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Council’s Hotel Carbon Measurement Initiative (HCMI). This gives those hotels a competitive advantage in answering the RFP. One of the most recent developments


in this area is the extension by ABTA of its Travelife sustainability management scheme to hotels in the corporate sector, beyond its traditional tour operator base. The scheme has three goals – to help hotels


become more sustainable, to give corporates a risk management tool and to engage and educate business travellers. It currently offers accreditation for 1,500 hotels, which pay to take part in the scheme. Each hotel completes a 150-question survey covering the environment, human rights (including adherence to legislation, such as the Modern Slavery Act) in their supply chains, as well as guest engagement on these issues. In addi- tion, independent auditors spend 6-8 hours in each hotel, inspecting guest rooms and


Carbon Measurement Initiative could gain ground and make the comparison of the various suppliers’ efforts towards offering sustainable services and products easier. Something like HCMI would also be welcomed by the airlines.” “We need wider co-operation and experts


from various sustainability organisations to contribute their know-how to make faster progress,” she adds. The GBTA, for its part, has created RFP


Toolkits and also held education sessions for buyers, more of which are happen- ing this year. The organisation has also updated its Sustainability Self-Assessment Tool to help buyers understand their own organisation’s level of sustainable travel management and readiness to create a sus- tainable travel management programme. The tool helps organisations to measure themselves across ten different categories


“TMCs see ABTA’s Travelife sustainability management scheme as an opportunity to drive change down their supply chain”


interviewing staff members. Hotels need to update their accreditation every two years. Ian Allan Travel was the first TMC to sign


up to the Travelife scheme. “TMCs see this as an opportunity to drive change down their supply chain,” says the scheme’s commercial director, Soren Stober. Currently, the information is not available


through the GDS. TMCs instead gain access to all the information about the hotels in the Travelife database, and they can use it to map the hotels in their own programmes to promote the most sustainable. “One of the challenges we see is to have a critical mass in the big-business hubs,” says Stober. “We are working with the industry to drive more hotels into certification.”


INFORMATION IS POWER This is a challenge in the sector: access to accurate sustainability information at the point of purchase. The information in online booking tools is still led by price and schedules rather than sustainability. Placing this information in front of the traveller, particularly as business travel becomes more traveller-centric, would help with its acceptance. Minna Torppa says more standardisa-


tion should be welcome. “It would help if methodologies like the WTTC’s Hotel


BUYINGBUSINESSTRAVEL.COM BBT May/June 2017 37


in order to identify strengths and gaps within their travel programme as it relates to sustainability. One concern for those wanting to drive sustainable travel initiatives is the election of a less than environmentally-friendly presi- dent to head the world’s biggest economy. Minna Torppa says: “I do worry as Trump seems to be less interested in the environ- mental issues. But somehow I trust the US to be a strong democracy where one person is not able to dictate and change direction fast and furiously towards a general loss of interest in the environment.” ◆


How hotels are getting greener


• Refillable toiletry dispensers – Rather than filling the world with tiny plastic bottles, some hoteliers are starting to install refillable dispensers.


• Ozone laundries – The laundry is one of the most carbon-intensive parts of a hotel. Many are installing ozone machines which wash laundry with water saturated with ozone. This helps reduce costs and carbon emissions.


• Local sourcing – Many hotel restaurants pride themselves on using locally sourced produce but hotels are extending this practice to other suppliers, too.


• Hotel ‘farm’ – Taking the ‘eat local’ concept a stage further, some hotels are growing their own produce on-site to reduce food miles further. Some have even installed their own beehives for a supply of honey.


• The Internet of Things – Smart, web-connected devices such as thermostats, lights and air-con mean hotels can reduce their energy usage dramatically.


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