Sustainability in The Hospitality Industry: Working Towards 'Travel Without a Footprint' - By Mandeep S Lamba and Dipti Mohan

The hospitality sector has come a long way in adopting sustainable hotel operations and adopting eco-friendly hotel design and construction techniques will be the sector's next big step toward sustainability. Read on to know more.

“Sustainability” has evolved beyond a trendy buzzword in recent years, with consumers and businesses alike becoming more conscious and involved in playing their part in preserving the planet for future generations. India has pledged to achieve carbon neutrality by 2070, and in order to turn the country’s climate-change-related ambitions into reality, all industries must work together in an unprecedented collaboration.

Thanks to the growing demand for “greener” holidays, sustainability has become crucial even in the tourism and hospitality sectors, which not only make significant contributions to global warming and climate change but also suffer from its effects. Nowadays, travelers not only want to go to an eco-friendly destination, but they also want to know how ecologically responsible the place is; the more climate-friendly a destination is, the more attractive it becomes. Moreover, adopting ecofriendly practices not only help hotels win over green travelers but also help in reducing costs and improving the bottom line in the longer run. Hence, not only are forward-thinking companies upping their climate action, but the entire sector is moving towards a greener, more sustainable future.

The hospitality sector has come a long way when it comes to adopting sustainable hotel operations, from reducing single-use plastic and going paperless to putting the 3 Rs (reduce, reuse, recycle) into practice and implementing rainwater harvesting as well as other strategies like smart meters and motion-activated lights and faucets to save water and energy. The adoption of green and sustainable hotel design and construction techniques will be the sector's next big step toward sustainability. As per United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) buildings, including hotels, account for 37% of global energy-related greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and with 75-80% of the existing buildings across the world expected to still be in use by 2050, the hospitality industry must now prioritize sustainable construction practices and retrofitting existing hotels to achieve sustainability goals.

This report is simply a gentle “nudge” to the sector to adopt more ecologically responsible practices so that we can soon make travel “footprint” free.

Click here ( Adobe Acrobat PDF file) to download the report.

Mandeep S. Lamba, President – South Asia, oversees the HVS practice in South Asia. Mandeep has spent over 30 years in the hospitality industry having worked with International Hotel Companies such as Choice Hotels, IHG and Radisson Hotels before becoming President for ITC Fortune Hotels in 2001. Having successfully built the Fortune brand in India’s mid-scale hospitality sector, Mandeep ventured into an entrepreneurial stint for over 8 years, setting up JV companies with Dawnay Day Group UK and Onyx Hospitality Thailand before joining JLL in 2014, as Managing Director, Hotels & Hospitality Group – South Asia. An established industry leader, Mandeep has won several awards and recognitions for his accomplishments. Recently, he was featured in the Hotelier India Power List of the most respected hoteliers in India for the second year in a row. Contact Mandeep at +91 981 1306 161 or mlamba@hvs.com.

Dipti Mohan, Senior Manager - Research with HVS South Asia, is a seasoned knowledge professional with extensive experience in research-based content creation. She has authored several ‘point of view’ documents such as thought leadership reports, expert opinion articles, white papers and research reports. Contact Dipti at dmohan@hvs.com.