Climate change and the hospitality industry

Climate change is a global issue that is affecting communities, lives, businesses and economies all over the world. The World Economic Forum has now ranked climate action failure as the top global risk, demonstrating the urgent need for governments, businesses and people to act.

1. Global emissions of carbon dioxide have increased by almost 50 per cent since 1990.

2. This is having a notable impact on our climate. Every decade since the 1960s has been warmer than the one before,3 and we are seeing extreme weather events damaging lives and livelihoods around the world, particularly the poorest and most vulnerable people.

Climate change is already affecting the hospitality sector. Extreme weather is increasing the cost of operations and reducing the number of tourists visiting certain destinations, while local and national environmental policies and penalties are being introduced in cities and countries around the world.

The hotel sector accounts for around 1% of global carbon emissions4 and this is set to increase. Hospitality, like other industries, has a responsibility to manage its impact on our planet.

We commit to embrace science-based targets and encourage the wider industry to join in reducing emissions at scale.

Source: Sustainable Hospitality Alliance

Region: Global