EarthCheck, the world’s leading sustainable tourism brand, has extended its partnership agreement with one of the world’s leading hotel companies, InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG), to support its commitment to delivering the highest level of sustainable operations and community engagement.
Last year IHG announced that its IHG Green Engage™ system, a point-based metric programme similar to LEED, would be rolled out across the company’s global estate of over 4,800 hotels from 1 January 2015. Properties that wish to move beyond internal recognition and earn independent third party certification will now have the option of seamlessly and cost-effectively gaining EarthCheck Certification.
The multi award winning InterContinental Hong Kong is one of EarthCheck’s star performers. In 2014, the hotel promoted its sustainable seafood menu and low carbon menu, which helps protect endangered animals and offsets carbon emissions.
“We are very proud to be an EarthCheck Gold Certified hotel and have made great strides in our environmental initiatives. As a globally responsible business, we want to promote Green Living not just for our hotel guests and employees, but also within the local community.” Jean-Jacques Reibel, Managing Director, InterContinental Hong Kong.
Stewart Moore, CEO of EarthCheck, congratulated IHG on its commitment to sustainability and the group’s achievements.
“IHG is one of EarthCheck’s standout sustainability heroes in the Asian region. We are proud to extend our partnership and have more of their properties certified. Our aim is to provide IHG hotels with quantifiable metrics to address their risks, deliver bottom line efficiencies, maximise guest experiences and minimise their environmental footprint.
“EarthCheck strive to reduce our members’ consumption levels and have identified over $500 million dollars in savings over the past five years. Moreover, the benefits achieved from being a member means the EarthCheck logo is highly regarded, with more than 6 million conscious travellers a week influenced to make a positive difference.”
Being an EarthCheck member means IHG also benefits from accessing one of the world’s largest tourism research databases, the EarthCheck Research Institute (ERI). The ERI has been associated with supporting over a $250 million worth of tourism and travel research.
“ERI research shows that sustainability is no longer a choice, but rather a global movement that all tourism and travel industries must now take seriously,” says Moore
“What we have found in market is a need to explain that certification schemes differ widely in what they offer. Many schemes are well intentioned but simply don’t do enough. Our experience and that shared by leading international groups, is that brand positioning, corporate governance expectations (CSR/Carbon) and consumer expectations need to be also factored into any discussion on ROI.
For more information on IHG Green Engage™ system hotels visit: http://www.ihg.com/hotels/us/en/global/support/greenengagehotels.
For more information, please contact:
Tara Roberson
Communications, EarthCheck
P: +61 7 3238 1950
E: tara.roberson@earthcheck.org
EarthCheck
EarthCheck is the world’s leading environmental management and professional services group for the travel and tourism industry. Its flagship product, EarthCheck Certification, has helped clients in more than 70 countries realise over $500 million in operational savings while reducing their footprint on the environment.
EarthCheck believes smart business practice and sustainability go hand-in-hand. It focuses on productivity, profitability and performance as well as resource efficiency, eliminating waste and safeguarding the social and natural environment.
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