Gov’t launches hotel sustainability roadmap

The roadmap includes targets and strategies to push for sustainable hotels.

The Singapore government launched a roadmap that will provide clear targets and strategies for hotels to adopt in their sustainability journey.

At the inaugural hotel sustainability conference and marketplace, Singapore Hotel Association (SHA) and Singapore Tourism Board (STB) launched the hotel sustainability roadmap, which seeks to have a hotel industry that will integrate sustainability, use sustainability to drive business competitiveness and growth, and lead in environmental sustainability.

The hotel sustainability roadmap is endorsed by the Hotel Sustainability Committee (HSC), which was set up in March 2020 to drive industry-wide adoption of sustainability practices in hotels to promote Singapore as a sustainable destination. 

Under the goals of the roadmap, SHA and STB eye 60% of hotel room stock in Singapore to achieve globally-recognised hotel sustainability certification by 2025, and Singapore hotels to begin emission tracking by 2023, reduce emissions by 2030, as well as achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.

The roadmap also laid out the following strategies and related initiatives to help hotels achieve the said goals:

1. Raise sustainability standards and strive towards internationally-recognised sustainability certification

2. Test-bed and adopt innovative sustainable solutions by:

• Identifying sustainability-related problem statements and organising innovation challenges to develop sustainability solutions in identified areas.
• Partnering Enterprise Singapore (ESG) through the Sustainability Marketplace to showcase a suite of sustainable solution providers to be matched with hoteliers. This provides a platform for hoteliers to be introduced to green and sustainable solutions that can enhance their business operations.
• Partnering innovative tech providers to co-develop sustainability-related industry pilots through Tcube programmes such as the Singapore Tourism Accelerator by STB.

3. Develop sustainable hotel concepts and experiences in Singapore

• Developing innovative and best-in-class sustainable guest experiences with STB’s support via Experience Step-up Fund.
• Facilitate business matching with relevant partners (e.g. farm to table dining experiences, upcycling workshops etc.).

4. Raise awareness of the industry’s sustainability efforts and promote sustainable consumption habits amongst hotel guests by:

• Actively incorporating sustainability into corporate values and business operations.
• Supporting consumer education and encouraging hotel guests to adopt sustainable consumption habits.  
• Plugging into STB’s destination marketing efforts to position Singapore as a top sustainable and innovative urban destination.

Moreover, STB and SHA have also identified these four focus areas to ensure that hotels’ sustainability efforts drive impactful environmental outcomes such as water conversation, waste management, recycling, sustainable sourcing and procurement as well as energy conversation