Sustainability Trends in Hospitality: Key Benefits and Strategies

This article explores the importance of sustainability in the hospitality industry, showcases real-life examples of sustainable practices in action, and highlights key strategies hotels and businesses can adopt to align with sustainability trends in hospitality. 

Climate change is driving the world’s agenda. Business leaders everywhere are wrestling with how to respond to rising public and political pressure and align their systems and operations with the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement, established to keep global warming below 2°C and ideally 1.5°C. None more so than for hotels, that means reducing their emissions by 90 percent by 2050.  

Sustainability is no longer an optional consideration for the hospitality industry—it is a business imperative. With buildings accounting for 1% of global carbon emissions and hotels producing significantly more energy usage than other types of structures, the call for sustainable practices in hospitality has never been louder.  

According to Booking.com, 83% of travelers believe sustainable travel is essential, and the demand for eco-conscious hospitality is growing dramatically. 

This article explores the importance of sustainability in the hospitality industry, showcases real-life examples of sustainable practices in action, and highlights key strategies hotels and businesses can adopt to align with sustainability trends in hospitality. 

The Importance of Sustainability and CSR for Businesses 

Sustainability is key for businesses seeking longevity, a positive reputation, and corporate social environmental responsibility. By adopting sustainable practices, organizations can show their commitment to responsibility while benefiting from waste reduction and cost savings. 

A study by Just Capital— an outlet that ranks U.S. companies on issues such as fair pay, equal treatment and ecological impact—found that companies that outperform their competitors on environmental indicators enjoy a median return-on-equity that is three percent higher than that of their counterparts. 

In other words, sustainable management pays—both in terms of efficiency as well as brand loyalty and employee retention.  

Why Sustainability Matters in Hospitality

Along with hotels, the transportation and food and beverage industries are all major contributors to greenhouse gas emissions, which lead to climate change.  

That’s why it’s essential that hotel managers find ways to keep on top of sustainability trends in the hospitality industry —not only because it’s a moral imperative but it makes good business sense.  

Today’s—and tomorrow’s—workers and travelers are among the most powerful and influential consumers ever, and increasingly, they are supporting companies that are purpose-driven. In fact, there is a growing number of sustainability-focused hospitality career paths. 

Not only do millennials tend to seek out sustainable travel and dining options, but a survey by the Governance and Accountability Institute found that 40 percent of millennial respondents chose their employer because of their sustainability performance. And 70 percent of millennials are more likely to stay with a company with a strong environmental reputation and policy. 

No matter the scale of the operation, managers can adopt a number of approaches—many of them inexpensive and accessible—to make sustainability practices a key aspect of their brand’s management practices as well as overall ethos. From building design to recycling to reducing food waste, hospitality managers can systematically begin to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and help to achieve the Paris agreement objectives. 

Sustainability Strategies for Hotels and Hospitality Businesses   

In any hotel, the areas with the most environmental impact are water, waste and energy use. Here are the 3 hotel management trends making an impact on sustainability in the hospitality industry. 

Trend #1 Reducing Consumption  Energy Efficiency: 

Energy usage is often referred to as a business’ carbon footprint. Hotels can also conserve energy by replacing mini-fridges and coffee machines in each room with communal amenities.  

Investing in energy-efficient appliances, automated energy management systems and retrofitting buildings for energy efficiency are also key to greenhouse gas reduction. And these efficiency upgrades typically pay for themselves in less than three years and generate energy savings of 5% to 15%. 

Water Conservation: 

Many of the improvements in this area are straightforward: reducing water pressure in showers, installing leak-detecting water systems and rainwater harvesting systems, minimizing water use for laundry and encouraging guests to be mindful of towel usage. The savings can be significant: Water-efficient bathrooms alone can lead to a 15% reduction in use. 

Food Waste: 

One of the key areas for reducing waste and increasing efficiency is food service. Food production is the single leading cause of deforestation, biodiversity loss and water extraction.  

And with a third of all food wasted globally, we continue to use precious resources for no good reason. By growing food onsite, sourcing food locally, reducing plate waste and increasing the plant-based offering on their menus, hoteliers can help to drive positive change.  

The British firm Olleco, for example, collects food waste from restaurants and hotels and turns it into biofuel. 

Prompting Sustainable Guest Practices: 

Encouraging guests to adopt sustainable habits can be achieved by designing hotel spaces and services that make eco-friendly practices effortless or even automatic. 

 Equally important is ensuring these changes enhance, rather than detract from, the guest experience. For instance, when eliminating single-use plastics, invest in high-quality, effective alternatives that meet or exceed the functionality of plastic.  

Simple adjustments, such as providing in-room recycling bins and clearly communicating towel and bed linen policies to minimize laundry, can also make a significant impact without compromising comfort or convenience. 

This shift also underscores the lasting impact the industry can have: 

“This is the true power of the hospitality industry: it can serve as a tool to impart different values to its customers, potentially helping them adopt these values as their own.” 

Dr. Isabella Blengini, Associate Professor of Economics at EHL. 

Trend #2 Use of Technology 

While the digital revolution has been disrupting the industry for a number of years, the COVID pandemic swiftly accelerated progress. Contactless check-ins, keyless room entry and guest messaging platforms were essential for reducing friction and keeping everyone safe.  

In terms of convenience, online apps provide guests with seamless ways to order room service, book spas and request additional towels.. 

But digital technology has important sustainability benefits, such as reducing paper and plastic. One report found that a single hotel guest generates about two pounds of waste per night: paper, plastic, and cardboard account for half that waste.  

Switching to a digital guest room tablet can produce immediate benefits, eliminating the need for paper menus, flyers, and in-room directories. 

Hilton uses a high-tech system called Connected Room that enables guests to personalize and control every aspect of their stay from their smart phones. That means controlling energy use, for example, so that when guests aren’t physically in their rooms – typically around 70% of the time – hotels can power down their lights, televisions, heating and air conditioning, dramatically reducing energy consumption. 

Trend #3 Measure & Manage 

Mobile technology also enables hotel staff to engage guests in sustainability initiatives. For example, real-time monitoring and reporting solutions allow guests to measure their water use and thus encourage users to reduce their consumption. 

As management tools, digital platforms like fluttrfluttr and Con-Serve created by the Considerate Group, for example, helps hotels understand, measure and manage their energy consumption, helping to reduce electricity, water and fossil fuel use—and CO2 emissions. As the maxim goes: What gets measured gets managed. 

Examples of Sustainable Hotel Management in Action 

Many leading hospitality brands have already embraced innovative solutions to embed sustainability into their operations. No matter where a hotel is in its sustainability journey, it’s useful to take guidance and inspiration from those that have embedded sustainably squarely into their DNA.  

“The challenge is that sustainability is often associated with sacrifice, but it doesn’t have to be that way. Sustainability can be implemented without sacrificing quality, even in the luxury segment,” says Friederike Grupp, Head of Sustainability of Hotelplan Group.  

The following list of hospitality businesses demonstrates that sustainability and luxury can work together harmoniously. 

Meliá Hotels International 

The SAM Corporate Sustainability Assessment ranked the most sustainable hotel chains worldwide.  

Spain-based Meliá Hotels International was awarded the highest possible points in criteria such as Climate Action, Transparency and Reporting, and Human Rights.  

Meliá also became first international hotel chain to make use of environmental blockchain technology to offset its carbon footprint. In collaboration with Spanish carbon off-setting company, Climatetrade, it allows guests to spend their credits on initiatives against climate change “which help develop, protect and conserve natural ecosystems “. 

1 Hotels 

U.S. boutique hotel chain, 1 Hotels, focuses on sustainability from the start, designing their buildings responsibly and selecting furniture made from reclaimed wood, for example. Food and beverage operations rely on seasonal and local produce, and staff members as well as guests are encouraged to learn about and engage in environmentally friendly practices. 

Hotel Hermitage Monte Carlo  

This luxury hotel implemented a rainwater harvesting system, helping it reduce water waste significantly. Its switch to energy-saving solutions, like automated lighting and low-energy elevators, has also garnered recognition within sustainable tourism circles. 

1893 Restaurant 

Our very own 1893 restaurant at EHL Lausanne Campus epitomizes sustainable dining. Ingredients are harvested fresh from organic gardens on campus, while innovative partnerships with startups like KITRO allow them to tackle food waste using AI-powered solutions.  

A Call to Action for Hospitality Leaders 

The hospitality industry holds the potential to lead the charge in addressing environmental challenges. By embedding sustainability within core practices, businesses can unlock numerous benefits—reduced costs, increased guest loyalty, and a lasting legacy as eco-conscious trailblazers. 

Whether you’re retrofitting an existing property or building from scratch, the time to start your sustainability transformation is now.  

Together, we can redefine hospitality—one sustainable step at a time. 

This article originally appeared on EHL Insights.