Hilton Worldwide has launched a carbon-offset program for events and meetings held at select hotels across Southeast Asia, using its LightStay Meeting Impact Calculator to track and measure carbon emissions from each event.
Beginning this month, at no additional cost to customers, Hilton will measure carbon generated by all events at 11 of its properties in Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand, and purchase carbon credits to offset their environmental impact. The carbon credits will be used to fund renewable energy projects in Borneo and Cambodia.
Hilton’s proprietary LightStay system takes into account factors such as the event room water and electricity usage, food consumed and guest rooms booked. It analyses and reports sustainability data, and provides tools and resources for hotels to improve performance and share best practices.
Reporting through LightStay, Hilton has achieved its five-year goal to reduce total waste output by 20 percent over 2008 levels. The company says it is on track to reduce energy consumption and CO2 emissions by 20 percent, and water consumption by 10 percent, by 2013.
Working with Climate Friendly, a carbon offset solutions provider, Hilton has identified two initial beneficiaries of the program: the Borneo Rainforest Rehabilitation Project and Cambodia Cookstove Project.
The Borneo Rainforest Rehabilitation Project works to restore the rainforests of Sabah, Malaysia and grow the habitable area for wildlife such as orang-utans, sun bears, gibbons, pygmy elephants and the endangered Sumatran Rhino.
The Cambodian Cookstove Project produces and mass distributes the New Lao Stove, an energy-efficient cookstove. The organization says the New Lao Stove saves 22 percent of wood and charcoal compared to traditional stoves, which reduces GHGs and conserves Cambodia’s forests.
The 11 hotels taking part in the launch phase of the program are: Conrad Centennial Singapore (pictured), Hilton Singapore, Hilton Kuala Lumpur, DoubleTree by Hilton Kuala Lumpur, Hilton Petaling Jaya, Hilton Kuching, Millennium Hilton Bangkok, Conrad Bangkok, Hilton Phuket Arcadia Resort & Spa, Hilton Pattaya and Hilton Hua Hin Resort & Spa.
In June, Hilton, along with Fairmont, Hyatt, InterContinental and 19 other international hotel companies, agreed on a standard to calculate the carbon footprint of hotel stays and meetings. The methodology, named HCMI 1.0, was first developed in 2011 and is informed by the GHG Protocol Standards.
A month prior, Hilton and sustainability consultants BSR launched a three-year initiative to help procurement professionals make more informed purchasing decisions based on the best available sustainability data and information.