How Hotels Can Save The Planet: A Futurist's Take

SUSTAINABILITY. THE WORD, in business, now that those of us worth our literacy can concur, that we have less than 12 years to avert catastrophe, a situation humanity has brought upon itself. To be precise, a word to act on, rather than speak about. Every business, every industry, has a part to play. Here is a list of actions, that hotels can take.

Go Green, Literally

While much of the conversation on environmental salvation has been about cutting carbon emissions in the past, there is this question of what should be done, about the carbon already in the atmosphere? Primary school science tells us, that plants absorb carbon, or specifically, carbon dioxide, and this is where hotels, can serve, as carbon basins, in their particular environments and surroundings.

Not only will covering their facades as well as interiors in green, with the use of plants and trees, help them contribute to environmental salvation, the hotels, that exercise such an option, will stand to increase their visual and aesthetic appeals.

Besides, whatever the demography and characteristics of the intended guests, hotels are places that people look forward to, as calm and conducive environments. Something, that plants tend to help with, if human psychology is taken into consideration.

Greenery can be planted on hotel parameters, on the walls, on balconies, rooftops, terraces, around the pool areas, inside the building where sunlight has access and well, a lot of places.

Enjoy the Sun

Besides supporting plant life, the sun supports energy needs. Solar technology is evolving, as is the cost of it gradually decreasing. And hotels can capitalize on it to cut long-term energy costs. At the same time, they can ensure, that the energy they consume, is not harming the environment. The more hoteliers try to get off the grid, by depending on solar energy rather than grid energy, the better for them economically in the long-term, and better for the ecology as well. Pretty simple here.

And The Food

Logic says, hotels can profit from growing their own food, within their own properties. Off course, the catch is, their properties need to be architecturally designed, to accommodate this option.

While insourcing food, means addition to bottom-line for hoteliers, it means, reduction of negative human footprint upon the environment, in sourcing for and acquiring food ingredients, that would go onto the guests' plates.

And onsite, on-property farms, within hotels, can also serve as attraction features for guests.

IoT for Water Management

The future of all technology depends on the current trajectory of evolution of the Internet of Things, or IoT for short. Specifically for buildings, IoT offers some eco-friendly benefits, that hotels, primarily being buildings, can also reap.

Particularly, IoT, in convergence with other automation technologies can be leveraged upon, for detection of water leaks, burst pipes or damage to water infrastructure. Not only that, hoteliers can leverage on such technology to cut off supplies or flow of water to unoccupied or unused rooms or parts of the buildings, or, when guests or users are not present.

Emerging technologies riding on IoT, can allow hoteliers to get alerted to taps or water outlets being left on/open inadvertently or being forgotten. Not only will such alerts help hoteliers avert unnecessary costs, but will also save water from unnecessary wastage.

Composting and Recycling

This one had to come. With green all around the hotel, for hotels exercising the first item on this list, "Go Green, Literally", composting whatever waste that can be composted, onsite, to be used for onsite plants, is something that would be both cost effective in upkeep as well as environmentally friendly.

Water, can be recycled and reused for plants. Other items that are disposed by guests and staff alike, can be diligently sorted and delivered to recycling facilities, including e-waste.

Thank You for Reading

Many of the ideas herein can be used for commercial properties of all sorts, and not just hotels. Whatever your thoughts, or if you think something has been omitted herein, do care, leave a comment, for the sake, of a productive conversation, towards saving our planet.

Harish Shah is Singapore's first local born Professional Futurist and a Management Strategy Consultant. He runs Stratserv Consultancy. His areas of consulting and Keynote Topics include X Reality, EmTech, Product Development, Innovation, Industry 4.0, Marketing, Strategic Foresight, Systems Thinking and Organisational Future Proofing. He was the Opening Keynote Speaker at both the Hotel Management Summit Singapore 2015 and the Hotel Technology Conference 2016 Singapore.