Thursday, August 15, 2024 Choice Hotels International , a leading global hospitality company, has introduced three beehives at their corporate headquarters in the Pike & Rose development in North Bethesda. This initiative, done in collaboration with Bee Downtown, aims to enhance sustainability and support local biodiversity. With an estimated 150,000 honeybees, the hives are expected to pollinate a 3-mile radius, potentially benefiting 18,000 acres of surrounding land.
Remarkably, each colony has the capacity to produce over 100 pounds of honey within a few months. Choice Hotels’ associates played an active role in selecting the “Bee Hotel” design for the hives through a company-wide vote. In addition to the installation, Choice Hotels and Bee Downtown are providing educational opportunities for associates, including honey and cheese tastings, beekeeping Q&A sessions, and tours of the hives.
Honeybees, vital to agriculture, pollinate 70 of the top 100 food crops in the United States. This partnership highlights Choice Hotels’ dedication to environmental responsibility and engagement, aligning with their Room to Be Green program. This initiative emphasizes five pillars: Energy, Water, Waste, Biodiversity, and Engagement, to foster sustainability across all Choice Hotels brands globally.
As part of this program, Choice-branded hotels are expected to implement utility data reporting and measures to conserve waste, water, and energy by early 2025. “Choice Hotels puts people first, and being a responsible steward of our environment is a crucial part of that. We’re proud to collaborate with Bee Downtown to host beehives that will benefit the ecosystem in our North Bethesda community,” said Megan Brumagim , Vice President of Sustainability for Choice Hotels.
“Bees play an essential role in the health of the planet. We’re excited to contribute to our region’s biodiversity, engage our associates with educational programming, and harvest around 90 pounds per year of fresh, local honey from our very own hives.” Bee Downtown specializes in installing and maintaining beehives on corporate campuses, aiming to support sustainable agriculture while offering continuous employee and leadership development programs to their corporate partners.
At Pike & Rose, Bee Downtown will oversee the care of the three honeybee hives, ensuring the well-being and vitality of the bee colonies. “We are delighted to have Choice Hotels join ‘America’s #1 Bee Team’ as one of our newest Corporate Hive Program partners. At Bee Downtown, it is our goal to help leading corporations cultivate great places to work through sustainability initiatives and employee experiences all rooted in agriculture.
We look forward to many wonderful years of partnership with Choice Hotels,” said Leigh-Kathryn Bonner , Founder and CEO, Bee Downtown. As part of its commitment to sustainability, Choice’s office building in Pike & Rose is pursuing LEED Gold Certification and is WiredScore Gold Certified..
