom line company, but it was fragmented,” Barnett says. The Gulf Breeze, Fla.-based company, which owns most of the 22 hotels that it manages, participated in some community activities, and adopted property-level initiatives from the brand of the hotel it happened to be managing.
“One of the first things I did was see what was already being done,” Barnett says. “I really wanted to get a foothold. We adopted a companywide sustainability policy.” That policy is triple bottom line oriented with a focus on people, planet, and profit. A Green Committee was formed with eight people representing operations, marketing, retail, and other areas. Barnett leads that committee. At each property, “Arise” teams were formed. All these green teams get together annually.
Early this year, Innisfree Hotels announced that all four of its Pensacola Beach, Fla. properties have been recognized by the Green Key Global Eco-Rating Program for their ongoing commitment to improving their environmental and fiscal performance. The Green Key Global Eco-Rating Program is an “eco-audit” that awards hospitality and tourism enterprises up to 5 Green Keys based on their sustainability practices and diligence when it comes to eco-friendly operations. Of the four Pensacola properties, Hilton, Hampton, and Holiday Inn Resort have each received a rating of 4 Green Keys, while the Surf and Sand was awarded 3 Green Keys. Barnett says she hopes to have the remainder of Innisfree Hotels Green Key Global certified this year.
Four Key Focus Areas
For 2022 it is also the company’s goal to focus on climate action, resource preservation, ecological balance, and health and wellbeing. Initiatives within these goals align with some of the United Nation’s 17 Sustainable Development Goals. With many of its hotels on the Florida coast Innisfree Hotels is particularly vulnerable from a climate risk standpoint. Hurricane Sally in 2020 damaged many of the company’s hotels.
“We are planning for sea level rise,” Barnett says. “We are taking a deep dive into how we are most vulnerable. I hope it will inform the development side as well.”
On the road to reducing its carbon impact, Innisfree first did energy audits. “Every property is different,” Barnett says. “We tackled the low-hanging fruit first. We purchased Energy Star appliances and made sure our HVAC systems and dishwashers use as little energy as possible. We wrapped boilers with insulation, freshened up our preventive maintenance programs and a couple of hotels installed variable frequency drives. We also have Honeywell systems for most of our common areas.”
Innisfree Hotels is considering renewable energy systems for its hotels and is currently getting estimates. “We have a geothermal loop at one hotel,” Barnett says. “We are looking at solar canopies.”
To minimize water consumption, low-flow aerators, toilets, and showerheads are in place. “We are having water audits conducted,” Barnett says. “We found an issue with an irrigation system at one property.” Daily housekeeping is not offered, and Barnett says Innisfree Hotels would like to keep that permanent. One device currently being considered: shower timers.
Recycling Remains a Challenge
To reduce waste, the company is working on a food waste composting program and doing little things such as providing straws only upon request. “The recycling has been very difficult,” Barnett admits.
To ensure a high level of indoor air quality (IAQ), entry mats are being checked, MERV filters with at least an 8 rating are being installed, paints with low or no VOCs are used, and any other item purchased must not contain VOCs. Innisfree Hotels is also working towards a green cleaning program to further improve IAQ.
A little more than a year ago, Innisfree Hotels appointed Rusty Branch to the position of Vice President of Community Engagement. Examples such as a community gardens project called “From the Ground Up”, supporting the Dixon School of Arts & Sciences in different ways, the opening of the Luna Fine Art Gallery, and supporting Independence for the Blind can be found on the company’s website.
Barnett says Branch has been instrumental in working with Parent University in Pensacola. This university equips parents with the tools they need to be successful parents. Innisfree Hotels employees teach some of the classes. “We partnered with the city on it,” Barnett says. Additional community initiatives include participating in the Equity Project Alliance which brings together business leaders to focus on equity and inclusion, and The Bail Project which focuses on assisting those in jail with bail assistance.
Glenn Hasek can be reached at greenlodgingnews@gmail.com.
