Sitting with a Staff Interview with Noémie Danthine, Director Sustainable Hospitality Services

Please introduce yourself and tell us about what you do at EHL?

ND: I started as Project Manager for EHL’s General Secretariat. Then, I got the opportunity to create and head the Sustainability Department where I oversaw the development of the sustainability strategy for the entire EHL Group as well as its roll-out. Since January 2023, I've been appointed Director of EHL Sustainable Hospitality Services. This new segment includes our Real Estate department, Services and Well-Being department and Sustainability department; Sustainability department that I’m continuing to head.

What does sustainability mean for the EHL group?

ND: Well, there is no single approach to sustainability nor one unique definition; sustainability is a complex and systemic topic that encompasses a lot of different aspects. At EHL, we have decided to stick with the first definition proposed for sustainability, the one in the Brundtland report in 1987, which is commonly recognized. Sustainability is then defined as “meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”. As you can see with this definition, sustainability is a wide topic.

I want to highlight that when we talk about the needs, we are not only focusing on the environment and resources, but we also consider social elements. We try to have a holistic approach and integrate in our reflection education, our people, the local communities and our stakeholders.

EHL has defined 4 pillars for contributing beyond education. How do you measure these and what impact have you seen so far?

ND: Indeed, we have decided to articulate our sustainability strategy around four main axes, our pillars. The first one, is of course education. As a school, it is central for us to ensure that our students learn about sustainability throughout their curriculum both inside the classroom and outside the classroom. O ur second pillar, is our “people”, meaning our students, staff and faculty and also our alumni ! Here our objective is to foster a healthy, safe and conducive environment for all our members and to support diversity and inclusion. O ur third focus is on the communities and see how we can give back to local and global communities and have bigger impact. F inally, our last pillar and not the least is the environment with a clear objective to limit the impact of our activities on the environment, including the impact of our infrastructures.

How do we measure our progress? Well, first we have carried out impact analysis wherever relevant and possible. We have calculated the carbon footprint of a wide array of activities on our Lausanne Campus but also in Passugg and Singapore. These calculations enable us to have a clear view of where we stand and to identify where the most effective levers can be found. It helps us to set ambitious objectives and to track progress.

For other aspects, where a carbon footprint calculation may not be accurate, we have identified other types of indicators to take into consideration. For example, the gender balance ratio, the number of sustainability related courses or the various partnerships established with local organizations or NGOs working in hospitality education etc.

In a matter of accountability and transparency, we are reporting on our sustainability efforts via the release of our Social and Environmental Report. This report compiles our progress and displays these key performance indicators. It also showcases concrete projects to give some “flesh” to the figures. Since last year, we are following the GRI standards, a widely adopted framework for sustainability reporting to help us identify areas in which we can improve our performance.

Our 2022 Social and Environmental report has just been released and we encourage you to have a look at it (link to report).

How has the new campus construction impacted the sustainability efforts for EHL?

ND: It’s extremely difficult to build a new campus without leaving a carbon footprint. Emissions from the construction have been measured and a 5-year plan has been established to offset them. As of today, already 58% of the carbon emissions generated by the construction work have been offset and our objective is to fully offset the rest by 2024.

It is worth noticing is that our new campus is following the Minergie-P standards, highly recognized Swiss standards for energy efficiency and low energy consumption buildings. We have invested on renewal sources of energy by relying on 44 geothermal probes, setting an innovative wastewater heat recovery system and by installing new solar panels covering the equivalent of three Olympic-sized swimming pools. That said, we continue our road toward embedding sustainability on a larger scale, through our general operations and keep making efforts towards lowering our environmental impact.

What's the goal of introducing sustainability into the educational side?

ND: With regards to education, as mentioned previously it is at the core of our sustainability strategy. We are committed to integrate sustainability within our students’ educational journey at EHL by proposing dedicated courses, but also by instilling sustainability in the various courses and in and in the new future in our pedagogical approach.

We are also proposing initiatives and activities on campus to complement the in-classroom learning and continue educating our students about environmental and social responsibility. It is important for our students to understand that sustainability is a complex subject but also to make them realize that each small step they take can contribute to a larger goal. We really hope that they will take that perspective with them wherever their career will lead them.

What will be implemented in the next 5 years in terms of sustainability?

ND: This is an excellent question! At the moment, we are working on establishing the 2030 strategy for our segment and it is clear that sustainability will be at the very heart of it In parallel of this strategic work, we are also defining more short-term objectives and here are some examples I would like to share with you

We will continue to calculate our GHG emissions, always trying to refine it and identify concrete actions to help reduce our emissions We are also working on establishing a comprehensive climate plan for our Lausanne Campus setting ambitious impact reduction targets The climate plan will include in the coming years our other campuses

On the social side, we are working on drafting a relevant plan for diversity and inclusion at EHL This plan will establish a framework that will enable the whole EHL community, Alumni included, to feel valued, respected, engaged, and empowered We hope that it will also enforce the sense of belonging for our all members

In the coming month or so, we will launch a circularity project focusing on some products and services on our Lausanne campus, with a focus on extended products lifecycle, avoid single use items and reduce energy consumption

Is there anything else you'd like to share with the community?

ND: I would like to underscore that innovation is an important topic for EHL We believe that it is crucial to support the development of sustainable solutions and innovation for the industry We would love our campuses to be used as living labs, where students, faculty and staff members as well as external stakeholders could test their ideas, refine them to then be able to propose concrete solutions Having campuses as testing ground enforce creativity, emulation and synergies It would also enable unique experimental and experiential learning opportunities for our students and enforce a deep sense of entrepreneurship

As for our Alumni, our campuses could become ideal platforms to develop new sustainable technologies and services

Has EHL worked with alumni companies or startups in this direction?

ND: Absolutely! We work closely with our Innovation Hub and are connected with our in-house alumni department As I have just mentioned, we are deeply interested in testing new ideas, new concepts, or innovations especially when they are developed by our Alumni or by EHL start-ups

A concrete example? Our partnership with Beelong, an EHL startup founded by two alumni Beelong is proposing a robust application that calculates the environmental impact of food products and meals By using this solution, we have been able to accurately measure the carbon footprint of our F&B purchased products, but identify effective ways to reduce their impact by selecting more environmentally friendly alternatives Beelong also helped us implement a system of eco-scores for all the meals served at our new opened vegan restaurant, the Shadwood