Home Publisher's Point of View Report Highlights Marriott’s Green Goals, Leadership in Many Different Areas

Report Highlights Marriott’s Green Goals, Leadership in Many Different Areas

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Marriott International just released its 2014 Sustainability Report. It is the third time Marriott has issued a Sustainability Report using guidelines established by the Global Reporting Initiative. Different this time is how Marriott is presenting its report. One can either read it as a whole or select from a series of Issue Reports in areas such as Environmental Performance, Community Engagement, and Ethics and Human Rights. This new approach, according to Denise Naguib, Marriott’s Vice President of Sustainability and Supplier Diversity, makes the report a lot more readable. “The graphical changes are also much more appealing,” she told me in an interview this past week.

There is much to pay attention to in the report. Marriott is still on pace to achieve a 20 percent reduction in energy and water intensity by 2020 (baseline year 2007). So far Marriott has reduced water intensity by 13 percent, energy intensity by 11 percent, and greenhouse gas emissions intensity by 12 percent. “Considering we are still seven years from our goal, we are definitely on target,” Naguib says. “We know we will have to work twice as hard in the coming years.”

Marriott continues to be an industry leader in green building with 43 hotels LEED certified and 90 more registered to be certified. A total of 3,427 Marriott properties currently track their footprint using Green Hotels Global, a system operated by The Carbon Accounting Co. Marriott now has 1,541 properties represented as part of TripAdvisor’s GreenLeaders Program. In the United States there are 1,426 Marriott GreenLeader hotels; in Canada and Western Europe there are 115.

FF&E Purchasing Goal Achieved

In the area of responsible sourcing, Marriott last year achieved its goal of spending 75 percent of its 2013 FF&E procurement dollars on companies in MindClick Global’s Sustainability Index. Marriott is working closely with Avendra to encourage a more sustainable supply chain. One of Avendra’s goals is to undertake efforts that ensure all contracted suppliers will have a sustainability policy by the end of 2016.

From a waste management standpoint, Naguib says Marriott currently does not have an official goal similar to those in energy, water and greenhouse gas emissions. It is only in the last couple of years that Marriott has been able to collect data on waste—thanks to Green Hotels Global. That said, Marriott has made significant progress in the area of waste management. Marriott’s relationship with Clean the World is one example. Clean the World, a nonprofit, collects partially used soaps and other hygiene amenities for reprocessing and distribution to those in need. With more than 60,000 rooms participating, Marriott has the largest number of properties participating in Clean the World’s program. In 2013, Marriott’s managed and franchised hotels donated more than 91,000 pounds of soap and 61,000 pounds of amenities. That is a lot of product diverted from the landfill.

Marriott’s 2014 Sustainability Report details many other initiatives as well—from an Amazon rainforest project in Brazil to an effort in China to help protect the source of fresh water for more than 2 billion people. Click here to access the 2014 Sustainability Report.

Impact of California Drought on Your Hotel

Local water agencies across California are taking action in the face of record-dry conditions in 2014. Many water suppliers are implementing mandatory restrictions on water use and stepping up conservation outreach to help their customers reduce water use and protect water supply reserves for a potential dry 2015. Assuming you are operating a property or properties in California, what steps have you taken to reduce water consumption? How effective have those steps been? I would love to hear from you for a Green Lodging News article on the drought topic. I can be reached at editor@greenlodgingnews.com, or by phone at (813) 510-3868. 

Green Lodging News Adds Amenitique as Directory Partner

Green Lodging News welcomes ILLI America as a Green Product & Service Directory partner. ILLI America is the provider of the modern ILLI Cartridge Dispensing unit. Created as a solution to help reduce the 8 billion plastic amenity bottles thrown away annually as well the labor and cost associated with refillable dispensers, the ILLI provides a maintenance free platform for the tenure of the ILLI while reducing plastic amenity waste by 90 percent. Hermetically sealed cartridges bearing the Nordic Eco label certification prevent continual maintenance and liability risks while reducing cost by 40 percent. Choose from the ILLI 1 or ILLI 2 dispenser style. Call (813) 884-8008, e-mail general@illiamerica.com, or go to www.illiamerica.com, for more information.

Who is Your Sustainability Champion?

Green Lodging News is always looking to profile sustainability champions in our Personnel Profile section. If you would like to nominate someone for this section of Green Lodging News, contact me at (813) 510-3868, or by e-mail at editor@greenlodgingnews.com.

Looking for Guest Columnists

Every two weeks Green Lodging News posts a new guest column on its website. (Click here for examples.) The guest column also appears in the weekly e-newsletter. Green Lodging News is currently in need of industry experts to contribute occasional guest columns. Experts may include consultants, architects, designers, suppliers and those who own or operate green lodging establishments. Columns may be articles that take a stance on a particular subject or be strictly educational in nature. Columnists benefit by having their photo included along with a one paragraph description of their company. Interested in writing a column? Contact Glenn Hasek, publisher and editor, at (813) 510-3868, or by e-mail at editor@greenlodgingnews.com.

Planning Advertising for 2014?

Green Lodging News is accepting reservations for advertising spots for 2014. Many excellent spots are available on the website and in the weekly e-mail newsletter. Many Green Supplier Spotlight dates are also available. Interested in receiving a 2014 media kit? Be sure to contact me as soon as possible at (813) 510-3868, or by e-mail at editor@greenlodgingnews.com. Media kits can also be accessed by clicking here. Thank you to all of those companies that consistently support Green Lodging News.

Green Lodging News & Social Media

Green Lodging News now has 1,505 Twitter followers. Thank you to all of those who follow our tweets. In addition to following us on Twitter, be sure to bookmark the Green Lodging News Blog in your browser. More importantly, participate with your comments. Green Lodging News is also on Facebook. Be sure to “Like” us there. Green Lodging News now has 585 Facebook followers.

As always, I can be reached at editor@greenlodgingnews.com.

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