“The hotel industry must reduce its carbon emissions by 66% by 2030 and 90% by 2050.” This was the finding of a study commissioned by the International Tourism Partnership in 2017.

The study highlights the urgent need for the hotel industry to drastically reduce carbon emissions in order to align with science-based targets to keep global heating below the 2 ̊C threshold and avoid run-away climate change.

Historically, the hospitality sector has had a substantial environmental footprint not only through its energy and carbon impact but also through water consumption, as well as the use of consumable and durable goods and hazardous waste creation.

According to Dana Communications “Hotels consume energy for HVAC operations, lighting, fuel and other power needs. Water is used for bathrooms, F&B [food and beverage], and laundry, as well as other general operations (irrigation, cleaning and maintenance). Waste is generated by the disposal of paper, batteries, bulbs, furniture, equipment, appliances and more.”

As such, there is an evident and increasingly urgent need for sustainable hospitality practices.

What is Sustainable Hospitality?

According to André Harms, sustainability consultant, founder of Ecolution Consulting and recent SUMAS guest lecturer: “Sustainable hospitality means rethinking hospitality as a sustainable practice. It means that every aspect of the hospitality industry is considered through the lens of sustainability. From design to construction/refurbishment to operation both internally in terms of consumption and behavior as well as externally in terms of procurement communications and commitments, etc.”

Harms were the lead sustainability consultant for one of the greenest hotels in the world: Hotel Verde based in Cape Town, South Africa. The hotel is the first hotel in the world to have been certified by the United States Green Building Council with a Double LEED platinum certification for both design + construction and operation.

“Hotel Verde has a vast array of passive, technical and operational interventions which make it more sustainable,” says Harms. These include:

• Energy efficient design
• 220 Solar panels
• 3 vertical axis wind turbines
• A highly efficient HVAC coupled to a geothermal loop system which draws energy from the ground
• Regenerative drive elevators and
• Grey water recycling system
• Low-flow tap fittings and showerheads
• Waterwise landscaping and drip irrigation
• An operational materials management plan (for more sustainable procurement and waste reduction) coupled to strict waste separation and upcycling, donation, composting and recycling practices. The hotel diverts over 5% of waste from landfill on average
• Sustainability interwoven into all hotel standard operating practices/procedures
• Biodiversity management and eco pool
• Employee engagement programmes
• A carbon neutral hotel experience to guests by offsetting the remaining impact on behalf of the guest.

“Hotel Verde really is a prime example of what can be achieved when it comes to Sustainable Hospitality” says Harms, who lectured as part of the SUMAS Sustainable Hospitality Management programs. “As the need for more urgent sustainable action becomes increasingly prevalent, it is my hope that the best practices that have been achieved with Hotel Verde will soon become standard practice for hotels all around the world.”

Sustainable Hospitality at SUMAS

If you are interested in a career in sustainable hospitality, SUMAS offers a variety of programmes. Browse the programmes below or contact us today for more information.

• BBA in Sustainable Hospitality Management
• MBA in Sustainable Hospitality
• MAM in Sustainable Hospitality

“The hotel industry must reduce its carbon emissions by 66% by 2030 and 90% by 2050.” This was the finding of a study commissioned by the International Tourism Partnership in 2017.

The study highlights the urgent need for the hotel industry to drastically reduce carbon emissions in order to align with science-based targets to keep global heating below the 2 ̊C threshold and avoid run-away climate change.

Historically, the hospitality sector has had a substantial environmental footprint not only through its energy and carbon impact but also through water consumption, as well as the use of consumable and durable goods and hazardous waste creation.

According to Dana Communications “Hotels consume energy for HVAC operations, lighting, fuel and other power needs. Water is used for bathrooms, F&B [food and beverage], and laundry, as well as other general operations (irrigation, cleaning and maintenance). Waste is generated by the disposal of paper, batteries, bulbs, furniture, equipment, appliances and more.”

As such, there is an evident and increasingly urgent need for sustainable hospitality practices.

What is Sustainable Hospitality?

According to André Harms, sustainability consultant, founder of Ecolution Consulting and recent SUMAS guest lecturer: “Sustainable hospitality means rethinking hospitality as a sustainable practice. It means that every aspect of the hospitality industry is considered through the lens of sustainability. From design to construction/refurbishment to operation both internally in terms of consumption and behavior as well as externally in terms of procurement communications and commitments, etc.”

Harms were the lead sustainability consultant for one of the greenest hotels in the world: Hotel Verde based in Cape Town, South Africa. The hotel is the first hotel in the world to have been certified by the United States Green Building Council with a Double LEED platinum certification for both design + construction and operation.

“Hotel Verde has a vast array of passive, technical and operational interventions which make it more sustainable,” says Harms. These include:

• Energy efficient design
• 220 Solar panels
• 3 vertical axis wind turbines
• A highly efficient HVAC coupled to a geothermal loop system which draws energy from the ground
• Regenerative drive elevators and
• Grey water recycling system
• Low-flow tap fittings and showerheads
• Waterwise landscaping and drip irrigation
• An operational materials management plan (for more sustainable procurement and waste reduction) coupled to strict waste separation and upcycling, donation, composting and recycling practices. The hotel diverts over 5% of waste from landfill on average
• Sustainability interwoven into all hotel standard operating practices/procedures
• Biodiversity management and eco pool
• Employee engagement programmes
• A carbon neutral hotel experience to guests by offsetting the remaining impact on behalf of the guest.

“Hotel Verde really is a prime example of what can be achieved when it comes to Sustainable Hospitality” says Harms, who lectured as part of the SUMAS Sustainable Hospitality Management programs. “As the need for more urgent sustainable action becomes increasingly prevalent, it is my hope that the best practices that have been achieved with Hotel Verde will soon become standard practice for hotels all around the world.”

Sustainable Hospitality at SUMAS

If you are interested in a career in sustainable hospitality, SUMAS offers a variety of programmes. Browse the programmes below or contact us today for more information.

• BBA in Sustainable Hospitality Management
• MBA in Sustainable Hospitality
• MAM in Sustainable Hospitality

The Sustainability Management School (SUMAS) in Switzerland is the first ever business school to offer high-level academic education in Sustainability and Management. Giri Prasath Rajarathinam is a second year student here with SUMAS.

Prior to his completing the MBA in Sustainability Management with SUMAS in Gland, Switzerland, he worked in financial auditing. He’s also achieved a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the PSG college of Arts & Science, India.

Here, he shares his journey in sustainability management and thoughts on youth lead climate action.

Why did you choose to pursue the MBA in Sustainability Management? Was there an experience that made it clear this was what you wanted to dedicate your life's work to?

My journey with the environment began at The Laidlaw Memorial School & Junior College in Nilgiris, India, where environmental education was compulsory from the seventh grade. Living there in a valley surrounded by greenery and a pollution free environment for twelve years, is what made me take a greater and stronger stand for the environment.

I dropped mathematics in the eleventh grade to take environmental science, even though I already had environmental education as a mandatory subject. This lead to my choosing sustainability, as it had all three pillars – economic, environmental and social.

Can you share an overview of the international requirements of sustainability management?

Globally, at present, the number of businesses integrating sustainable practices and policies as part of their day to day activities and business operations has been at an all-time high since the signing of the Paris agreement.

Although the science behind climate change and sustainability is technical and more suited for a person with an engineering background, companies also need people with business and management backgrounds who understand these policies and know how to integrate them from board-room level to ground force.

Integration is where sustainability management graduates come in.

Sustainability is in high demand in these industries:

• Textile
• Agriculture
• Finance
• Raw material procurement
• Business design
• Policy making
• Healthcare

You wouldn't be in this field if you didn't have hope for a positive long-term outcome to the environmental crisis. Can you speak to what gives you motivation and belief in change?

The definition of sustainability says “Meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs”.

What do they mean by “future generations”? In my opinion humankind thinks as far as four generations into the future. That may account for a maximum of two hundred to two hundred and fifty years.

Research already says that we have emitted enough Greenhouse gases (GHGs) into the atmosphere, which will go on to have its effect for the next hundred years minimum, even if we stop using conventional fuels right now.

At the current rate of humans’ switch to renewable sources of energy, we will have the effects of climate change for the next three hundred plus years. For sustainability to reach every nook and corner of the globe, it will take at least another decade.

The so-called developed countries have been doing well with the switch to renewable energy and integrating sustainability practices in their businesses. But what about the under developed countries, where the most impact and change needs to happen?

This is where the long-term vision of sustainability comes into play. Even though the countries have signed the Paris agreement, they all have their own targets on a national level:

• to reduce GHGs
• switch to renewable energy sources
• make sustainable changes on all levels ranging from sectors to departments

These in addition are even longer term visions:

• Helping under developed countries achieve their targets through knowledge transfer
• Implementing cradle to cradle business models
• Initiating responsible investments (impact and thematic investing and climate bonds) from developed countries in a swift and efficient manner

The oil industry and capitalistic organisations are against the sustainability trend and therefore slow down the process.

The people who put them in power are demanding the change and that’s where my belief is vested – the people.

You're going on to do the second-year internship, correct? Can you share what your focus will be and why?

Yes, I have completed my MBA in Sustainability Management (1 year) and have continued to do the Professional Development Program (PDP) with Internship (1 year).

My focus is towards joining the finance sector.

Every organisation needs finance to run. If finance is invested in the right place impact created is two-fold.

If you cut out the inflow of money to these polluting organisations, they won’t be able to function and will switch to a more sustainable approach. 

Companies are rated on the following factors (ESG):

• Environmental
• Social
• Governance

With the sustainable finance sector gaining traction day by day, you can now choose to invest based on which ESG factors align with the beliefs and themes where you would like to make an impact.

Investors are becoming aware of the climate emergency and are turning away from organisations that are promoting environmental destruction in favour to those taking these sustainability factors into account.

What are your thoughts on the youth taking leadership on Climate Action?

It has reassured my beliefs in the younger generation, clearly defining that they are willing to go out there and do what is necessary for change to happen. They have every right to go out there, seek answers and get the best for themselves, because if leaders do not take any action today, the younger generations are the ones next in line that are going to truly bear the brunt of climate change.

With role models like Greta Thunberg headlining the protests, more youth will be motivated to join for a cause which will do greater good.

Were you involved in any of the #ClimateStrikes?

I was a participant in three climate marches in Geneva that happened between February and April.

What outcomes were you hoping for, specific immediate ones as well as ongoing ones?

I really was hoping for governments to make changes on a legislative level, considering the support they would get (But yeah, that was a little too much of me to expect).

I am looking for more changes primarily in the switch to renewable energy (Public & Private) and transport sector (electric cars and electric grid buses).

In my opinion these sectors are where a lot can be done to help curb the current rate of GHG emissions.

Do you believe youth-lead strikes are the most powerful way to motivate authorities to take notice?

Yes, I do. Take Greta Thunberg for example. With her work, she has been able to give powerful speeches in front of global leaders within Europe and at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

As Greta Thunberg said and I quote “They see us as a threat because we’re having an impact”.

What is more powerful than youth having an impact on an issue that concerns the wellbeing of all humankind?

What is your take away advice to anyone who feels the climate crisis is an insurmountable issue?

Climbing Mt Everest before Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay achieved it was an insurmountable task to many.

• Since the first ascent people have carefully studied the terrain and climatic factors before a successful summit.
• For the past two decades adventure companies now help you summit successfully.
• They all work together as a team - the local Sherpas, the experienced mountaineers and the client that are summiting.

The same steps need to be done for finding solutions for the climate crisis – we need to work together and assess our possibilities for a sustainable future from models created by scientist’ data.

That’s exactly what Sustainable Development Goal (SDGs) 17 says – Partnership for the Goals. The SDGs cover most of the issues that come under sustainability, partnering and working together, helps us learn to bring about peace and live in harmony.

Sustainability education is the new need of the hour. The political and the business leaders of the world have come to realize that only a sustainable course of development can be encouraged in the current global scenario which gives rise to the popular demand of sustainable schools all over the world.

Political Impetus – It can be aid that the political impetus is received from the global environmental awareness that indicates at a fast and an unfortunate end of the human race if better care of the environment is not taken. This is where the political leaders are encouraging the growth of sustainability education in the top business schools in Switzerland and the other parts of the world.

Business Leaders Encouragement – The business houses of the current times are yet again under tremendous pressure to make their business processes as environment friendly as possible. This is why they are looking for candidates who have good knowledge into the domain of sustainability. This is why at the time of recruitment these companies are looking for candidates who have a minimum of sustainability courses online certification. This indicates at their better suitability for the job.

These online Masters Programs in Switzerland are some of the best initiatives that have been taken in the recent times to provide a better protection to the world environment as a whole.

Clothes are an everyday necessity and for many a central part of self-expression and creativity. Fashion, however, is a dirty business. The current fast-paced production of clothes is incredibly resource intensive, wasteful, exploitative and pollution-heavy.

According to the United Nations “the fashion industry, including the production of all clothes which people wear, contributes to around 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions due to its long supply chains and energy intensive production. The industry consumes more energy than the aviation and shipping industry combined.”

Besides the emissions associated with today’s fashion industry, every item of clothing comes with a cost - both environmental and social.

According to the documentary film River Blue, one fashion brand will use over 28 trillion gallons of water every year. In addition to the actual use of precious drinking water, clothing manufacturers are dumping toxic chemicals into nearby rivers which are killing off animal life, contaminating water and sky-rocketing occurrences of death and disease in affected people.

People are also affected in the way of workers exploitation. Garment workers are forced with unsafe working conditions and being paid far below a living wage.

But there is hope. The Fashion Transparency Index reports that there’s been a “280% rise in tier-one supplier transparency from fashion brands since 2016.”

We are seeing greater pressure and demand to transform the fashion industry to be ethical and sustainable whilst incredibly innovative and exciting transformations are already afoot.

Here are just five examples of trailblazers in the sustainable fashion space.

The Ellen MacArthur Foundation - Promoting a shift to circular economy

In 2010, Dame Ellen McArtur launched the foundation to promote a paradigm shift towards a circular economy, particularly in the fashion industry. The circular economy looks at moving away from the current linear model of our economy which is to take-make-dispose. Circular economy transcends our current extractive industrial model by “gradually decoupling economic activity from the consumption of finite resources, and designing waste out of the system.”

Circular economy is underpinned by a transition to renewable energy sources and building rather than depleting natural and social capital. It is based on three principles:

• Design out waste and pollution
• Keep products and materials in use
• Regenerate natural systems

Fashion Revolution - Ending exploitation and ecological damage caused by fashion

Fashion Revolution is a group of “designers, academics, writers, business leaders, policymakers, brands, retailers, marketers, producers, makers, workers and fashion lovers” who aim to “unite people and organisations to work together towards radically changing the way our clothes are sourced, produced and consumed, so that our clothing is made in a safe, clean and fair way.”

Fashion revolution hosts a number of online and offline events all over the world, including the annual Fashion Revolution Week which put pressure on brands to reveal #whomademyclothes.

The organisation has released a manifesto with ten principles to which the fashion industry should uphold itself and are engaging with top fashion brands through their transparency index.

Patagonia - Subscribing to activism as a modern clothing brand

As far as large clothing brands leading the way on sustainable fashion practices go, Patagoina comes out top. Patagonia proudly markets themselves as an “activist company” and attempts to transparently prove why they deserve that name. Patagonia actively practices responsible resource management whilst promoting longer-use and better care of their products in order to reduce consumerist impact.

The company transparently communicates their journey to improve their supply chain and reduce their carbon footprint whilst even taking part in direct action and activism. Their central focus is on the lives of their workers. Considering the current environmental crisis we face currently, we need more companies to take an active stand like Patagonia has.

Kye Shimizu - Using technology and tradition to decrease fashion waste

According to Sustainable living platform Twyg Mag, “Kye Shimizu is not a fashion designer, but his Algorithmic Couture project has created a new convention for fashion,” using code to eliminate waste and make fashion sustainable.”

Kye is the co-founder of Synflux, a Tokyo-based research collective that focuses on design research and fashion design. Together with is co-founders Yusuke Fujihira, Kotaro Sano, and Kazuya Kawasaki, they developed a system which has taken the concept of traditional Japanese straight-line pattern cutting and combined it with technology,

The Algorithmic Couture project:

• captures body measurements and data of a customer,
• then creates a 2D zero waste digital patterns using straight lines;
• outfits are designed using these straight line patterns in collaboration with a designer;
• the customer is able to customize color and fabric type;
• outfit is made to fit the consumer whilst avoiding fabric waste.

Forum for the Future - Open source information for the future of fashion

In partnership with the Centre for Sustainable Fashion at the London College of Fashion and with support from C&A Foundation, Forum for the Future has launched Fashion Futures 2030, “an open-source learning toolkit to help fashion businesses plan for future scenarios with sustainability in mind.”

The toolkit uses four vivid scenarios which explore topics such as:

• climate change
• resource shortages
• population growth
• And other factors that will shape the world of 2030 and the future of the fashion industry.

The next 10 years are going to be some of the most important in the entire human history. All individuals, governments and industry will have to make widespread unprecedented changes if we are to avoid climate catastrophe and further devastating biodiversity loss. Embracing sustainable and ethical fashion practices is one of the most important ways of doing this.

Do you want to make a difference to the fashion industry?

Sumas offers a range of sustainable fashion courses and degrees:

• BBA in Sustainable Fashion
• MBA in Sustainable Fashion
• Master in Sustainable Fashion
• Online MAM in Sustainable Fashion
• Online MBA in Sustainable Fashion

Contact us on info@sumas.ch to find out more.