Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group supports first ever industry-wide global commitment to sustainability

• Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group together with other leading global hotel groups reach consensus for a sustainable industry¹
• Carlson Rezidor’s Responsible Business strategy and action support this industry-wide commitment
• Four agreed 2030 goals focus on: carbon, water, youth employment, human rights
• Aligned by a focus on the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and marks the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development
• This long-term commitment sends call to action across the industry

Ahead of World Tourism Day, Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group, along with other leading global hotel groups in the International Tourism Partnership (ITP), reached a consensus on the goals for a sustainable hotel industry.

The ITP announced these four goals, which are in support of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, and focused on carbon, water, youth employment, and human rights.

“We are very proud to support the first ever industry-wide global commitment to sustainability,” said Federico J. González, President & CEO of The Rezidor Hotel Group and Chairman of the Global Steering Committee of Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group. “Since we launched our Responsible Business program over 15 years ago, Carlson Rezidor has made enormous progress in its commitment to sustainability – this has led to us being named one of world’s most ethical companies every year since 2010.”

“By committing to the ITP industry goals, we are stepping up our efforts to become even more sustainable as a company and as an industry,” González continued. “You can count on us at Carlson Rezidor to make your stay both memorable and responsible.”

The ITP goals are a carefully constructed and practically achievable response to four of the core sustainability issues impacting responsible hospitality providers globally. At a glance, they include:

• CARBON: Embracing science-based targets, and encourage the wider industry to join in reducing emissions at scale.
• WATER: Embedding water stewardship programs to reduce the number of people affected by water scarcity, improving water-use efficiency and contributing to improved hygiene and sanitation for communities around the globe.
• YOUTH EMPLOYMENT: Collectively impacting one million young people through employability programs by 2030, thereby doubling the industry’s current impact on tackling youth unemployment.
• HUMAN RIGHTS: Raising awareness of human rights risks, embedding human rights into corporate governance, and addressing risks arising in the labor supply chain and during hotel construction.

The launch recognizes the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development, which calls on the industry to coordinate to tackle issues and share best practices. ITP is an official ‘Friend’ of the initiative.

With its award-winning Responsible Business program, Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group is already significantly contributing to the ITP goals:

• CARBON: Carlson Rezidor is committed to finding energy solutions which lessen our impact on the environment while balancing the need for 100% guest satisfaction. Participating hotels support this commitment through investment in environmentally-friendly technology, use of renewable energy, and achieving operational efficiencies. In EMEA, Carlson Rezidor hotels have reduced energy consumption by 25% since 2011 and our Asia-Pacific hotels have achieved over 21% energy savings since 2009.

• WATER: Addressing the challenge of managing global water resources and providing everyone with access to clean drinking water are top priorities for Carlson Rezidor. Our hotels – especially those in water-stressed areas – have minimized water consumption by installing water-saving technologies and engaging guests and employees in water-saving activities. Our EMEA hotels have reduced water consumption by 29% since 2007. Blu Planet, the water-focused program of Radisson Blu hotels, recently won the IMEX Sustainability award for helping provide safe drinking water to over 15,000 children in water-stressed communities. Carlson Rezidor is a signatory of the UN CEO Water Mandate since 2015.

• YOUTH EMPLOYMENT: At Carlson Rezidor ‘we grow talent, talent grows us’. Over 40% of our talent employed is under 30 years of age*. Through the Youth Career Initiative and other similar programs we train and serve as mentors to underprivileged young people. Park Inn by Radisson hotels run a program called ‘Adding Color to Lives’, which allows us to mentor at-risk youth in their local communities and help them gain skills to increase their job prospects. Adding Color to Lives was recognized for excellence and innovation by the UN World Tourism Organization. * EMEA data

• HUMAN RIGHTS: At Carlson Rezidor we believe diversity makes us richer. One example of this can be seen at The Park Inn by Radisson Cape Town Foreshore, winner of the Guardian Sustainable Business award, where 30% of the employees are deaf. In the Park Inn by Radisson hotel in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, we have employed the first native Saudi female hotel General Manager. Carlson Rezidor hotels have a longstanding legacy in working to prevent sexual exploitation and human trafficking, in particular of children, and have followed the requirements of The Code since 2004. The Code (thecode.org) is an industry-driven initiative with the mission to provide awareness, tools and support to the tourism industry to prevent the sexual exploitation of children.

• In 2016, Rezidor was one of the first hospitality companies to publish its Modern Slavery Statement (see our Responsible Business report on www.responsiblebusiness.rezidor.com)

In a written endorsement, Dr Taleb Rifai, Secretary General of the UN World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) said: 

“For 25 years the hotel industry under ITP’s leadership has advanced sustainable tourism; developing tools and resources for hotels and lodgings around the world, sharing knowledge and working together for a more responsible future. ITP’s Goals are the next step to ensure continued sustainable development in our sector, setting clear aims for 2030, and bringing the hotel sector together to align with the Global Goals.”

Wolfgang M. Neumann, ITP Governing Council Chair and industry thought-leader, commented:

“We have agreed on a total of four core Goals, with two addressing environmental issues (climate and water), and two supporting the people who work in the hotel industry and its supply chain. This even balance between planet and people reflects the passions and dedication of ITP members to make a real and lasting difference to a broad range of issues against which commitments can be agreed.

”ITP believes that the hotel industry can be a force for good and make a positive contribution to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals and to the COP21 climate agreements. Our vision for 2030 is for sustainable growth and a fairer future for all. We understand that bigger impacts can be achieved faster through the industry working together at scale; for this reason we invite other hotel companies to join with us in our commitment to these four critical goals.“

Fran Hughes, ITP Director, commented:

”This cross-industry alignment to a single set of Goals is a fantastic achievement for the International Tourism Partnership. It is also a reflection of the increasing importance that the hospitality industry attaches to sustainability issues. As we move into the second half of the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development, business leaders have put competition to one side to create an ambitious vision for the future and a rallying call to the whole industry. By working together, I feel certain that these businesses will create a more sustainable future for the entire hospitality industry.“

 ABOUT THE INTERNATIONAL TOURISM PARTNERSHIP 

The International Tourism Partnership drives responsible business in the hospitality industry by engaging with the world’s leading hotel companies, which collectively manage 26,000 hotels. The alliance is focused on a single ambition: to lead the industry through example with clear and quantifiable commitments to sustainability.

ITP’s members are Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group, Diamond Resorts International, Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, Hilton, Hyatt, InterContinental Hotels Group, Marriott International, NH Hotel Group, Soneva, The Hong Kong and Shanghai Hotels Ltd, Taj Hotels, Resorts and Palaces, Whitbread and Wyndham Hotels and Resorts.

ITP turns responsible ambition and good ideas into positive action. We do this by sharing best practice, offering practical products and programs and facilitating collaboration in one of the world’s largest and most successful industries.

For our members we provide a non-competitive platform for leaders to share ideas, build relationships and work together on making the industry more responsible. For hoteliers around the world, however big and small, we provide access to valuable information and resources at no cost, allowing them to drive their own responsible business agendas. Most of this information is freely available on www.greenhotelier.org.

ITP is an initiative of Business in the Community. BITC is the Prince’s Responsible Business Network. Our members work together to tackle a wide range of issues that are essential to building a fairer society and a more sustainable future. We are a business-led, issue focused charity with more than 30 years’ experience of mobilizing business. We engage thousands of businesses through our programs driven by our core membership of over 800 organizations from small enterprises to global corporations.

For more information on ITP and our programs visit http://tourismpartnership.org/

MORE ON ITP GOALS  

YOUTH EMPLOYMENT

More than 71 million young people (aged from 15 to 24) worldwide are looking for work and 156 million young workers are living in poverty, often due to unstable, irregular jobs. Many find themselves working in difficult or dangerous conditions, often outside the boundaries of the formal economy. The hotel industry is well-equipped to offer meaningful work and career development options to young people, as it is growing at 4% each year, and currently providing around one in ten of all jobs. ITP members will collectively impact one million young people under the age of 25 through their own employability programs by 2030. This doubles their current impact on youth employability. ITP members also encourage the uptake of the Youth Career Initiative (YCI), created by the industry to bridge the gap between youth unemployment and a poor talent pipeline for hotels to recruit. There are more than 3,000 YCI graduates to date across 14 countries, with an 85% success rate of employment or returning to education.

CARBON

Rising carbon emissions are accelerating climate change with devastating impacts on communities and biodiversity. The hotel industry already accounts for around 1% of global emissions and this is set to increase as hospitality continues to grow. The hotel industry must reduce its absolute carbon emissions by 66% by 2030 and 90% by 2050 to stay within the 2˚C threshold agreed at COP21; this is a quantifiable ”science-based target". To drive sustainable growth for the future, ITP members embrace the ambition of science-based targets and encourage the wider industry to join their collaboration to develop carbon reductions at scale. ITP members also encourage the uptake of consistent reporting through the use of the Hotel Carbon Measurement Initiative (HCMI), developed in collaboration with ITP and already used by over 24,000 hotels worldwide. The initiative provides a common methodology for measuring and reporting on the carbon footprint of a hotel stay or meeting.

WATER

Demand for freshwater is likely to outstrip supply by 40% by 2030 and a third of the world’s population will be living in areas of severe water stress by this time. In many countries, water consumption per guest in hotels greatly exceeds that of the local population, so the industry has a responsibility to encourage responsible use and consumption. To improve water stewardship across the industry, ITP members commit to embedding water stewardship programs across their hotel portfolios as a means of reducing the number of people affected by water scarcity. Members also support improved water-use efficiency, sustainable withdrawals and supply of freshwater to address water scarcity. Members encourage the uptake of the Hotel Water Measurement Initiative (HWMI), a common methodology for measuring and reporting on the water footprint of a hotel stay or meeting.

HUMAN RIGHTS

Human rights are the basic rights and freedoms that all people are entitled to. By consensus of ITP members, human rights abuses within the sector are most likely to occur in a number of key areas: the supply chain and procurement, recruitment, the hotel construction phase, and vulnerability to human trafficking activities. ITP members recognize the critical importance of having an increased focus on human rights. As such members focus on fighting modern slavery, human trafficking, and increasing awareness, transparency and remediation. ITP members are committed to supporting the following four key goals to improve human rights in the industry:

• Continue to raise awareness of human rights risks in the hotel industry
• Embed human rights into corporate governance requirements
• Work to address human rights risks in the labor supply chain, including elimination of fees charged to workers to secure employment
• Identify ways to address human rights risks during the development and construction phase of hotels

About Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group

Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group is one of the world’s largest and most dynamic hotel companies and includes 1,440 hotels in operation and under development with more than 230,000 rooms and a footprint spanning 115 countries and territories. The Carlson Rezidor portfolio includes a powerful set of global brands: Quorvus Collection, Radisson Blu^®, Radisson^®, Radisson RED, Park Plaza^®, Park Inn^® by Radisson and Country Inns & Suites By Carlson^SM. Guests can benefit from Club Carlson^SM, a program that redefines hotel rewards with a collection of exceptional benefits, services, and privileges at more than 1,000 hotels worldwide. Over 95,000 people are employed in Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group hotel systems and the company is headquartered in Minneapolis, Singapore, and Brussels.

[1] ITP Members are listed in alphabetical order: Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group, Diamond Resorts International, Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, Hilton, Hyatt, InterContinental Hotels Group, Marriott International, NH Hotel Group, Soneva, The Hong Kong and Shanghai Hotels Ltd, Taj Hotels, Resorts and Palaces, Whitbread and Wyndham Hotels and Resorts