Share to Facebook Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Elie Maalouf, CEO of IHG Hotels & Resorts. IHG Hotels & Resorts How sustainable can a hotel chain become? IHG Hotels & Resorts is trying to find out by launching its Low Carbon Pioneers program, aimed at encouraging wider adoption of carbon reduction practices across the hotel chain. I asked CEO Elie Maalouf about sustainability at IHG and what the company hopes to achieve.
What does sustainability mean to IHG Hotels & Resorts? And what does it mean to your guests? Travel is a fundamental part of people’s everyday lives. People want to explore, connect, and experience new things. And that’s always going to be the case.
Our thousands of hotels around the world are there to meet those needs, but like all organizations, we have to make sure that as we operate and grow, we do so in a responsible way that works for our hotel owners and our guests. That’s something we know they appreciate, especially if they can keep that same quality of service they are used to. What's the idea behind creating the Low Carbon Pioneers program? We have a wide-ranging business plan that includes an ambition to reduce emissions from the energy used in our hotels.
We have important initiatives already in place, including multiple energy conservation measures for our hotels, but it is a long and complex path that requires close collaboration between businesses and governments. Why so long and complex? Because we’re mostly a franchised business.