HoteliersGuild ForumOfDialogue VOL. IV

FORUM

Of DIALOGUEVol. IV

United by Hope!

INDUSTRY LEADERS

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A SOURCE of INSPIRATION & ENCOURAGEMENT

VOLUME IV DECEMBER, 2020

“ LEARN FROM YESTERDAY, LIVE FOR TODAY, HOPE FOR TOMORROW. THE IMPORTANT THING IS NOT TO STOP QUESTIONING. ” ALBERT EINSTEIN

HOPE and END are always there for everyone!

Depends on us how we deal with them.

A HOPELESS END!

or

An ENDLESS HOPE!

Dear Friends & Colleagues, In these times of global uncertainty, some of us may be low on creativity, and we should not be ashamed if we feel hungry for joy.

And whilst it may sound somewhat too optimistic as Albert Schweitzer put it, “Eventually all things fall into place. Until then, laugh at the confusion, live for the moments, and know everything happens for a reason”, let’s at least try to spread some hope!

Frank M. Pfaller President | HoteliersGuild

Publisher Life’s a mystery, and as another wise person said, “Embrace uncertainty.

Some of the most beautiful chapters in our lives won’t have a title until much later.” All we can or should do at this stage when most of our businesses are in fact closed and where we find ourselves in lock-down in quite a few countries around the globe, let’s believe in our ability to figure things out as you go. Let’s say open and willing to turn the next page, to read the next chapter without needing a title for it. Let’s stand ‘UNITED by HOPE!’

I don’t know about you, but maybe you also felt that once the slower pace of life forced upon us all had settled in, ‘slowing down’ wasn’t actually too bad. And that certain changes in routine, exercise, diet, social interaction etc. and that the fact that everyone is suffering together a little bit, actually helped to acknowledge that it could even be a lot worse.

And HOPE there is! Ever since that fateful day when our world has been thrown into disarray earlier in the year by the dreadful coronavirus outbreak, scientist worked tirelessly to invent a cure. And it seems that now they’ve finally come up with a vaccine. However, an even bigger challenge may well be their equitable distribution, so let’s again stand united in hoping!

And our HoteliersGuild LeadingHôtelières initiative gets a strong boost after the commendable decision of the US voters for a woman as VP, and for a ‘healer’ as president with a vision to re-unite the country. No desire to go deeper into politics, but our industry also depends on political decision makers, and amidst all the chaos, the spotlight has well and truly been on the WHO and world leaders to provide us guidance and support. The need of the hour to fight this deadly pandemic and to strive ahead into a more ‘normal’ future requires the collaboration of multilateral institutions that operate internationally providing countries with high quality robust scientific information, guidance and a channel to share. Hope continues!

In my many talks and countless e-meetings with fellow professionals over the past months, I had the privilege and the pleasure to being introduced to some of the leaders in new technologies who are at the forefront of interdisciplinary science, technology & service

design for our industry. And in strategic alliances we actually started to develop a new ‘post-covid hotel brand’ that will help our partners to evolve their wellness propositions by expanding offerings into holistic solutions that are validated, seamless and convenient.

And once we have created what will be called the ‘HoteliersGuild Innovation Hub’, we’ll be happy to share the concept with our community. In a nutshell, it’s the enhancement of our principles of ‘Sustainable Luxury’ that will enable us to redefine industries through their longevity, using sustainable design models with an added emphasis on human wellbeing - called “Biophilia" (meaning love of nature) that focuses on human's innate attraction to nature and natural processes. It suggests that we all have a genetic connection to the natural world built up through hundreds of thousands of years of living in agrarian settings.

We already commenced to enable change by forming strategic academic partnerships that revitalise the research process. The future of hospitality is rapidly changing, and we wish to be part of that wave of change.

So, what do you want the world to look like when we come through this pandemic? Enjoy this fourth volume of our ForumOfDialogue and let us know your thoughts. Many thanks again to our contributors and warm regards!

HoteliersGuild’s LeadingHôtelières chapter in collaboration with our Co-chair, Prof. Dr. Sowon Kim of EHL’s ‘Women in Leadership’, the IUBH School of Business and Management and Institut Paul Bocuse with Prof. Dr. Willy Legrand and Prof. Dr. Henri Kuokkanen respectively, are delighted to announce the creation of “Young Hoteliers Insights” -- a space dedicated for aspiring future hospitality leaders to contribute to our industry with their reflections, ideas, trends and hottest topics as viewed by their generation -- that will be featured in the HoteliersGuild’s ForumOfDialogue magazines and in our LookBooks.

Launching early next year - stay tuned!

Gratefully acknowledging the support of our panel members & friends!

And extending a warm welcome to our new panel members Dagmar Symes & Ari Peralta

GM Private | Estate Saudi Arabia

“

It would be my pleasure to contribute with an article in the January issue. I would like to write about the future of tourism/hospitality in Lebanon. Especially after the dramatic events having hit the country in 2020. A second article could follow about KSA and the stimulating project 2030.

As to the zoom meetings, I would highly appreciate you sending me additional information. I would like to factor it into my agenda.

We believe the industry must evolve, and with nimble research, we can maximise the impact of wellbeing strategies. It’s time to work together to transform hospitality into the leading industry improving the wellbeing of travellers globally. I am grateful for Frank's shared desire to understand scientifically the interplay of nature, so we can inspire new approaches to creating better, more innovative and cleaner solutions for all.

“

It is a great pleasure and honour to join the panel of the HoteliersGuild. I am delighted to support industry colleagues dedicated to working on solutions towards a hospitality industry, which is kind to the environment, healthy to its workers, pleasing to its guests, efficient for the operators and profitable to its owners. Thank you Frank for this unique opportunity to contribute to a future proofed hospitality.

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Prof. Dr. Willy Legrand Professor of Hospitality Management at the IUBH International University of Applied Sciences located in Bad Honnef - Bonn, Germany

Xenia zu Hohenlohe, Co-Founder ConsiderateGroup

Xenia is as passionate about hospitality and travel as she is about helping to create new systems in order to integrate sustainable practices into every aspect of life.

She has been working in the hotel and tourism industry all over the world for the last 20 years, building experience and knowledge on what ingredients are needed to make a hotel as well as its services outstanding. Sustainable management policy being one of these ingredients, as it ensures a hotel's successful future existence.

Prof. Dr. Sowon Kim, Associate

Professor with EHL & Founder of WomenInLeadership

Xenia zu Hohenlohe

She teaches in bachelor's, master's and executive education programs fields of leadership and intercultural management.

Sowon’s initiative puts the focus on projects regarding women, and on a wider scale the initiative aims to promote leadership, culture, and policies that foster diverse, balanced, and people-focused environments. It strives so that students, faculty, staff, and alumni can lead fulfilled professional and personal lives.

Eva Malstrom Shivdasani Creative director and co-founder of SONEVA Eva creates and oversees the interior design process. During the 70s and the 80s Eva was a top fashion model appearing on the covers of more than 100 high-end magazines world-wide.

Eva also had a successful clothing company in Paris, called L’EVA. Her real flair is in her impeccable taste, innovative and unconventional ideas and an overall daring approach that ensures a different 'feel' for each project. Her attention to detail is considered legendary amongst the Soneva hosts.

Eva Malstrom Shivdasani

Suzann Heinemann Founder GreenSign

Suzann Heinemann has over 25 years of experience in the hotel industry as founder and managing director in hotel development and consulting, especially in strategic marketing and sales projects. For many years she was co-owner of a hotel specializing in conferences before she founded Gronowsky & Co. Hotel Consulting GmbH and GreenLine Hotels GmbH. At Gronowsky & Co. she is responsible as managing director for the planning and implementation of various projects with well-known customers in the hotel industry.

Suzann Heinemann

Franziska Altenrath Co-Founder and Managing Director at TUTAKA

Prof. Dr. Sowon Kim

Franziska gained various insights into the problems and effects of unsustainable consumption patterns from different industries such as automotive, real estate and fashion.

Being a true materialist herself, excited about design, materials and production, she searched for ways to challenge the status quo. She decided that it is time to reach to the roots of sustainability concepts and went back to University to study Ethics, Politics and Economics at LMU in Munich. Here she dedicated her thesis to "Sustainability and Humanitarianism in Tourism" and started the TUTAKA journey.

Franziska Altenrath

Maribel Esparcia PĂŠrez Professor at the

University of Lleida in the Faculty of Law, Tourism and Economics, Diploma in Tourism and Master in Hotel Management, in the hotel sector for over a decade, I have been part of international hotel chains and independent chains, with extensive experience in operations and strategy.

Certified as an Agent of Change in Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance criteria by the International Society of Sustainability Professionals. I have carried out research and strategy projects for different universities and companies since 2012. I have given talks in business schools, the most recent one in Geneva Business School, Barcelona.

Maribel Esparcia PĂŠrez

Dagmar Symes, General Manager Riyadh Private Estate. Dagmar brings a wealth of experience in both the hotel and luxury retail industries across Europe and the Middle East.

Starting her career with the leading hotels of the world, Dagmar previously worked in various luxury properties in France, Switzerland and her native Germany. Prior to joining Private Estate, Dagmar held the position of General Manager at Anantara Al Jabal Al Akhdar Resort, Cluster General Manager at Phoenicia InterContinental Hotel in Beirut, Lebanon and Le Vendome InterContinental Hotel.

Dagmar Symes

Yasmine Mahmoudieh, Iconic Architect&Designer

Yasmine Mahmoudieh

Yasmine studied art history in Florence, architecture at the l’école d’Ingénieurs de Genève in Switzerland, interior design at the college of Notre Dame in San Francisco and architecture and interior design at UCLA in Los Angeles. A year after she graduated from UCLA (aged 26) she opened her first studio in Los Angeles, and today has her headquarters in London. Her work can be found across Europe, the United States ,into the Middle East and Asia, and even in the skies above, working as one of the few chosen de-signers to work on the Airbus A380.

Sue Harmsworth, Founder ESPA

A warm welcome to our new panel members!

Sue Harmsworth

The founder of ESPA, Harmsworth has more than 50 years experience in the spa and wellness industry and has founded and managed multiple successful wellness businesses, as well as pioneering the modern spa model we are so used to today. Sue is an inspirational and visionary leader who over the past five decades has shaped the spa industry as we know it today.

She founded the global brand ESPA in 1993 and sold it in 2017. Sue has an MBE from the Queen for services to the spa and beauty industry, is a recipient of the ISPA Visionary Award, American Spa Industry Icon, CEW’s achiever award and sits on the Advisory Board for GWS, GWI and Forbes.

Prof. Dr. Gabriel C. M. Laeis has a keen

Prof. Gabriel C. M. Laeis

interest in gastronomy, food and sustainability ever since he commenced his career as a cook in a small Italian restaurant.

He moved on to work for a number of restaurants, international hotel chains and hospitality management consultancies in Germany, China and Australia. He holds a BA in Hotel Management and an MSc in Organic Agriculture and Food Systems. For his PhD in Development Studies at Massey University, New Zealand, Gabriel looked at the role of cuisine in shaping tourism-agriculture linkages in Fiji, finding that Western-driven mass tourism has a tendency to colonize the foodscape and alienate local cuisines. In 2018, Gabriel coorganised the first conference on tourism and the SDGs in Auckland. He continues to enjoy scrutinising the interface of smallholder agriculture, tourism and hotel management in the one in Geneva Business School, Barcelona.

Daniela Freund, Professor at Universitat Ramon Llull

A warm welcome to our new panel members!

Daniela Freund

She holds Hotel Management Diploma in Switzerland, Tourism Degree by URL, Barcelona and Diplomas in Cornell University, USA, Master in Marketing by UAB. . Currently working on her PhD in Educational Sciences at Blanquerna related to making hotels more accessible to families travelling with a child on ADS. Passionate about tourism, hospitality, education & women leadership. Contributes towards a more responsible and equal world through networks (EJE&CON, 50a50, Agima, Women in e-travel), articles and as speaker in conferences and media. Mentor & advisor of tourism.

Raquel Noboa Founder of 50Shades of Greener

Raquel Noboa

Raquel Started her own Green Journey at Hotel Doolin, in Ireland. She was working there as the Sales & Marketing manager in 2012 when the Hotel decided to start a Green Hospitality programme and Raquel was chosen as the new Hotel Green Manager. Within 2 years implementing Raquel’s green actions, they reduced their Energy by 30%, waste by 40% and water by 25%. They also won every win award in Ireland and she positioned the Hotel as a leader in the Sustainable travel market.

Dr. Henri Kuokkanen, Associate Professor at Institut Paul Bocuse. Henri's areas of expertise cover

Prof. Dr. Henri Kuokkanen

corporate social responsibility (CSR), ethical consumption, and revenue management, and he holds a PhD from Leeds Beckett University in CSR. His industry experience includes treasury and business control management in the global telecoms industry; he has also been a partner in a consulting company focused on transforming CSR into a strategic tool to create stakeholder benefits. His main field of research and publication focuses on the business potential CSR offers from a consumer perspective.

He has also authored multiple publications in the area of revenue management, with a focus on the potential the discipline can offer in tourism destinations through stakeholder cooperation. Henri has won several conference best paper awards and presented his work as a keynote speaker in international events.

W elc ome !

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Beyond Green! from Lindsey Ueberroth

CEO of Preferred Hotels & Resorts Co-founder & Ambassador LeadingHôtelières

HoteliersGuild

Last June, PHG announced the acquisition of Beyond Green Travel, a leader in providing sustainable tourism services and consulting, founded by ecotourism pioneer and global sustainability expert Costas Christ. Finalized on February 4, 2020, this is the first acquisition by the Ueberroth Family since they purchased Preferred Hotel Group, Inc. in March 2004.

The acquisition expands the suite of destination services offered by Beyond Green Travel through a partnership with PHG Consulting, Preferred’s global travel and tourism marketing and consulting agency. Similarly, current and potential clients of PHG Consulting can tap into Beyond Green Travel’s sustainable tourism expertise. Further, member hotels represented within the Preferred Hotels & Historic Hotels Worldwide Tr a v e l t o a d v a n c e t h e i r levels, ranging from partnerships and crafting property sustainability audits, and creating annual hotel and document success.

Resorts, Historic Hotels of America and

“ We believe change creates opportunity and to reset and renew travel and hospitality industry for a better future ”

brands can directly engage Beyond Green sustainability initiatives on a variety of establishing community projects and innovative guest experiences to conducting delivering sustainable tourism staff training sustainability reports to monitor progress

The launch of Beyond Green

was guided by an inherent passion to

transform travel as a force for

good, Preferred Hotel Group, Inc. – the

family-owned company that manages and operates global travel and hospitality brands including Preferred Hotels & Resorts, Historic Hotels of America, Historic Hotels Worldwide, PHG Consulting and Beyond Green Travel. This innovative hospitality brand debuts with a global portfolio of 24 founding member hotels, resorts, and lodges that exemplify sustainable tourism leadership. Driven by purpose, the new brand

represents Preferred’s steadfast

commitment to build a better and brighter future for travel in a way that also helps to protect the planet for future generations. Beyond Green Travel will also help guide the overall approach to GIFTTS (Great Initiatives for Today’s (Tomorrow’s) Society), Preferred’s corporate social responsibility program that the Ueberroth family launched in 2006.

Christ and the Beyond Green Travel team, for 20 years, have been developing content and strategies for travel and hospitality companies, such as Fairmont Hotels and Resorts, The Travel Corporation, Wilderness Safaris and National Geographic Travel. The company has also advised destinations and governments on how to successfully implement sustainable tourism. Notably, in Colombia, Beyond Green Travel worked with the government and local villagers to create a peace through tourism strategy following decades of civil war. The company also established a national ecotourism plan for Bhutan and was recently tapped to lead the Destination Stewardship Plan for Big Sur, CA. In addition, Christ served as senior advisor on sustainable tourism to Virtuoso, including designing staff and travel advisor sustainability trainings and workshops.

Now, the brand debuts mid November with a global portfolio of 24 member hotels, resorts and lodges that exemplify sustainable tourism leadership. Preferred says the brand shows its “steadfast commitment to build a better and brighter future for travel in a way that also helps to protect the planet for future generations.” Beyond Green’s must be committed to delivering on the three key pillars of sustainable tourism: Environmentally friendly practices that go beyond the basics; protection of natural and cultural heritage; and contributing to the social and economic well-being of local communities.

During a press event, said Lindsey Ueberroth, CEO of Preferred Hotel Group, Inc., said that “we believe change creates opportunity,” adding now is an opportune time to “reset and renew travel and hospitality industry for better future.”

Costas Christ, founder of Beyond Green Travel, echoed the sentiment, likening 2020 to an arrow—noting how it has to be pulled back before it can shoot forward. The purpose of the brand, Christ said, is “to take sustainability to the next level and transform the way we travel.”

To be included in the portfolio, properties will have to pass an initial and biennial on-site inspection and meet its three pillars, as well as 54 other sustainability indicators that are aligned with global sustainable tourism standards and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Among these are a benchmarking system for its sustainable practices with set goals for improving upon them, including carbon emission reduction targets; elimination of plastic water bottles and reducing single use plastics.

Support for biodiversity conservation initiatives and restoration and protection of natural habitats; embracing local cultural vernacular in design and décor and supporting the preservation of cultural heritage sites, a demonstrated priority to hire locally according to fair wages, benefits, and non-discrimination policies that meet or exceed legal requirements; and priority to purchase goods and services from locally owned and operated businesses are all also possible benchmarking factors.

The Beyond Green platform will support the needs of its member properties by providing global connectivity, distribution technology, marketing, sales, quality assurance, branding and sustainability solutions, as well as access to participate in I Prefer Hotel Rewards. Beyond Green will also enhance visibility for its global portfolio and champion sustainability storytelling through its brand website, www.StayBeyondGreen.com, which launched Tuesday in an interim state prior to the brand’s official consumer debut in Q1 2021. (Here, you can see the full list of founding members.) Beyond Green member properties will also be bookable on a common GDS chain code, to be announced in early 2021, which will be linked under Preferred Hotel Group Inc.’s master GDS chain code (PV).

To be considered for Beyond Green membership, a property must demonstrate leadership in the three key pillars of sustainable tourism as part of a rigorous vetting process and show progress in meeting more than 50 sustainability indicators that align with global sustainable tourism standards and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

Examples of these requirements,

among others, which form part of

an ongoing, biennial on-site

inspection process, include

management of overall establish benchmarks and set including carbon emission plastic water bottles and support for biodiversity restoration and protection of cultural vernacular in design and preservation of cultural heritage hire locally according to fair

“ “As we look ahead to the future of travel, particularly during this period of economic recovery, we believe more than ever that the time is now to take sustainable tourism to the next level”

environmental operations to additional sustainability goals reduction targets; elimination of reducing single use plastics; conservation initiatives and natural habitats; embracing local décor and supporting the sites, a demonstrated priority to wages, benefits, and non-

discrimination policies that meet

or exceed legal requirements; and

priority to purchase goods and

services from locally owned and

operated businesses.

To help build Beyond Green as a dynamic, digital-first platform that serves travelers through authentic storytelling and wholesome sustainability stewardship, Preferred sought expert direction from two strategic agencies – Robert Louey Design and Spherical. Robert Louey Design was tasked with the branding work, inclusive of brand development, positioning, and strategy, as well as graphic design and language. Spherical has been charged with building a digital identity for Beyond Green to coincide with its consumer launch in Q1 2021, which entails creative direction and channel strategy, the production of a variety of digital assets for advertising, marketing, and social media use, and the creation of a standalone consumer-facing website.

MISSION STATEMENT To take sustainable tourism to the next level and transform the world of travel. We believe that to travel with purpose is to travel well, where genuine hospitality brings together good guests and good hosts united in a passion for enjoying a great holiday that helps makes the world a better place. We stand for Nature, Community and Culture, with gratitude and respect always, honoring differences and celebrating our common humanity.

SUSTAINABILITY LEADERSHIP At the heart of Beyond Green is a belief that when it comes to sustainability, it is time to go big and be bold. Sustainable tourism is not about giving something up, it is about gaining something more. We are impact driven with a portfolio of individually curated exceptional hotels, lodges and resorts defined by their embrace of travel as a force for good. To be accepted into membership, all properties are vetted based on their commitment to deliver on the three key pillars of sustainable tourism: environmentally friendly practices that go beyond the basics; protection of natural and cultural heritage whether urban or rural, on land or sea; and contributing to the social and economic wellbeing of local communities. Members must also adhere to more than 50 sustainability indicators aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and global criteria for sustainable tourism.

COSTAS CHRIST BRAND LEADER, BEYOND GREEN Beyond Green Travel An ecotourism pioneer and one of the world's top sustainability experts, Costas has been recognized as a travel industry visionary. He helped to establish the United Nations global criteria for sustainable tourism best practice that continues to transform the world of travel today. As Brand Leader, he works closely with Lindsey Ueberroth in setting the standards and strategies that guide Beyond Green.

LINDSEY UEBERROTH CEO, PREFERRED HOTEL GROUP Preferred Hotels & Resorts Lindsey oversees the strategic direction of Preferred Hotel Group and its family of brands, including Beyond Green, Preferred Hotels & Resorts, Historic Hotels of America, Historic Hotels Worldwide, PHG Consulting, and Beyond Green Travel. Her successful leadership has helped to solidify the company’s position globally as the champion of independent hotels and a trusted resource for travelers seeking an authentic hospitality experience.

The Preferred Life preferred hotels & resorts

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A Message of Hope from Xenia zu Hohenlohe Chairlady LeadingHôtelières Managing Director

ConsiderateGroup

HoteliersGuild

With the German coalition government having just agreed to introduce a long awaited and much overdue mandatory quota for women in the senior management of listed German companies, I am even more delighted to be part of the wonderful new chapter of the HoteliersGuild LeadingHôtelières chapter. It clearly shows that we are in the pulse of time, but it also shows how much work there is that still needs to be done, and in particular in our sector when it comes to gender equality.

Just to give you an overview of the business world as a whole- and I quote the Financial Times on this as they have a better research team for these issues: “Women currently make up only 12.8 per cent of the management boards of German companies listed on the blue-chip Dax index, according to a recent survey by the Swedish-German AllBright Foundation. The proportion of women in leadership roles is 28.6 per cent in the US, 24.9 per cent in Sweden and 24.5 per cent in the UK. More worryingly, the survey found that German C-suites have become even more male-dominated in recent months. It found that the number of women in senior executive positions in Germany fell to 23 at the start of September, from 29 a year before” We in the hotel sector have <5% of women in leading position!!!

Sir Philipp Hampton the co-founder of the Hampton-Alexander Review on gender equality commissioned by the UK government for FTSE 350 boards said at a recent on-line conference organised by the Norwegian Future Board Association; “More women on Boards also leads to more Women in top executive leading roles. Men and women need to be pulling in the same direction on this agenda, as male dominated businesses are simply an outdated business model” In his view the Financial Crisis of 2008 was caused by a culture of machoism in the financial services and financial companies.

As we have seen in this crisis, countries run by women have feared slightly better when it comes to Covid-19 cases worldwide too.

Therefore, to cut the long story short- we are only at the beginning of this journey to gender equality within the business sector and a far way away from anything resembling a diverse leadership in the hospitality sector above all.

But with all the wonderful women assembled by Frank for this chapter of LeadingHoteliers, as well as male ambassadors and trailblazers, we are ready for action. We are working hard on a lot of exciting new projects, covering hotel design, operations, mentorships and communications and for which we will need all hands on deck to drive these forward.

You will be hearing more in the coming months- so watch this space!

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Women in Leadership a Rallying Cry from Prof. Dr. Sowon Kim Associate Professor

Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne Co-Chairlady LeadingHôtelières

HoteliersGuild

The financial services sector has finally begun shedding light on the gender pay gap within the industry, with Citi becoming the first major Wall Street bank to disclose internal data – albeit somewhat selectively – on gender pay, following activist shareholder pressure.

The Financial Times(FT) reported earlier this month that, in a message to staff, Citi’s head of human resources put the gender pay gap in the US, UK and Germany at just one percent.

However, according to the FT’s own research, while women account for up to 51 percent of Citi’s global workforce, they make up only 42 percent of mid-level executives and 43 percent of senior executives.

But what of the hospitality sector?

The gender pay gap prevails across all countries and industries, including our own. In a study of executive compensation, my co-authors and I found that women CEOs in hospitality tend to receive bonuses that are three percent lower than those of their male counterparts. Other topics such as sexual harassment at the workplace, which is a real concern, have never emerged because it is taboo to discuss such topics openly.

While noticeable advances have been made regarding women in the workplace, the industry has not been immune to the slow progress of women into senior positions.

Women may have achieved virtual parity with men at the start of their careers, but within just five to six years they start to lag behind their male counterparts.

Extensive evidence from research shows that challenges faced by women seeking to reach the C-suite include biased perceptions about their competences and their roles as a manager and/or leader. “ The old ‘think manager, We also know from research that, in terms of social capital, women receive less support – critical for career think male’ mindset still advancement – from career sponsors and their informal prevails in organizations networks. and women continue Finally, there are the challenges related to managing facing the double bind: the work-family life balance as both can be highly behave assertively and demanding. Thus, women exit the labor market although there is a growing tendency to reduce the number of others might not like you, working hours, particularly during childrearing years. yet behave nicely and I n t e r e s t i n g l y, m y others might perceive you colleagues and I found in our research that hotel performance volatility is actually as lacking the abilities to reduced when women in t o p m a n a g e m e n t ro l e s a re lead.” allowed to work part-time.

As we found in our research, such flexible work arrangements by family-supportive organizations can reduce staff turnover, while increasing job performance.

Gender diversity is positively associated with the performance of financial firms as well as for society in general as female economic activity is positively related to the human development index (measured by life expectancy, education, and GDP per capita).

So, what more can be done?

It wasn’t that long ago – back in 2013 when I joined I joined EHL as a member of faculty – that no woman was part of the management team or the EHL group. In an exhibition of black and white photos at the school, well-groomed men only featured in the images of EHL alumni who had reached the C-suite.

Finally, there are the challenges related to managing the work-family life balance as both can be highly demanding. Thus, women exit the labor market although there is a growing tendency to reduce the number of working hours, particularly during childrearing years.

Interestingly, my colleagues and I found in our research that hotel performance volatility is actually reduced when women in top management roles are allowed to work part-time.

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HoteliersGuild is honoured and proud to count with Sowon Kim’s support as Cochairlady for HoteliersGuild’s LeadingHôtelières chapter. Dr. Sowon Kim, is an Associate Professor at Ecole hôtelière de Lausanne and Co-founder of the EHLWomen in Leadership (WIL) Initiative launched in 2018. She teaches bachelors, masters, and executives in the fields of organizational capital and leadership and intercultural management.

D r.

K i m ’s research focuses on personality, networking, work-family, and leadership d i v e r s i t y. S h e has published in diverse outlets such as the Journal of Vocational B e h a v i o r, Human Resource Management J o u r n a l , Personality and Individual Differences, and Journal of Environmental Psychology. Dr. Kim holds a PhD from the University of Geneva, was a Visiting Scholar at IESE Business School and I N S E A D Fontainebleau (both funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation) and is a Visiting Professor at the University of Geneva. Prior to academia, Dr. Kim has gained substantial business experience in the consumer goods, high-tech, broadcasting, and jewellery industries. speaks four languages and lived in eight countries before settling in Martigny with her family.

Xenia zu Hohenlohe Managing Partner | Considerate Group Xenia began her career in the hospitality industry 23 years ago and brings a wealth of experience and expertise to the company. She has handled the PR for cultural tourism Spain and international hotel groups such as Mandarin Oriental Hotels and Oberoi Hotels as their European Account Manager. She then spent three years at Amanresorts, first heading Sales & Marketing for The Americas & Europe, then building up the European Sales Office in London before moving into operations as Assistant General Manager for the Amanjena, Marrakech. Having developed a thorough understanding of the various operational as well as commercial aspects of the hotel business, she joined forces with Benedetta to rebrand and re-position the Considerate Hoteliers Association. Xenia is based in our Munich office and is fluent in five European languages, which positions the company perfectly for a European expansion.

Xeniaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s motivation is her life-long concern for the environment and desire to create new systems for the integration of sustainable practices into the hospitality industry

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THE SITUATION from Maria Pajares Managing Director of Mason Rose Member of LeadingHôtelières

HoteliersGuild

Earlier this year, at the start of the pandemic, Mason Rose was delighted to organise a series of discussions for our network of hoteliers with the very best of speakers covering a range of topics of importance to our industry. One that really stood out and sparked high engagement amongst the hotelier audience was entitled ‘Making Travel a Force for Good’. It is quite clear that the global pandemic has given us an opportunity to re-think many aspects of travel. During the discussion, we asked Xenia zu Hohenlohe, the founding partner of Considerate Hoteliers and now Chairlady of HoteliersGuild’s LeadingHôtelières Chapter, Juliet Kinsman, Conde Nast Traveller’s first ever sustainability editor and Jean-Francois Ferret, then CEO of SLH, to discuss with us the burning questions in responsible travel now. Sharing opinion, expertise and practical ideas, these three speakers outlined how hospitality can be a force for good.

THE SITUATION: How has the pandemic accelerated the drive for change and for a more sustainable world?

It has put a spotlight on the socio-economic inequality in the world and raised issues of community within the • sustainability story Travel is the perfect opportunity to lead the way in awareness and diversity • It has presented the chance for hotels to look at how they engage with the emotions and needs of responsible • travellers “Are staff members the new travel ambassadors? Are we promoting faraway places as exotic because they are different or is it time to focus instead on common humanity?” JK

HYGIENE: will new health & safety requirements require more wasteful practices?

“The world has changed since the epidemic. We have experienced constraints, now we should swich constraints into opportunities.” J-FF Hygiene is the ‘new currency of the new normal’ • Opportunity to use innovative technology rather than toxic chemicals and disposable plastics e.g. UV light/ • electrostatically charged mists/self-cleaning wall coatings for sterilisation, also virtual or touch-free check-in and personalised concierge apps Some elements of new Health & Safety measures will naturally be more sustainable e.g. amenities being on • request only The luxury/boutique customer will still want the hotel experience rather than a trip to an upmarket hospital, so a • more holistic sense of trust will be key Better to focus on one or two things a hotel really cares about and can do well • Easier wins are reducing pollution and waste, but effective carbon offsetting requires investment and long-term • thinking • CONSUMERS: how will the luxury traveller’s behaviour have changed? Will people make travel choices in a more considered way and in particular as regards to sustainability?

Health & safety will be the first priority for travel in the short term • We’ll see changes in consumers’ ideas of what luxury is: not necessarily in the use of piles of towels and single-use • plastics, but moreover in beautifully-produced, authentic, local things Travellers more likely to crave experiences over material things post-lockdown so an opportunity to really • highlight authentic offerings An increased appetite for holidays that enhance health (wellbeing to have a focus on outdoor adventure and • personalised spa treatments / chance for F&B to focus on local produce, perhaps less meat) Over-tourism replaced by under-tourism: chance to promote lesser-known nearby destinations and partners • Predicted increase in last-minute bookings • Money and value may be an issue for travellers and depending on how people have financially weathered • lockdown, some may still favour lower price points over positive eco credentials Global and cultural differences means that some travellers are more “woke” than others. There is an element of • education as well as explanation that needs to be addressed through open communication – where do hotels communicate their sustainability stories?

• HOTELIERS: Top tips for hoteliers who wish to be as sustainable as possible as they plan for re-opening and of course beyond. How can hotels stand out as forward-thinkers in terms of sustainability? What to consider in planning:

“From the website to waste disposal. Consideration should be given to sustainable practices at every level of a hotel’s operation” XH ‘Co-ompetition’ eg: collaborating with other hoteliers and suppliers within your network • Bottom-up planning and buy-in eg: involving staff at all levels and asking for their ideas/what’s important to • them (especially now there is the opportunity to do so) Transparent engagement with guests that focus on ‘people’s stories’ • More focus on the benefits of travel to the traveller in terms of spending genuine time talking to people • locally, understanding we are one and the same, albeit with diverse backgrounds Looking at ways to create circular economies and better systems – like local sourcing and working with • communities, over focusing on “stuff” like free gifts in rooms. Using traceable and ethical suppliers.

Managing waste e.g. sending cooking oils for energy, grey water for gardening, up-cycling furniture Wealth distribution: how much is going to labour and local community • Supporting diversity in the workforce and being conscious of diversity in your marketing • Focus on staff and mental health of employees after a difficult period • “Focus on a few manageable aspects – eg water or education” JK

FINANCES: From an economic perspective, what are the benefits of more sustainable practices?

• • • • • • •

Cost savings on minimising food waste Circular economies / local sourcing that reflect the holistic efficiency of nature and sustain / build communities EU Green Deals will be putting fines on unsustainable practices Looking for health & safety measures that are no more expensive, like swapping disposable amenities for reusable products, made locally Changing mindsets from solving problems with more “things” to introducing better streamlined systems from procurement-to-waste (even if they require investment at the start) Hospitality investors are now directly seeking businesses with strong CSR principles and sustainable practices

COMMUNICATION: Is your sustainability message easy to find on your website?

• • •

•

Staff are your greatest ambassadors – hotels with genuine and positive practices are evident in the way staff themselves speak about the property and how they engage with guests about sustainability Storytelling – language is very important: be honest, specific and inclusive Take a stand: some hotels, like Fogo Island in Newfoundland share financial transparency to show guests a breakdown of where their money goes and how much is invested locally, which they call ‘ECONOMIC NUTRITION’ Engaging older/traditional clientele: be patient. Introduce guests to specific people and share their stories to make things relatable. Build sustainability stories into multi-generational experiencesnterview Mason Rose and Studio Black Tomato:

SophiaKay | BrandStrategist

London | New York

BLACK TOMATO

Studio

What message do you think people want to hear from hospitality brands at the current time?

As one of the leading Representation and Communications Agencies in the hotel industry, Mason Rose has naturally been as challenged as the rest of us in 2020. However, Maria Pajares, MD of Mason Rose and HotelierGuild member, has had her eye on the future throughout. With this in mind, Mason Rose and pioneering creative agency, Studio Black Tomato, further to many years of collaboration, selected 2020 to be the year to formalise their partnership. The two partners understood that now is the time, more than ever, that hotels are looking for a 360 solution and a consolidated, well-rounded voice, to help guide them with their full marketing needs and, in particular, to get their messaging just right at this complex time.

For this issue of ForumOfDialogue, Maria has interviewed Sophia Kay, Brand Strategist for Studio Black Tomato on this very subject

For a period of time we saw the world become quite consumed with negativity, which has had an impact on individual and collective mental health. We’ve seen behaviours like ‘doomscrolling’, for example, on the rise, where people default to and actively seek the latest and most upsetting stories online. But whilst this has become a habit, psychologically this is not the information people necessarily want to receive nor benefit most from. People need messages of hope/ positivity/ kindness from news outlets or social media; there is space within the creative world to bring light to people’s lives. We may not know it from our day-to-day behaviour, but we are seeking a dream world of escapism and storytelling that acts to remind us that there is hope and fun to be had at the end of the tunnel. And luckily, against this muted backdrop, there is ample opportunity within the world of hospitality – which exists to inspire - to stand out, push boundaries and be more creative.

When it comes to language and tone, do you think brands need to start 2021 afresh?

At the beginning of the pandemic, we saw many brands kneejerking to serious public announcement style messaging out of fear of saying the right thing. This was understandable given we were dealing with an unknown beast. However, language and tone are fundamental to your brand’s personality, so to completely drop it in the face of challenge not only undoes some well-established brand recognition but can be unsettling. Going forward brands should solidify and strengthen their existing messaging – whether that be speaking with humour, frivolity or confidence - with a greater flexibility, empathy and kindness that shows an educated awareness of the world we are operating in.

How should hotels manage communication regarding safety and hygiene?

Hotels should continue to lead with their ‘inspirational’ message (lead USP), whether that be focussing on sustainability, off-grid experiences or your world leading garden-to-plate dining offering. Your hygiene message, for example around sanitisation,

should be considered a secondary ‘reassurance’ message – this should exist within your communications (primarily on your website) but it should be actively sought out by the reader rather than the leading message.

How can brands strike the right balance when it comes to ‘positivity’?

Treating a brand as if they were a trusted thought-leader or expert, it would follow that a cry of positivity be supported with educated reasoning. As with balancing the ‘inspiration’ and ‘reassurance’ messaging, positivity needs to be well-informed or risk feeling tone-deaf and out of touch. Brands should find ways to be transparent and speak with humility, sharing their own personal journey of navigating the current climate and showing that they are tuned into the ever-changing world around us is a brand strategy and creative content agency and part of the Black Tomato Group. They have extensive experience in producing visually stunning award-winning content, design, advertising and creative consultancy for a wealth of luxury, lifestyle and travel brands. Studio Black Tomato create work around their belief that Culture Connects, leaning on firsthand consumer insight from Black Tomato to build authentic connections between people and brands.

LONDON 4-14 Tabernacle Street London, EC2A 4LU United Kingdom +44 (0) 207 426 9928

NEW YORK CITY 16 Madison Square West, 12th floor, New York, NY 10010 United States of America +1 (0) 646 558 3644

C re! i

ve

WOMEN POWER

MASONROSE

Making Travel a Force for Good

FORUMOFDIALOGUE SERIES

Sharing an Op-Ed from Sonu Shivdasani HoteliersGuild Ambassador Gardien & Custodian of

SONEVA

HoteliersGuild

Right now, our thoughts are with those of you living in countries that have returned to lockdown, or where travel is seriously restricted because of rising COVID-19 infection rates. We hope and pray that you and your loved ones remain safe and well, and that the hardships are short.

I’d like to share an Op-Ed that I recently wrote, which was inspired by a conversation with a Brazilian friend who had braved the long journey to visit us in the Maldives. He told me that ‘living is a deadly disease’, and indeed, he made a good point. As we take each step in this journey of life, with all its precious moments, there is always a trade-off, with some struggle, some sorrow and some risk along the way.

Eva and I feel incredibly blessed to have spent this past year in the Maldives. We’ve been very busy, working with our wonderful team to create even more opportunities for you to enjoy ‘living’ across our resorts. The remoteness of Soneva Fushi and Soneva Jani in the Maldives, as well as Soneva Kiri in Thailand, has enabled us to environments. We’ve stringent health and safety on arrival for all of our guests, programme for our hosts (who two to three months at a time, coming from other local COVID-free). You can find out made about our New Normal.

As a result of our groundwork,

create

achieved this through our

“As a result of our groundwork, we’re happy to report that Soneva is no longer just about ‘No News, No Shoes’ – thanks to our health and safety procedures, we’re also ‘No Masks’, too.”

Soneva is no longer just about

COVID-free

policies, with fast-track testing and a comprehensive testing stay with us on our islands for and are tested even when islands that are certified more by watching the film we we’re happy to report that ‘No News, No Shoes’ – thanks

to our health and safety procedures, we’re also ‘No Masks’, too. This means that our guests can focus on enjoying their stay and making new, positive memories, free from worries about any risk of infection. You might enjoy watching this short film, which shows some of the many special moments our guests have enjoyed since the borders reopened in the Maldives.

The year 2020 marks the 25th anniversary since we first launched Soneva with the opening of Soneva Fushi back in 1995. As part of our ongoing celebrations, we teamed up once more with the acclaimed French filmmaker Bruno Aveillan, himself a Soneva Enthusiast, to create a series of films celebrating those remarkable people behind all of our successes: our Hosts. You can watch the main film and the playlist here.

As well as looking back during our anniversary year, this milestone moment in the Soneva story has been a timely opportunity to look towards the future – with 2020 marking the launch of an exciting array of new experiences, dining destinations and more across our resorts. At Soneva Fushi, we welcomed our first guests at our new Water Retreats, the largest and most luxurious one and twobedroom over-water villas in the world. Commanding panoramic ocean views, these new villas offer our guests more choice than ever during their stay. Constructed according to our sustainable principles, they are designed to maximise a sense of space, seclusion and unmatched luxury. Watch my video tour of the new overwater retreats here.

At Soneva Jani, we have recently begun a soft launch of Chapter Two. Staying in one of our brand new Water Reserves or Island Reserves allows you the freedom to experience all of Soneva Jani with Soneva Unlimited. Think unlimited dining, drinks (including 262 options of wines and champagnes), experiences around the resort, diving and surfing, spa treatments, a personal Barefoot Butler, and so much more. Click here to discover more.You might have already heard about our three new restaurants, one of which is ‘Overseas by Mathias Dahlgren’, which is inspired by its stunning over-water location near The Gathering. Mathias, one of Sweden’s most talented chefs, has created a lunch and dinner menu of pescatarian and plant-based delights, freshly caught

from the nearby ocean or picked from our own organic gardens. Read more about our two other restaurants at this link.

After a challenging year for us all, we’re counting down the days to the festive period at our resorts.

This joyous time of year reminds us of the most important things in life – spending quality time and enjoying new, fulfilling experiences with the people that matter most. As we do every year, we have put together an unforgettable festive calendar across Soneva Fushi, Soneva Jani and Soneva Kiri (view the programmes here), from Christmas feasts and visits from Santa himself, to a spectacular New Year’s Eve celebration, filled with good cheer. For a taste of what’s to come, click here to see last year’s festivities.

To end this letter, I’d like to share an extraordinary new evolution at Soneva, something that has created a long-lasting, positive impact on our islands. Eva and I have always considered ourselves to be guardians, not owners, of the magical places that Soneva calls home – we feel privileged to be able to take care of these until now, mosquitoes have island life, a frustrating pest through chemical fogging, across the Maldives. Last year that the mosquitoes had fogging, so sprays had hundreds of special, resort. The first type targets

places during our lifetimes. Up

“Eva and I have always considered ourselves to be guardians, not owners, of the magical places that Soneva calls home…”

place to lay their eggs after

been the one downside of that could only be controlled which is used extensively at Soneva Fushi, we realised developed a resistance to become ineffective. We placed chemical-free traps across the tiger mosquitoes looking for a having bitten someone. The

second type uses lactic acid and CO2 to create an irresistible aroma for mosquitoes searching for blood. As a result of these traps, we’ve seen a massive 95% decline in mosquito numbers on the island.

The happy side effect of our efforts to combat mosquitos has been the regeneration of other, beneficial insect populations. We now have an abundance of beautiful native butterflies, bumblebees and dragonflies, which in turn are pollinating our flowers and plants, making the island even more beautiful than before. So now we can say that not only are we ‘No News, No Shoes and No Masks’, we’re also ‘No Mosquitoes’ too!

Stay safe, and Eva and I hope to see you at Soneva very soon.

FORUMOFDIALOGUE SERIES

Regenerative Hospitality: The Nexus between Sustainability and Guest Experiences from Prof. Dr. Willy Legrand Member of LeadingHôtelières Advisory Board Department of Hospitality, Tourism and Event Management IUBH University of Applied Sciences Bad Honnef, Germany

HoteliersGuild

The concept of Regenerative Tourism has gained traction in the industry and academic circles as a model addressing the challenges linked to climate emergency and biodiversity collapse, to which the tourism industry is a fair contributor (i.e. Cave and Dredge, 2020; Glusac, 2020).

Some

entrepreneurs, however, have managed to build and operate hotels that produce sustainability instead of only repairing, recycling, offsetting or limiting the impact of hospitality buildings and operations. We label such endeavours production of sustainability (Legrand, et al. 2020) or regenerative hospitality. While sustainable production is achieved when the output is in ecological balance with the input, regenerative hospitality takes place when the ecological, social or climate systems are in better condition because the company is present and operates in society.

Regenerative hospitality

is less about bucket lists

and trophy collection

and more about

“Regenerative hospitality is less about bucket lists and trophy collection and more about economies of meaning that “help us to help one another live meaningful lives—to meet real needs and solve problems that matter”

economies of meaning one another live meet real needs and matter” (Boik, 2017, sustainability agenda is about conserving a b o u t i n c l u s i v i t y, wellbeing as well as

that “help us to help meaningful lives—to solve problems that para

damage minimization.

The

no longer just simply resources. It is also employee and guest stimulating the local

economy. Far too long

the

sustainability strategy was

13).

leading

driven by the concept of

The current COVID19 pandemic makes it more pressing, but almost a

decade ago it was noticed that there is an urgent “need to take specific measures to help regenerate soils, forests and watercourses rather than just allowing them to be sustained in an increasingly degraded condition as we have done for many years” (Girardet, 2013). Regenerative hospitality supports environmental connections along with personal fulfilment, with hospitality products and services that share similar values. Regenerative hospitality is equally about restoring the external environment as it is about individual serenity.

The Postmodern Consumer There is a tendency to talk about the postmodern consumer these day, where consumption is viewed as being more hedonistic, self-affirming and compensatory in nature (Berner and van Tonder, 2003). Consumers are more active and more individualistic in preferences where individual tastes and meanings are important, and it is often exhibited through purchases of products, and service (Berner and van as choices of destinations particular characterization consumer

is

the

multiple lifestyles resulting incompatible value van Tonder, 2003). The shopper driving a SUV in a n e x t o r g a n i c f a m e r ’s albeit in a stereotypical colliding lifestyles and H o w e v e r, o n e m u s t

Tonder, 2003) as well

“Consumers are more active and more individualistic in preferences where individual tastes and meanings are important, and it is often exhibited through purchases of products, and service (Berner and van Tonder, 2003) as well as choices of destinations and hotel types.”

and hotel types. One of the postmodern engagement in in, at times, highly systems (Berner and week-end suburban 40km roundtrip to the market may exemplify, way, the friction of value systems. remember that we all

live in a world filled with “doubt, ambiguity and uncertainty” (Thomas, 1997, 58). And the current pandemic only contributes to this general uncertainty. In fact, the world of business has acquired the Army term VUCA – Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, Ambiguous – to describe the current pandemic crisis where whatever tactics is implemented today may be obsolete by tomorrow. This is a world full of volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity. After the Great Lockdown, the

industry and governmental institutions will need to tackle the corresponding collapse in business investment and consumer consumption that includes re-establishing confidence in making informed choices.

Epidemic of Loneliness Back in 2017, the former U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy published an article in the Harvard Business Review, describing the growing epidemic of loneliness (Murthy, 2017). Murthy writes that while, “we live in the most technologically connected age in the history of civilization, rates of loneliness have doubled since the 1980s” (Murthy, 2017). Considering the trends of the past decade in hospitality, we can see investments in wellness amenities from nutritious food and beverage offerings, exercise and fitness classes, to spa services and relaxation therapy. However, the pandemic is putting a new twist on how we understand well-being and accordingly how we choose to spend leisure time. We often tend to refer to “time off” when we talk about holiday or leisure time.

However, we no longer operate in a world in which we seek to balance only work and play and this pandemic has blurred the boundaries even further for those working from home. Leisure time is now ‘time on’ where we seek to balance physical, intellectual, emotional, social, and even spiritual well-being (Strong and Verma, 2019). This, in turn, has inspired multiple industry innovations.

“Hotels provide safe spaces for people to meet and develop meaningful connections” Regenerating via Hospitality: Treehouse Hotels A few years back, together with fellow academic researchers, we looked at the treehouse hotel phenomena with the summary results published in a UNWTO report on the Transformative Power of Tourism (Sloan, Legrand, and Kinski, 2016a) and later in greater detail in the journal Advances in Hospitality and Leisure (Sloan, Legrand, and Kinski, 2016b). Treehouse hotels are interesting for various reasons. The multidisciplinary field of environmental psychology has closely the environment and vice that nature deprivation has disengagement from nature disorder (Louv, 2011). Naturelevel of importance in light of McKivigan, 2020). Similarly, Kaplan (1995) is another types of natural environments and restoration from fatigue.

examined the effects of humans on

“Treehouse hotels are interesting for various reasons. The multidisciplinary field of environmental psychology has closely examined the effects of humans on the environment and vice versa.”

versa. Recent studies have shown negative repercussions. This has a name

: n a t u re - d e f i c i t

deficit disorder has taken a new the Great Lockdown (St-Esprit the so-called restoration theory of approach to explaining why certain are effective in stress reduction People recover best from the

stresses of daily life in environments where their minds are drawn by involuntary interest which the natural environment supplies in abundance (Legrand, Sloan and Chen, 2017). Evidence shows that people suffering from mental fatigue are soothed by natural elements such as trees, plants, flowers, animals and birds (Terrapin Bright Green, 2012). Mental energy restoration time is accelerated compared to a vacation where only built elements are visible. In a Japanese study, the effect of a walk in the forest showed that such environments can promote lower pulse rates and lower blood pressure and reduction in muscle tension (Lee et al., 2011).

The tree house hotels we had surveyed in our study were built to the highest sustainable standards, using local wood and building materials but offer all the comforts of modern life. The majority of guests come away from their tree house hotel experience feeling spiritually and bodily refreshed. Tree houses also perform a valuable educational and stewardship role for a great natural resource. As populations become increasingly urbanized, the well documented evidence pointing to the beneficial effects of nature on health and wellbeing is rising up across many destinations. Recently, the results of a survey of more than 1000 travelers on the motivation factors for taking an expedition holiday in Patagonia showed that connection to nature is by far the main driver (Legrand, 2020). So entrepreneurs are seeking to distinguish themselves in the market, re-imagining and customizing the guest environment with memorable experience at the center. It is no longer enough to craft a beautiful building or space that people will enjoy; today’s hospitality concepts should focus on people’s reaction to the natural surroundings. It

is about merging biophilia and the hospitality experience. It is about putting more nature in the hotels and along the same line fostering a regenerative connection to the outside world, our surroundings both in social and environmental terms. It is the addition of our infrastructure, the design of experiences and the inclusion of natural elements. The ecotourism network The Long Run (https://www.thelongrun.org/) embodies this approach well with the 4Cs framework (Conservation, Community, Commerce and Culture) which is a model for tourism organizations and hospitality businesses across the globe on operating sensibly in this day and age remembering that biodiversity is our number one service provider via the many, free of charge, ecosystems services. In line with a circularity approach, the focus is on regeneration, leaving the place better than you found it, and coming back home healthier, physically and spiritually, than when you left.

Leaders in hospitality have already recognized that their core competency lies in building relationships which makes them uniquely positioned to address our growing societal disconnection. Consequently, the hospitality industry and its many offers have a role to play in bridging humans and nature as a preventive means in individual wellbeing.

References: Berner, A., & van Tonder, C.L. (2003). The Postmodern Consumer: Implications of Changing Customer Expectations for Organisation Development in Service Organisations. South African Journal of Industrial Psychology, 29(3). 1-10 Boik, J. (2017). An Economy of Meaning – or Bust. Local Futures. Feb. 16. https://www.localfutures.org/economy-meaning-bust/ Cave, J. & Dredge, D. (2020). Regenerative tourism needs diverse economic practices. Tourism Geographies, 22(3), 503-513, DOI: 10.1080/14616688.2020.1768434 Girardet, H. (June 10, 2013). Sustainability is unhelpful: we need to think about regeneration. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/ blog/sustainability-unhelpful-think-regeneration Glusac, E. (August 27, 2020). Move Over, Sustainable Travel. Regenerative Travel Has Arrived. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/27/travel/ travel-future-coronavirus-sustainable.html Kaplan, S. (1995). The restorative benefits of nature: Toward an integrative framework. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 15(3). 169-182.

Lee, J., Park, B. J., Tsunetsugu, Y., Ohira, T., Kagawa, T., & Miyazaki, Y. (2011). Effect of forest bathing on physiological and psychological responses in young Japanese male subjects. Public Health, 125(2), 93-100.

Legrand, W. (November 12, 2020). Regenerative Hospitality: The Nexus between Sustainability and Guest Experiences, Service Design Conference, Pärnu, Estonia.

Legrand, W., Cavagnaro, E., Schønrock Nielsen, R. & Dubrocard, N. (2020). Sustainability without Limits – Strategic and Operational Innovations in the Hospitality Industry, in Gardini, M., Ottenbacher, M.C., & Schuckert, M. (Eds.) Routledge Companion to International Hospitality Management, Oxford, Routledge. 161-172.

Legrand, W., Sloan, P. and Chen, J.S. (2017). Sustainability in the Hospitality Industry: Principles of Sustainable Operations. 3rd Edition, Oxford: Routledge.

Louv, R. (2011). The Nature Principle: Human Restoration and the End of Nature-Deficit Disorder. Chapel Hill NC: Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill.

Murthy, V. (September 26, 2017). Work and the Loneliness Epidemic: Reducing isolation at work is good for business. Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/ 2017/09/work-and-the-loneliness-epidemic Sloan, P., Legrand, W., and Kinski, S. (2016a). The Restorative Power of Tree House Hotels: a German Case Study, Global Report on the Transformative Power of Tourism, UNWTO Affiliate Members Report, 14, 54-57. https://catedratim.files.wordpress.com/2017/01/omt-global-report-of-transformative-power-oftourism2016.pdf Sloan, P., Legrand, W., and Kinski, S. (2016b). The Restorative Power of Forests: The Tree House Hotel Phenomena in Germany, In J. Chen (ed.)

Advances in

Hospitality and Leisure, 12, 181-189.

St-Esprit McKivigan, M. (June 3, 2020). ‘Nature Deficit Disorder’ Is Really a Thing. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/23/parenting/naturehealth-benefits-coronavirus-outdoors.html Strong, A., & Verma, R. (2019). From wellness to well-being. In Legrand, W. (ed.) The Hotel Yearbook Special Edition Sustainable Hospitality 2020, pp. 56-57. Http:// www.hotel-yearbook.com/edition/37000021.html Terrapin Bright Green (2012). The Economics of Biophilia: When Designing with nature in Mind makes Financial Sense. reports/the-economics-of-biophilia/

https://www.terrapinbrightgreen.com/

IUBH

FORUMOFDIALOGUE SERIES

From Experiences to meaningful Experiences – through Sustainability? from Prof. Dr. Henri Kuokkanen LeadingHôtelières Advisory Board member Associate Professor at Institut Paul Bocuse; VP EuroCHRIE

HoteliersGuild

The hospitality and tourism industry has embraced the experience economy, introduced by Joseph Pine and James Gilmore. Businesses have raced to 'wow' their customers with innovative experience design that has aimed at exceeding or redefining guest expectations. However, the power of the 'wow' alone may be fading, as noted by Pine and Gilmore already in 2011. According to them, people are moving on to search for more thorough, transformative experiences.

A transformative experience, by definition, must have a deeper meaning to the person experiencing it. A meaningful experience can emerge in many ways, for example based on heightened self-awareness. The global pandemic will likely influence the type of experiences hospitality customers yearn, though details of any such development are still unknown.

However, research has demonstrated that ethical experiences, defined here broadly as social or environmental sustainability that aim at improving the situation of one or more stakeholders without harming others, can also act as a catalyst for experiences and even transformation (Kirillova, Lehto and Cai, 2017). It is not hard to imagine that COVID-19 would further encourage certain guest segments to search for such ethically meaningful experiences.

What does this mean for the hospitality industry? Until now, a lot of the good work responsible hoteliers and restaurateurs have done regarding social and environmental sustainability has not reached the attention of the guests.

Sustainability has also suffered from greenwashing allegations, arguably because some companies have been guilty of such practice in the past. The

approach represents traditional

corporate social responsibility (CSR) –

thinking, where initiatives take place

in the background. For years, a a significant segment of consumers on sustainability, or even pay more Global Compact and Havas Media, PwC, 2020). Despite this, the promise remained unfulfilled across industries. significance of experience design u n i q u e o p p o r t u n i t y. E n g a g i n g ethical meaningfulness through social transform sustainability and CSR from value for customers and create a real may even transform the customers

“Until now, a lot of the good work responsible hoteliers and restaurateurs have done regarding social and environmental sustainability has not reached the attention of

stream of surveys has suggested that would be keen to base their choice for it (for example, Accenture, UN 2014; Edelman, 2018; Nielsen, 2014; of 'doing well by doing good' has In the post-pandemic situation, the gives the hospitality industry a customers in experiences that offer or environmental sustainability can a supply-led, "must-have" exercise to competitive advantage. At best, it themselves.

How can we create such ethically meaningful experiences? What separates a CSR initiative from an experience? The answer is emotion and, in the best case, ensuing customer transformation. When guests encounter sustainability initiatives that prompt positive emotions, their perception of the provider changes. If the emotion is strong enough to create transformation, the change is even more profound. Several outcomes positive to a hotel can result, including brand loyalty and (re)purchase intention (Tasci and Pizam, 2020). Current experience research already employs technologies such as creating virtual experimental environments and measuring emotional response. Applying these tools to CSR research can help to define the exact areas of social and environmental sustainability that stimulate emotional response.

For the ethically engaging experience to arise, the underlying initiative has to be genuine. Even the slightest greenwashing suspicion would prevent the experience from emerging. Similarly, initiatives purely directed at financial profit would also likely disengage guests, while ethically meaningful experiences can lead to financial benefits. Therefore, engaging guests emotionally in CSR may act as the key that unlocks the promise of improved business performance through virtuous behavior. This can only happen, however, by adopting a customer-oriented approach to CSR and by listening to and studying the focal stakeholder in discovering the demand for ethical and sustainable business behaviour: the guest.

References: Accenture, UN Global Compact, & Havas Media. (2014). The Consumer Study: From Marketing to Mattering. http://www.fairtrade.travel/uploads/files/Accenture-Consumer-Study-Marketing-Mattering_2014.pdf Edelman. (2018), Brands Take a Stand. https://www.edelman.com/sites/g/files/aatuss191/files/2018-10/2018_Edelman_Earned_Brand_Global_Report.pdf Kirillova, K., Lehto, X., & Cai, L. (2017). Tourism and existential transformation: An empirical investigation. Journal of Travel Research, 56(5), 638–650. https://doi.org/10.1177/0047287516650277 Nielsen. (2014). Doing Well by Doing Good. https://www.nielsen.com/us/en/insights/report/2014/doing-well-by-doing-good/ Pine, B.J. and Gilmore, J.H. (2011), The Experience Economy. Harvard Business Press: Boston PwC. (2020). The Consumer Transformed. https://www.pwc.com/gx/en/consumer-markets/consumer-insights-survey/2020/consumer-insights-survey-2020.pdf Tasci, A., & Pizam, A. (2020). An expanded nomological network of experienscape. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 32(3), 999–1040. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJCHM-12-2018-0988

at

ru ly

un iq

ue lea rn ing

env iro

nm ent !

FORUMOFDIALOGUE SERIES

Maribel Esparcia Pérez Professor at University of Lleida Introducing European Sustainable Hospitality Club Co-founder, Dan Pontarlier And Sarah Mokhtari

HoteliersGuild

“In the ESH Club, our purpose is to advocate to preserve natural resources, ensure human rights and people’s development are a priority in the travel industry. We are guided by European regulation and key international frameworks such as PRI, GRI, UN SDGs Agenda for 2030 to provide ESHC members access to sop's and procedures, operational and strategy documents, a marketplace of sustainable suppliers, handbooks, procurement protocols, and an online academy with modules for employees and leadership teams. We are committed to excellence and commitment in the hospitality industry, making Service and Significance the priority for industry leaders.”

Maribel Esparcia Pérez

#FutureOfTourism ESHClub supporting the Coalition Future of Tourism Author: Dan Pontarlier We have become supporters of a new movement created to reshape the future of tourism! The European Sustainable Hospitality Club has signed the Guiding Principles launched by the newly formed Future of Tourism Coalition: - the Center for Responsible Travel (CREST) , a nonprofit research organization dedicated to increasing the positive global impact of responsible tourism;

- the Destination Stewardship Center , a volunteer-driven nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting the world’s distinctive places; - Green Destinations, a non-profit foundation for sustainable destination development and recognition;

- Sustainable Travel International , a non-profit organization dedicated to protecting and conserving our planet’s most vulnerable destinations; - Tourism Cares, a nonprofit network bringing its members from around the globe helping people thrive, and

- the Travel Foundation , a leading global charity that works in partnership with governments, businesses and communities to develop and manage tourism to maximise its benefits for communities and the environment;

- with the guidance of the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC), which is the advisory body of the Coalition, as it establishes and manages global sustainable standards, known as the GSTC Criteria.

It was a must for us to be part of it, as these principles outline a bold vision for tourism's path forward. This vision retains the integrity of destinations, promotes inclusivity and equality, maximizes positive impacts for communities and environments, and fosters collaborative change. As signatories, we commit to align our recovery strategies with these principles and do our part to create a better tomorrow, especially in the hospitality industry.

This Coalition is a communitarian exertion to diagram another, more maintainable bearing for the travel industry and move the norm by seeking after a common worldwide strategic: place objective needs at the focal point of the travel industry's new future.

Many years of liberated development in movement have put our reality's prized places in danger â&#x20AC;&#x201C; ecologically, socially, socially, and monetarily. In spite of sincere endeavors to neutralize the pattern by numerous people in question, boundless corruption has endured. While the individuals from the Coalition have consistently observed the requirement for a basic move in how the travel industry functions, COVID-19 has added direness to this issue and further featured both the travel industry's positive and negative effects on objections around the globe.

The travel industry presently faces a test and a decision in how to recover, and an exceptional chance to join around another vision and graph a superior course into what's to come.

Many years of liberated development in movement have put our reality's prized places in danger â&#x20AC;&#x201C; ecologically, socially, socially, and monetarily. In spite of sincere endeavors to neutralize the pattern by numerous people in question, boundless corruption has endured. While the individuals from the Coalition have consistently observed the requirement for a basic move in how the travel industry functions, COVID-19 has added direness to this issue and further featured both the travel industry's positive and negative effects on objections around the globe.

The travel industry presently faces a test and a decision in how to recover, and an exceptional chance to join around another vision and graph a superior course into what's to come.

The Coalition has cooperatively evolved and propelled a lot of Guiding Principles that diagram a strong vision for the travel industry's way ahead. The 13 standards give a reasonable good and business basic for building a more advantageous travel industry, while ensuring the spots and individuals on which it depends.

They are calling upon the travel industry offices, travel organizations, governments, financial specialists, nonlegislative associations, and objective networks to sign on to these Guiding Principles. By voicing their dedication, signatories consent to adjust their techniques and activities behind this extraordinary arrangement of standards as they push ahead from the COVID-19 pandemic.

A sustainable choice: alternatives to plastic

By Digital Strategist at European Sustainable Hospitality Club and Business Coordinator for Dan Pontarlier with a Project Management MBA at BEBS Business School In 2018, media attention on the issue of plastic waste in the environment increased. The issue of marine debris has begun to attract more attention to the use of plastics and end-of-life solutions for this material. Plastic has become the ubiquitous work material of the modern economy and the use of plastic packaging has grown exponentially around the world, but options for blocking and handling this material have proved inadequate. In fact, the very attributes that make plastic so useful make it a problem even at the end of its life.

Plastic does not degrade and can remain in the environment (even in landfills) for decades. When plastic isn't handled properly, it can end up in rivers and streams and, eventually, the ocean. Speaking of this, Canada's prime minister has decided to ban the use of single-use plastics as early as 2021, and based on this is inspired by Trudeau said his government is inspired by the European Parliament, which voted in March in an overwhelming way to impose a wideranging ban on single-use plastics to tackle pollution from discarded items that end up in waterways and fields.

“To be honest, as a dad, it's hard to try to explain this to my kids. How do you explain dead whales bathing on beaches all over the world, stomachs full of plastic bags?” Trudeau said.

For many consumers, understanding what bioplastics are and distinguishing this material from normal plastic is not obvious. As a first step, we try to analyze the first main difference between normal plastic and bioplastic: plastic is a material discovered more than 100 years ago, of very wide use, thanks to its characteristics of versatility, resistance, and low cost. The plastic has remarkable mechanical and heat resistance. Plastic materials have, in some ways, excellent characteristics: they are easy to work with, they are resistant to aging and corrosion, they are practically immune to mold, fungi, and bacteria, they are very economical.

The first main difference between normal plastic and bioplastic is that the last one can be made from more natural materials, such as corn, cereals, and beets.

What are the advantages of this material? First of all, plastic is made from crude oil which is a fossil fuel which you can find deep in the earth and it’s a non-renewable resource, so once we finish it, it’s done. Bioplastics are made of renewable resources instead, such as cassava, potatoes, and corn. We are able to turn these things that keep on growing also into plastic, which means we don’t need fossil fuels. It can replace many materials that we already use today, and due to this analogy the production processes are also very similar: for example, a normal plastic cup, and a bioplastic cup, both look and feel very similar, transparent, lightweight, flexible but also the way how they’re made is very similar, made with the same kind of machinery and molds so you don’t need to build completely new infrastructure but you can just use the existing one and only replace the material.

And finally, probably the biggest benefit is precisely the method that is used: you have a large number of plants and they have turned into clear plastic, so once you're done you can just throw it away and it degrades in nature because it's "compostable". However, something that is made from natural materials does not mean that it biodegrades.

Biodegradability is the ability of the material to be broken down by natural microorganisms.

Compostability takes advantage of biodegradability, so a compostable material is always biodegradable, but the reverse is not possible.

The difference between biodegradable and compostable material lies in the way they are disposed of: a compostable material disintegrates in less than 3 months while for a biodegradable material 90% of the biodegradable material within 6 months.

Even normal plastic at one point was the oil that also comes from a plant, but because it is so refined and processed it no longer biodegrades on its own.

Unfortunately, there are still many obstacles in the transition to bioplastic. For example, it has a much higher cost than traditional plastic and the fear that the problem of the availability of some food supplies for the production of this material will arise, is high, due to the lack of control and guarantee of the crops from which the biomass is extracted.

The sugar cane from which the bioplastic of bottles is made is grown in Brazil. The crops have low use of water and the entire production cycle is carefully monitored to assess the environmental and social impact as a whole, and the balance of the ethical "code of conduct" that is adopted is very positive, in fact, it safeguards not only the environment but also all the people involved in the production cycle.

The energy used to produce bioplastic is also obtained by 80% from renewable sources.

Another essential key point, the waste management behind bioplastics.

Landfills are designed only to store waste, not to break it down. Unfortunately, the rate at which we produce waste exceeds that of natural biodegradation. As a result, landfills are filling up rapidly, which increases pollution of the air, water, and soil. In 2014 alone, 136 million tons of municipal solid waste was 136 million tons of municipal solid waste was 136 million tons of municipal solid waste was 136 million tons of municipal solid waste was 136 million tons of municipal solid waste was 136 million tons of municipal solid waste was landfilled, 18% of which was plastic.

The disposal of non-biodegradable plastics is unsustainable because they often follow a linear economic model in which virgin products are manufactured, used once, and disposed of, accumulating in landfills or in the natural environment.

Although recycling is regarded as the solution to many ills, only 9% of the plastic produced since 1950 has been recycled. Recycling simply delays disposal, which is why biodegradation and composting should also be considered solutions. Biodegradable plastic helps direct waste away from landfills and composting plants.

Looking at alternatives to recycling will become more important in light of recent global events.

For decades, the United States has relied on China to recycle its plastic waste. As of January 2018, China no longer accepts plastics in an effort to protect the health of its citizens. This puts greater pressure on home recycling infrastructures, forcing the US to further explore alternative waste solutions such as industrial composting.

Thus, government incentives and consumer expectations must first shift towards composting and biodegradation. This will influence the plastics industry to value biodegradable and compostable plastics versus petroleum-based plastics.

The current waste management system offers convenience to consumers and businesses.

However, it took decades for it to happen. As such, implementing a circular economy, in which plastic is biodegraded, recycled, or composted, and arranging it so that it becomes as affordable as the current system is, will take time.What are the real advantages of using bioplastics? They allow to optimize the collection and management of waste and to reduce the environmental impact, bringing significant advantages to the production-consumption-disposal cycle.

With the right communication, it could also achieve greater consumer acceptance and demand, an increase in the useful life of packaged products, and composting where possible.

For example, disposable tableware and disposable containers such as packaging have a huge effect on the environment: they are difficult to recycle if contaminated with food and are often not handled properly by the consumer. Instead, if made from compostable plastic, they can be disposed of with organic waste and converted into compost. Almost all producers of domestic coffee capsules are moving on this wave.

There are also other changes we can all make - alternatives that could help cut single-use plastics out of our daily lives.

Design special containers with orange peels The young designer Ori Sonnenschein has created a line of tableware: plates, glasses, cutlery, trays made with orange peels called, Solskin Peels. The orange peel is manipulated to obtain the desired shape and treated so that they can maintain a certain rigidity such as to allow their real use. The processing ends with the coating of an organic material called â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;shellaqâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; which allows the object to keep its shape intact for a certain period. Each tool is clearly 100% biodegradable.

Avocado seeds are transformed into bioplastic this time!

You will surely know the famous Guacamole sauce that is prepared from avocado. Here, the idea of using avocado seeds was really good as they accumulate in Mexico like nowhere else in the world and end up being burned in landfills. Now from this fruit, and precisely from its seeds, it is possible to make a special, completely biodegradable plastic. After trying to make it unsuccessfully with other raw materials, such as mango and mamey sapote seeds (the Caribbean apricot), the possibility of using avocado seeds was experimented with. After about a year and a half of research, the avocado-based bioplastic was born, whose products degrade after 240 days of exposure to the elements or planted in the ground while their fossil fuel-based equivalents can take more than 100 years.

Straws made with algae.

The American phenomenon is all born from another waste, that of ice. Since Americans drink nothing, and in any season, without ice, the straw becomes almost indispensable for them. And then down with the plastic which then ends up promptly in some landfill.

The straws made from seaweed were patented by two American designers, Chelsea Briganti and Leigh Ann Tucker, who created an entire collection, called Loliware, with household products that can replace plastic. From glasses to cutlery, passing through coffee glasses.

The straws of the designer couple have different colors and also different flavors: vanilla, mint, strawberry, and caramel. All excellent alternatives to the horrible plastic that instead not only doesn't create flavors but kills them.

Reusable coffee cups.

Disposable cups cannot be recycled with normal systems because they are made of cardboard with a tightly bonded polyethylene liner, which is difficult to remove. As a result, only one in 400 cups is recycled, less than 0.25%. Half a million cups of coffee are scattered across the UK every day. “It is very encouraging to see the increase in sales of reusable cups, which are the most environmentally friendly option for coffee on the go. We would also like to see greater availability of recycling facilities for existing cups, as our Square Mile Challenge campaign has shown that the public is very willing to use them when they have the chance, " said Trewin Restorick, Trewin Restorick, Trewin Restorick, Trewin Restorick, Trewin Restorick, Trewin Restorick, CEO of the charity. for the Hubbub environment Hubbub.

Bioplastic from cactus juice!

Mexican researcher Sandra Pascoe Ortiz succeeded in her aim of making a material similar to plastic but completely natural that could replace plastic in the manufacture of everyday objects, including disposable ones such as cutlery and plastic bags, starting from the juice of the leaves of the cactus.

The procedure for making this plastic seems quite simple: after removing the peel of the leaves, the pulp is centrifuged to obtain the juice, which will then be refrigerated.

At this point, a non-toxic substance is added to the liquid obtained from the cactus, which allows the juice to transform into a material similar to plastic. The liquid is then poured into a thin layer, pressed, and left to dry.

Glycerol, natural waxes, proteins, and dyes are added to the juice after it has been decanted to remove the fibers.

The result is then dried on a boiling table to produce thin sheets of plastic material.

Remember that is in our hands to start doing things better for our planet. As a caring entity, we promote this information through our suppliers so they can also increase their level of commitment to sustainability.

Our purpose is to advocate to preserve natural resources, ensure human rights and people’s development are a priority in the travel industry.

We are guided by European regulation and key international frameworks such as PRI, GRI, UN SDG's Agenda for 2030 to provide ESHC members 24/7 access to sop's and procedures, operational and strategy documents, a marketplace of sustainable suppliers (products and services), handbooks, procurement protocols, and an online academy with modules for employees and leadership teams.

The platform improves the hotel digitization process, cooperation with stakeholders, and internal communication. Do you need to cut your consultancy budget? With the ESHC platform, you can connect with industry peers and share best practices while accessing to scientific research and strategy papers.

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Designer Ecosystems: A Biomimetic Approach to Sustainability and Wellbeing from Ari Peralta Arigami, Director & Founding Partner

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HoteliersGuild Designer Ecosystems: A Biomimetic Approach to Sustainability and Wellbeing

By Ari Peralta, Director & Founding Partner at Arigami

The health and wellbeing of humans is inseparable from the health of our surrounding environment, and the interactions between the two are quite complex.

Nature has long been a rich source of inspiration for many hoteliers, designers and architects. Nature also happens to be an endless source of wonder for biologists and engineers who seek to understand its inner workings.

It is only recently that human efforts to unfold the design and functions of natural systems have become a field of design in its own right. Biologically-inspired design or adaptation or derivation from nature is referred to as ‘biomimetics’. It means mimicking biology or nature. The practice of biomimicry looks beyond form and explores life’s inherent sustainability strategies, creating structures that fit form to function, use materials efficiently and adapt well to their environment.

Biomimetics has attracted the attention of scientists and architects alike because of its potential for contributing to the design of energy efficient buildings. The way forward is not so hard to envision. A sustainable future for hospitality will emerge if we design ecosystems that, on a functional level, mimic the natural environment and on a guest level, enable personal growth and transformation. Designers are innately curious, and biomimetics provides the opportunity to learn more about life’s water, energy and material-use strategies. This perspective broadens the design space to bring new solutions to the forefront.

Elevate Design by Creating Multi-Functional Ecosystems.

The concept of building designer ecosystems refers to a multi-layered and interdisciplinary approach to design. This requires one to go beyond aesthetics, and explore the intricacies of how natural systems function and interact. I use the word “ecosystem” to suggest a future-centric, sustainable approach to applied design with a primary focus on human wellbeing. It is imperative to understand that

ecosystems are inherently complicated things that adopt their own life and evolution.

What can we learn about “functionality” in biological systems that can be translated into design? These systems are highly organised from the molecular to the nanoscale, microscale and macroscale, often in a hierarchical manner with intricate nanoarchitecture that ultimately makes up a myriad of different functional elements. Nature uses commonly found materials. Properties of those materials and surfaces result from a complex interplay between the surface structure and the morphology and physical and chemical properties. Many materials, surfaces and devices provide synchronous multifunctionality.

Similarly, hotels must expand its two dimensional offerings into multifunctional and congruent products and services. Start by asking, “How would nature solve this challenge?” Assuming the design team has the adequate knowledge to answer, this framing gives project teams an opportunity to explore new knowledge and brainstorm opportunities to solve challenges in new and innovative ways. Below is an overview of various objects from nature and highlighted biological functions that could potentially inspire a new wave of solutions in wellness.

Wellbeing Strategy: Beyond the Spa Arigami has partnered with Hotel Designs to produce a series of thought-leadership articles ‘Hotel Designs LAB’ developed to challenge the conventional hospitality landscape and, in the process, empower interior designers, architects, hoteliers, developers, technologists and hospitality brands.

LEARN MORE

Wellbeing is the Ultimate Luxury.

Together, we have the power to redefine luxury and sustainability. Life on Earth is the epitome of resilience, adapting and changing to fit its context over billions of years. By looking at how nature confers resilience on its systems — incorporating diversity and embodying resilience through variation, redundancy and decentralisation — we can create human-built systems that are inherently resilient to disturbances. Sustainability is simply the capacity to endure. In ecology the word describes how biological systems remain diverse and productive over time. For

humans it is the potential for long-term maintenance of wellbeing, which in turn depends on the maintenance of the natural world and natural resources.

Nature is dynamic, extravagant, poetic and most of all efficient. It constantly shifts and adapts in order to create the most effective design that requires the least energy consumption. This aspect of modularity and efficiency is one that can be easily adapted to the traditional design framework.

Our climate and pandemic crisis requires us to readdress the fundamental relationship between humanity and nature, and our direct role in shaping that interaction with attractive solutions that can combine luxury, wellbeing and sustainability into a streamlined offering. Though we know that nature and its biodiversity is threatened, we don’t see a direct connection between our activities and mass extinction. This is not because we are bad people, but because we don’t feel the connection. Part of the challenge ahead is finding creative ways to make the invisible, visible. Designing multidimensional guest experiences that contribute towards the wellbeing of guests and our planet is key.

Wellbeing is an integrative process that requires a comprehensive approach.

The fundamental goal of biomimetics is to create a thriving habitat for people as biological organisms inhabiting modern structures. What we are proposing here are ways to create a shift in behaviour towards a happier and more sustainable future in hospitality. Simply put, we need more ‘nature’ in our hotels. According to the latest research, the majority of our population now lives in urban environments and spends 90% of their time indoors, with little access to nature. This isolation has led to increased mental and chronic physical health problems.

Too many times, we talk about wellness, we develop a marketing strategy, and we spend resources and budgets for tools and programs that fall flat. Partly because we forget to validate the simple things that help guests function optimally and create opportunities to be well. In my experience, many hotels fail to deliver wellness and sustainability because of the interruptions in communication between its departments. One way to solve this dilemma is to develop interdepartmental budgets and align wellbeing efforts across the different vectors of your

organisation. This is what I refer to as the “membrane”— a protective layer that binds the ecosystem and facilitates cross-departmental communications.

Wellbeing consists of many dimensions, all of which can be improved upon to various degrees. An interconnected approach to wellbeing reimagines guests' problems not as separate issues that are effectively addressable through temporary solutions and isolated initiatives, but rather as the manifestation of interrelated root causes. Now is the time to learn, experiment and prototype. When thinking like nature, the questions we must ask ourselves include:

● How would nature solve our challenges? ● What are examples of nature’s solutions to these problems? ● What is the most energy efficient way of solving these problems? ● How does life make the most of things? ● How does life make things disappear into systems?

Luxury hotels are pivoting towards a health-centric future.

Humans have always looked to nature for inspiration to solve problems. To date, the examples of technologies and materials that are inspired by nature have been limited to isolated discoveries, initially confined to the world of new materials. ​As people who are passionate about living sustainably, w​e can start by reinforcing our knowledge, our design and our mindfulness. If our aim is sustainable development, we should give respect to nature and design by its example. With more consciousness about our direct dependency on a healthy environment, we will be more likely to care for nature – and give it the priority it deserves. Through our practical desire to understand scientifically the interplay of nature, biology and other natural phenomena can inspire new approaches to creating better, more innovative and cleaner solutions for all.

Arigami​ is a research and innovation consultancy focused on wellbeing. We help our partners strategise, validate and measure wellbeing. We believe the industry must evolve, and with nimble research, we can maximise the impact of wellbeing strategies. It’s time to work together to transform hospitality into the leading industry combating anxiety and stress and improving the health of travellers globally. www.Arigami.co.uk

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The Need To Improve Racial Diversity In The Travel Industry from Angelina Villa-Clarke Journalist & HoteliersGuild Media Supporter

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Angelina Villa-Clarke FORBES Contributor Travel Chasing the dream: I write about travel and the world around me Exploring different parts of the world, discovering new cultures, trying new cuisines and meeting engaging people… when you think about the intrinsic nature of travel—its real meaning, if you like—then you’ll see that diversity and inclusion is at its heart. But, while many of us in the industry like to talk about the best ‘local’ events, rewarding ‘giveback experiences’ and unique ‘authenticity’—essential buzz words among travel writers and editors—if you delve a little deeper, perhaps we should acknowledge the uncomfortable truth about what’s going on behind the scenes. For, while these ideas—which are tied up in diversity and other people’s cultures—are desirable on the page, they are not reflected in quite the same way in the travel companies and travel media which purport to be passionate about the world around us. In short, it is obvious that the representation of people of color is lacking across the board, behind the headlines and in the images.

With recent events, following the death of George Floyd, challenging everyone to think more, look at themselves, their businesses and their practices and promoting thought around how they can—and need—to improve, it’s clear that the UK travel industry has some work to do. After all, the same voices bring the same narrative—and this is not reflective of the real world around us—it’s time to change up the whitewashed view of a world that is, after all, multicoloured.

The good news is that there are new initiatives springing up to challenge—and help—those businesses wanting to improve. Launched in March 2020, the US-based Black Travel Alliance, for example, was formed to support true diversity across the travel industry, from increasing hotel employment to calling for more representation in destination marketing content.

In the UK, meanwhile, Women in Travel CIC, launched in 2014 to focus on gender diversity, is also raising awareness.

Its arm of BAME Women in Travel has recently launched a new Corporate Partnerships scheme, which will help committed organizations create tailored solutions to increase the level of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) inclusion in the workplace.

BAME Women In Travel in discussion at last year's World Travel Market. (CREDIT:

The executive director of BAME Women in Travel, Jamie-Lee Abtar. (CREDIT: EULANDA SHEAD)

Here, I talk to Jamie-Lee Abtar (JLA), the executive director of BAME Women in Travel, and Alessandra Alonso (AA), founder of Women in Travel CIC, about the work they are doing to cultivate understanding around issues, such as what racism means, how to improve representation of black leaders, writers and employees in the travel sector, and how to attain positive progress in these areas as a business.

Founder of Women in Travel CIC, Alessandra Alonso.

(CREDIT: CAT GUNDRY-BECK)

What prompted you to launch the recent Women In Travel 'Corporate Partnerships?’

AA: Women In Travel CIC—the UK-based social enterprise that utilizes travel and tourism as a force for good to empower underrepresented and vulnerable women—has long recognized the need for greater BAME representation in industry, which is why in 2018 BAME Women in Travel was launched as a separate initiative.

Our corporate membership stems from the desire to support industry in moving forward from theoretical support into practical action, by providing a number of outcomes organizations can work on and regularly measure.

What would you say are the main goals you want to achieve?

JLA: There is a growing awareness that racial diversity in the workplace is an area in which travel companies need to do better. Implementing practical measures that can be made in this area, and highlighting the many reasons why more travel businesses should make them, are our next steps.

In the next three years our goal—which we are calling Vision 2023—is to drive change and ensure travel businesses attract, recruit, retain and develop BAME talent through a leadership focus, alignment with business strategy and tracking against targets. Our community is at the heart of BAME Women in Travel and we will continue to create a space and platform for women of colour to grow their networks, tap into resources, and share their unique skill-sets, which will only amplify their voices in the larger marketplace.

This space is not exclusive, rather, it is inclusive of all women seeking to expand their footprint within the travel and tourism industry, especially for those who’ve felt marginalized or overlooked.

What can corporate partnerships do immediately to help improve diversity and inclusion within the industry?

AA: The first thing we give each partner is a free, virtual workshop to help staff understand what the issues are. There is still a lot of misunderstanding around what constitutes racism and how BAME communities are dealt with, in the context of—and by—the travel, tourism and hospitality industry, so this is the first steps towards changing things. To ensure everyone is on the same page.

JLA: Cultivating diversity and inclusion in the workplace often requires a culture shift, which is not always easy or immediately attainable, especially if you are a larger brand. As a standard inclusion with our corporate partnership we host an internal session with a leadership focus, which is an open conversation and discussion around D&I in your workplace. It’s important that we create an encouraging environment where people care about diversity and inclusion while recognizing its value is critical to a successful business. Diversity and inclusion is a journey and we are here to act as a critical friend.

How many companies are doing well when it comes to diversity and inclusion?

AA: Ironically, I think this is a relatively ‘new’ topic for many companies in the travel and tourism industry, at least in this part of the world. We have spoken about gender equity, diversity and inclusion for many years, but truly it is only in the last three years that we have seen genuine engagement by many.

Equally with BAME specific issues, some of the largest and most international companies have been doing training and measuring outcomes for some time, but it would appear that they are a small minority. It is time to make diversity and inclusion overall a mainstream topic in the sector!

It is ironic that within the travel industry—which should be intrinsically diverse—that diversity is often lacking. However, do you feel that this is improving?

JLA: The travel workplace still has some way to go if it is going to take full advantage of the benefits that come from a truly diverse and inclusive culture. A 2019 report on diversity and inclusion in the travel industry by TTG Media and PWC suggests there is still a significant gap between company’s intentions and what they are actually achieving. We need now to move from diversity being less of a buzzword and more aligned to business strategy. Boosting diversity and inclusion is an opportunity for travel brands to truly connect with their customers, by creating a workforce, leadership and culture that reflects and understands the people you serve in all their diversity.

While there are no quick fixes, what could travel companies do to improve their image and messaging, in the short term, to portray true inclusion and diversity?

AA: As mentioned before, questioning your own understanding and biases is key. In terms of how the companies portray inclusion and diversity to the outside world, a good place to start is to look at your imagery both on and off social media. How inclusive is your marketing? Are your clients’ diverse communities represented? What statements are you putting out there and how are they received? Have a dialogue with your customers if you do not know!

When it come to the travel media, how can more people from a variety of backgrounds be heard?

JLA: Mainstream publishers still aren’t investing in writers of color despite, according to Mandala Research in 2018, that Black Millennial spend some $63 billion annually on travel. There is still little to no representation within travel marketing and public relations agencies, campaigns, commercials, ad spends and even press trips.

Through communities like The Black Travel Creators, The Black Travel Directory and our very own community of BAME Women In Travel Creators there is no shortage of professional and capable talent to choose from. But the only way we will achieve a more varied and inclusive set of stories and narrative is when brands address the internal racial bias, whether conscious or unconscious, in newsrooms and PR agencies.

There has been some criticism of some companies who have remained silent over recent tragic events which Black Lives Matters are shining a light on—is this justified? Should companies speak out to make a statement or is it more important to get 'their house in order' first?

AA: I believe that both areas you identify are important. Naturally, if you all you do is putting a black square on social media and then betray that statement through poor internal practices, you will attract criticism. The truth is that we can all do better and we should all strive to do better and, as long as you are honest about it, and if necessary, seek help, people in general will support you. We all have to start somewhere!

What would you say is the biggest problem, when it comes to race and diversity, in the travel industry?

JLA: Travel brands need to truly become more inclusive in their hiring practices and marketing campaigns. Only one in 33 leaders in the travel, hospitality and leisure industries identifies as being from a Black, Asian or Minority Ethnic (BAME) background, according to a report published in 2019. The lack of diversity in leadership positions play a big role in creating impressions, shaping the customers experiences and connecting to other travelers from varied backgrounds.

We don't want companies to just 'tokenize' but we want real change and for brands to be accountable—how can they do this properly?

AA: I very much believe that you cannot get done what you cannot measure. So setting some clear targets and performance indicators, and by monitoring this activity on a regular basis, is critical. First, though, as a company, you must acknowledge the issues and your leadership must send a strong signal about the importance to address it. You can then sign up for our corporate membership and begin the real work at that point.

In the USA, the new Black Travel Alliance is holding the industry accountable through its 'score card' among other things. Are you working with the Alliance or thinking of introducing anything similar for the UK? JLA: We support the Black Travel Alliance in their mission to hold the industry accountable. One of our core goals of the BAME Women In Travel Corporate Partnership is to increase the level of BAME representation through setting targets and KPIs and supporting leaders in organizations to not only step up but to commit to racial and social justice and equality in their companies. We believe that in order for progress to be sustainable, diversity needs to become part of the cultural DNA, along with the performance objectives and appraisal of all levels of management, including the board. Our BAME Women in Travel Corporate Partnership Committed Logo also highlights those travel brands who have publicly acknowledged that diversity and inclusiveness are a company priority.

Do you feel we are at a junction of change ahead? Are you both optimistic for the future?

AA: I have no doubt that 2020 is a watershed year for the travel, tourism and hospitality industry, in more than one respect. Diversity and inclusion are, in my mind, closely intertwined with sustainability and the social impact of tourism. I have huge faith in the sector’s ability to act as a force for good. I believe that, also due to shifting customers’ perspectives, we need to grab the opportunity to rebuild the sector, not simply ‘back,’ but actually fixing and changing what wasn’t working well. Diversity and inclusion are key to the sustainable future of tourism and will only make the sector stronger going forward.

JLA: What better timing than now, as the travel industry rebuilds and reimagines in a post Covid environment? My hope is that travel brands take this as an opportunity to create an inclusive an energizing environment that encourages individual excellence, drives innovation, creativity and competitive advantage.

For more information about Women in Travel and BAME Women In Travel, visit womenintravelcic.com

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MADE-TO-MEASURE LUXURY HOTEL MANAGEMENT CONCEPTS | MARKETING | BRANDING | OWNERâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;S REPRESENTATION

D!per Luxury

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The Future of Innovation in Hospitality: Success Factors & Challenges from Prof. Dr. Carlos Martin- Rios Associate Professor Ecole Hôtelier Lausanne

HoteliersGuild

Just before the majority of countries around the world went into lockdown, we (Pr. Martin-Rios from EHL and Pr. Chan from NY Institute of Technology) completed a report on the future of innovation for hospitality. HSMAI America commissioned a scenario study as part of the association's continued commitment to unfolding a vision of the current U.S. hospitality’s emerging sales, marketing and revenue optimization (SMRO) innovation strategic initiatives with its challenges and needs.

This report addresses best practices, success factors and challenges for the development of strategic innovation in hospitality in general, and specifically in the sales, marketing and revenue management functions. Despite the increase of industry awareness about the importance of formal innovation systems, many hospitality firms are still perceived as far from innovative. The report outlines three main findings: Little strategic innovation: Innovation in hospitality and particularly SMRM is risk averse, short-term focused and lacking a clear vision.

Silo thinking stunts innovation: Despite sharing c o m m o n i n n o v a t i o n “Foreseeing a hunger crisis challenges, there are few synergies across functions and between organizations far worse than we were and stakeholders to foster innovation. prepared for, UCOOK Personalization and data: Predictive personalization by launched the Food Fund. means of social media data emerged as the key It’s single objective was to innovation in data management strategy.

feed as many people as possible. The farmers in our network stood at the ready, and with their help, we were able to redirect produce towards those who needed it most.!”

A focus on the U.S. Fieldwork and the writing phases of the project took place before the global disruption caused by the Coronavirus crisis.

Interestingly, most of the results are highly applicable in the post-pandemic times.

Between September 2019 and February 2020, we asked American leaders from industry, consulting, nonprofit and distribution what they thought strategic innovation would look like in the near future. We followed a threefold research procedure: Extensive revision of academic literature to uncover macro-strategic level issues: innovation strategy design and implementation, challenges and opportunities.

Focus groups and expert opinion polls with 130 HSMAI experts to discuss key innovation topics.

In-depth interviews with 17 key industry experts to explore (or achieve) consensus on disputed topics.

Interviewed experts were distributed between C-level, SVP/EVP, VP and Directors. Representing brands (20%); property management (50%) and consulting services (25%). Experts gave a detailed current state-of-the-art account on innovation in the US hospitality industry, with special emphasis on the sales, marketing and revenue operations.

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Luca FrancoCEO/ Principle LuxuryFrontiers Introducing Colin Nagy of SKIFT

HoteliersGuild

3 New Design Concepts for Hospitality That Make Even More Sense Post-Covid

Colin Nagy, head of strategy at FFNY, a global advertising agency, writes this opinion column for Skift on hospitality and business travel. On Experience dissects customer-centric experiences and innovation across the luxury sector, hotels, aviation, and beyond. He also covers the convergence of conservation and hospitality.

A year ago, I wrote about the importance of sensory elements in luxury hospitality. It turned out to be prescient. Not surprisingly, after months of confinement, priorities are re-aligned and traveler behaviors at every spectrum of the industry are valuing fresh air, space, and a connection to nature. But as with many things in the travel space, something that is an insight turns into a commodity trope at the speed of light. And these observations have been now battered into our heads. They aren’t new.

However, what is new is the fact post-Covid will also realign the way hospitality spaces are conceived and constructed.

If we are moving out of the arms race of highly leveraged, luxury developments each trying to outclass one another with 40 euro glasses of Champagne, what could we be moving into? How will building and construction take into account new guest preferences, alongside lighter-touch constructions and also a move towards more environmental sustainability? The following are three examples to watch that I’ve been observing.

Hybrid constructions and the rethinking of canvas A brand that perfectly encapsulates this zeitgeist is Luxury Frontiers, one of the most interesting, progressive “The pandemic has changed thinkers when it comes to the future of hospitality design. owner-investor behavior. It has Founded by Luca Franco, the company has been partnering also changed what customers with resorts to create architecturally differentiated projects. Though they are born of canvas and wire, they feel want out of luxury hospitality. futuristic, unique, and have the benefit of sitting harmoniously What are the new models that in their environments. The brand has worked with Four Seasons, are well-positioned for growth One&Only, Six Senses, and Belmond and their recent project in Utah serves as a as the sector rebuilds? Here’s a strong statement of intent. They worked with Aman at the brand’s Utah property, Amangiri, look at some potentials.” to make a series of tented pavilions called Camp Sarika — Colin Nagy that sit nestled next to the colorshifting rock structures of the Colorado Plateau.

According to the Luxury Frontiers team, it isn’t just about the physical structures: it is the depth they go to understand the “physical, geographical, and ecological aspects of the destination (among them: landform, geology, water movement, terrain conditions, stability to the flora and fauna, habitat dynamics, and pollution risks).”

When paired with the hospitality and environmental stewardship of Aman, it creates a different experience: you feel the air, you feel a closer connection to nature, and you’re not cocooned and isolated from your surroundings. This project is a rare example of futuristic architecture thinking, nature as an incredible supporting actor, and a perfectly-timed view of what consumers will want from Aman. The work of Luxury Frontiers is worth keeping your eye on, notably their other project in Costa Rica, Nayara Tented Camp.

Modular construction and industrial design A few years back, a startup called Kasita won accolades from their “tiny house.” It was a marvel of industrial design and design critics like Fast Company fell in love. Problem was, it was a concept without a truly scalable business model, despite the charismatic founder and incredible industrial design. Now, a group of Austin-based investors have bought the company and will pair this approach of perfectly formed “Kasitas” arranged together to form a new hospitality concept under the same name. This is interesting for several reasons: One, everyone has their own private space: no shared hallways, no shared corridors, etc.

The spaces are sleek, warm, and light-filled but pleasantly isolated from others, relevant for a pandemic (and newly postpandemic world). It is as if the German industrial designer Dieter Rams made a hotel. Second, similar to a concept like Silvercar, you know exactly the product you are going to get.

There’s no upsell, there’s no being surprised by the bad room by the elevator. Everything is good. Finally, its approach means it is modular like Legos. It could be a larger footprint with 50-100 keys in an urban environment, or it could be a smaller tuck-in type approach bolted onto a destination F&B experience.

Its business model is also smart: because you’re not building a huge, permanent structure, it allows for land banking: allowing owners to A rendering of the new Kasita design monetize a piece of land for some time. This will be the case for the brand’s first property set to open in the first quarter of 2021, on an unused parcel of land next to South Congress in Austin, followed by a property in Marfa.

Habitas: 3D printing I’ve been keeping an eye on Habitas, which has been opening properties in interesting places like Namibia.

They’re seeking out natural settings and emphasizing sustainability when it comes to construction. Their approach isn’t the typical PR lip service: they are differentiated in that they are the developer, owner, architect, engineer, management company, and operator of their properties, and thus, more able to push the envelope of new ideas. They developed an innovation lab in Merida, Mexico where they utilize modular construction and 3D printing technology to create future developments. According to Oliver Ripley, Habitas co-founder and CEO, “these rooms are designed, constructed, flat-packed from Merida, and delivered to new locations worldwide.

As a result, the development cycle is four to five times faster than traditional hotels. Typically up to 80 percent of Habitas’ properties are modular.”

The aforementioned property, Habitas Namibia, soft-launched in March 2020 and will reopen this December.

The brand plans to launch two new properties – Habitas Bacalar (on the Mexico/Belize border) and Habitas Todos Santos in addition to a Middle East property, Habitas AlUla, located in Saudi Arabia’s AlUla governate in the northwest part of the country.

None of these businesses were started with a pandemic in mind, they existed beforehand. But now, as owners re-think their desire for large, immersive permanent structures (and the leverage they require) and want to move faster, and consumers want to be closer to nature, in places that have respect for the environment and their communities, I’m predicting these three approaches will find lots of new interest.

Camp Sarika by Amangiri At one with wilderness

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Recommended read by Alexa Poortier Founder

itMustBeNOW

HoteliersGuild

Is the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) heading for a revolution in the name of sustainability and wellbeing?

The truth will out

Author: Anni Hood - Chief Executive, WELL Intelligence What will you think of when you’re invited to visit the new jewel in the Middle Eastern crown? The Amaala resort on the unblemished Red Sea Coast of Saudi Arabia is being touted as an embryonic symbol of re-positioning the Middle East.

The new development anchors are wellbeing and sustainability and the experiences being created are considered to be unmatchable and world defining. Of course, no one could have foreseen the Covid-19 pandemic or indeed, the farreaching impact and re-imagining of future living (and spending) that has now been given an empty highway for reset.

There are opposing views of what economic recovery will look like. For the optimists, a V-shaped recovery scenario is being hoped for, others believe (labeled as pessimists) this is delusional. The truth will out.

WINNERS OF THE DOWNTURN? The Public Investment Fund (PIF) is the cash fund behind the development of Amaala and is in pursuit of becoming the worlds ‘most impactful investor’. Whilst the coronavirus pandemic is decimating economies throughout the world, PIF has moved up a gear in search of lucrative buys. From Live Nation and Carnival to BP, Boeing, CityGroup and Facebook to name but a few. Hindsight will decree whether these are wise opportunities seized or a white elephant but they are demonstrating their increased dominance and fire power.

The uncertain times that we’re in are unlikely to disappear in short order. We’re already seeing a magnified and accelerated focus on the issues that were already in play pre Covid-19; rising inequality, climate change and global health challenges topped the scale then, more so now. And in turn, consumer behaviour will dictate the response to any proposition that feels tasteless or vulgar; ‘considered consumption’ is doubling down on conscious lifestyle choices and purchases that negatively affect people and planet. There was a backlash during the 2008/9 recession against lavish spending and an element of ‘luxury shame’ – will that be back and will it be more sustained? We don’t yet know.

The Amaala development will contain 2,500 luxury hotel rooms, 200 retail establishments, art galleries, marinas and 700 villas along with a dedicated airport and their target market is Ultra High Net Worth Individuals (UHNWI). The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia appears to be changing but will it evolve fast enough to satiate the growing dynamic of consumer consciousness? There are a few things to note that are contributory to the change I mention; Women are now allowed to drive. They can even do so without the permission of their father, brother or husband but at the same time, there are several female activists still in jail because of the demonstrations and passion they participated in to make this possible.

There is evident diversity beginning to emerge toward a touristic hub and the ‘Riviera of the Middle East’. Undisclosed investment in the Amaala development is happening within the nature reserve (on the Red Sea coast) owned by the Crown Prince Muhammad Bin Salman (MBS). It is scheduled to be complete by 2028 and it is reported that it will have its own infrastructure, rules and laws, not dissimilar to the liberal feel of Dubai, at least on the surface. A stunning new dedicated airport has recently been announced to add to the exclusivity of the Amaala experience.

MBS, the de facto leader of KSA believes the Middle East can be the ‘new Europe’ – he was quoted from the Future Investment Initiative forum in Riyadh in October 2018 as saying “I believe the new Europe is the Middle East … Saudi Arabia in five years will be completely different”. That may be opinion rather than fact but at the very least, it suggests a fundamental shift: not only in how Saudi Arabia is perceived but of how it operates, through legislation, political policy and building bridges destroyed by the Machiavellian actions of late. Will recovery from that be real in the midst of growing awareness amongst consumers?

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Now Sustainability Tool

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Now

is right along the line with our own philosophy and engagements for sustainability and responsible luxury in the hospitality industry.

HoteliersGuild

and NOW share the same philosophy and we believe that we are at an urgent and defining moment and we must act now because ‘it is the right thing to do’.

HoteliersGuild is proud to support NOW in our Strategic Alliance!

Frank M. Pfaller President, HoteliersGuild | CoutureHospitalityConcept

“

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SUSTAINABILITY TIPS from Raquel Noboa CEO

50Shades of Greener

HoteliersGuild

3 Top Tips to running a Sustainable Business Sustainability has so many definitions that it drives people a bit bunkers. What does it all mean? How do I make my business more sustainable? How do I know if I am successful on greening my business?

The answers are much simpler than people might think, well, at least for me and Ill tell you why.

To us at the Fifty Shades Greener office, a green or sustainable business is one that reduces its impact to the environment. Businesses affect the environment in 3 ways, by using energy, producing waste and using water.

In order to run an environmentally friendly business, you need to reduce your business utilities, and the best part of this journey is that not only you will reduce your business Carbon Footprint and impact to the environment, but you will also SAVE MONEY off your utility bills.

It is a win/win situation for business owner.

Yet, 99% of the Hotel owners I meet in my weekly routine, donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have a handle on those 3 pillars of sustainability. So here are 3 top tips for a successful green journey.

1. Measure & Monitor The very first thing you need to in-build into your monthly routine is measuring and monitoring your business use of energy, water and waste. This is quite easy, the information we need is given to us in our monthly bills, electricity, gas, oil and waste bills. They are going to become your best assets to monitor your green journey.

But comparing your total waste production, for example, one month against the next, is not an accurate comparison. Letâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s say in February, you welcomed 1000 guests to your business, and then in March, you welcome 2000 customers to your business. If you were to compare your total waste production it will of course be higher in March than in February, as you had more customers to serve. The figure you need to find and use as a comparison baseline is: Your energy consumption per customer Your waste production per customer Your water use per customer Those are your Green Key Performance indicators, and the figures you will use to monitor and compare in a monthly basis. If you want to find out your business current environmental impact, pop me a quick email on info@fiftyshadesgreener.ie and we will send you our Fifty Shades Greener Charts, which will help you create your business green key performance indicators, so you can start monitoring and benchmarking against your own results every month.

That is the very first step of your business Green Journey.

2. Learn from your building Once you have established your green key performance indicators, it is time to start learning from your building, where and when are you using energy, where and what type of waste are you generating and what is your business water flow rate.

If we know where and when we consume energy, we can take steps to reduce that use.

If we know what waste we are producing and where, we can take steps to reduce that waste production.

Your building has all the clues you need to identify opportunities for improvement. All you need to do is dedicate some time, every week, to learn from it. You might also want to assign other members of your team to be in charge of these observation, you can assign someone the duty to observer your bins for a couple of weeks, and really learn what waste is your business producing. Or you might want to assign an energy manager, that will identify your business equipment consumption or lighting needs.

Whichever way you do it, just make sure you block off a couple of hours every week, to learn from your business utilities.

3. Train your team and spread awareness.

Staff awareness & training could be the single most important step to success.

I am sure if a member of your team was terrible at customer service, you would insist on them learning and been trained to improve.

The same applies to sustainability, if a member of your team is constantly turning on equipment that is not necessary at that exact moment to serve a customer or make money, you need to train them on how to conserve energy.

It is part and parcel of their job and yours.

You need to identify the need for training, and they need to learn how to behave in a different manner.

But unless you have taken the time yourself, to observe and learn from your building and your team behaviour, you are never going to be aware if your team requires sustainability training.

Reduce your Carbon Footprint & SAVE MONEY Green businesses are reeking the benefits of not having much competition in todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s world. For some reason, the penny has not dropped yet, that business sustainability is a win/win situation for an owner. I know, if I was running a hotel, one of my main focal points would be to reduce my business running cost and increase my sales and reputation amongst my customers. Well that is exactly what running a greener business will do for you.

Your customers, will appreciate your efforts and become loyal return customers.

When you reduce your utilities, you reduce your Carbon Footprint, which will allow you to enter Green awards and set yourself apart from the norm.

And lastly, when you reduce your business utilities, you will SAVE money off your waste, energy and water bills.

The Green Business Online Programme will show you, step by step, how to achieve those results. It will provide training for your general manager, your green team, and every member on your organisation. It will allow your team, to implement actions that will reduce your business utilities, and most importantly, it will spread a culture of sustainability amongst every member of your organisation. All it requires, if your commitment to implement the actions given, it is the greener for beginners, A to Z programme, to implement and environmental management system at your property.

50ShadesOfGreener

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Biodiversity in Hospitality from Dr. Frauke Fischer Scientist Sustainability Award Winner of the University of Würzburg

HoteliersGuild

Not my job?!

Nature makes a nice scenery for many hotels and resorts worldwide. And nature is an asset: Ocean-view rooms gain higher prices than rooms facing the backyard. Seafront bungalows are more attractive than those sitting next to a large building or road. For about 20% of all trips globally, “nature” is the main incentive to travel at all. People visit national parks to see wild places or amazing wildlife. They all seek pristine nature.

So far, so good. At first sight it looks like all other travel companies, hotel managers or tour operators have no intrinsic motivation or even need to consider nature and its conservation as a factor that effects their core business or revenues. Their entities are in environments that are managed, build-up or altered by people – having little resemblance with the landscape that was there before large hotels, luxury SPAs or golf resorts were set up here. Non the less they all depend on biodiversity and ecosystem services.

In order to understand, why biodiversity and ecosystem services are an asset for every single business in the hospitality and tourism sector, we need to take a closer look at what we are talking about.

What is biodiversity?

Biodiversity describes the diversity of life on earth and comprises three different levels: genetic diversity, species diversity and diversity of ecosystems. Genetic diversity is important e.g. in the context of pandemics and diseases. The more genetically divers the better of people, livestock or crops are when viruses, bacteria of microbes attack them.

Genetic plays a major role in assuring food security. There is an estimated number of “The real number of 400,000 species of plants on our planet, of which at least species is estimated to be 200,000 are edible. However, only about 200 of them are at least 8 million, and regularly eaten by people, and just three crop species – maize, rice, and wheat – account for maybe much higher than more than half of all calories and proteins we derive from plants. We reduce the genetic that. Despite of the fact diversity of our food base even further by producing only few that we know so little varieties of these three species on a large scale. Low genetic about their numbers, diversity increases the risk of complete crop failures, since functions, and roles in genetically homogeneous crops have all the same immune system. Plant diseases, parasites or pests ecosystems, we know that overcome this special genetic set, will have that we are losing them devastating effects on global food security. And that is not a with accelerated speed.” theoretical threat, but one that worries food experts a lot.

Species diversity is the second important level of biodiversity, and the one we know surprisingly little about. There are about 2 million scientifically described species, i.e. those that have been collected by an expert, made their way in a museum collection, and given a scientific name. The real number of species is estimated to be at least 8 million, and maybe much higher than that.

Despite of the fact that we know so little about their numbers, functions, and roles in ecosystems, we know that we are losing them with accelerated speed. Land-use change, over-hunting and unsustainable use of natural resources has increased the long-term “normal” extinction rate approximately 1,000-fold. Presently we lose 1-2 species per hour! Today 96% of all mammals on earth are either humans, cattle or pigs.

Humanity has wiped out 60% of all mammals, bird, reptile and fish populations.

Is that a problem?

Even though we do not know, if we need every single of these species, we definitely do not know which we can do without. The best way to explain that is by looking at other complex systems, e.g. a computer.

Maybe some of its parts can be deleted or taken out. Some of these interventions might only make the computer slower or prevent it from running as desired, other components however, are essential. If we delete, destroy or take them out, the whole system collapses. Our entire earth-system is already uncomfortably close to such “tipping points”.

Species and functioning ecosystems Diversity of ecosystems is the third major part of biodiversity. Coral reefs, rainforests, desserts or savannas are all examples of ecosystems. Losing individuals (and hence genetic diversity) or even entire species makes ecosystems more fragile. Analogous to the rivets of an airplane wing, the more species there are, the safer the structure becomes. When rivets are popping out – i.e. species become extinct - that is bad news for the stability of the system and hence for us.

What has nature ever done for us?

Ecosystems deliver ecosystem services. These include the provision of fertile soils (the base of global food production), the regulation of climate, diseases, nutrient and water cycles, pollinating crops, and the production of natural resources such as timber or marine fish. The value of these ecosystem services is estimated to be at least double the monetary value of the global GDP. If people try to replace them, they do it never for free, worse, and often not at all. Without functioning ecosystems our world becomes unstable, insecure and unmanageable. That is bad news for the hospitality and tourism sector.

Nature’s safety net Hospitality and tourism depend on a stable environment: politically, economically and ecologically. The Global Risk Report published by the World Economic Forum in January 2020 highlighted that major threats for humanity are all directly linked to biodiversity loss. In terms of likelihood and impact biodiversity loss is a greater risk than cyber-attacks, information infrastructure breakdown, financial failure or even weapons of mass destruction.

Why tourism & hospitality sectors should care about biodiversity Biodiversity is an asset for all and a product for many players in the sector. Biodiversity is a risk insurance, because coral reefs or mangrove forests shield shores from devastating storms and tsunamis, forests protect infrastructure from landslides or generally because ecosystem services function properly.

How business could care Check the value chain of your products and services for negative effects on biodiversity and set rigid biodiversity standards for your service providers and suppliers. Train your staff and make them ambassadors for biodiversity. Prevent negative effects of infrastructure construction already during the planning phase by conducting sound environmental impact studies.

Dr. Frauke Fischer is a wildlife biologist by training, working as the director of the Tropical Biology Research Station in the Comoé NP (Côte d’Ivoire) and conservation projects in countries like Tanzania, Brazil and others. In 2003 she founded auf! - the first business consultancy focussing on biodiversity issues on the corporate level. auf! provides scientific expertise on biodiversity, climate change and sustainability. Dr. Fischer designs and evaluates projects in the fields of biodiversity conservation, climate protection, and CSR – for both the private and public sector. Dr. Fischer was awarded with the Ford Motor Company Conservation Award in 2001 and the Sustainability Award of the University of Würzburg for her “Plastic Summer School” in 2018. She is the author of over 80 scientific papers and several books.

Agentur auf!

Koselstraße 22 60318 Frankfurt +49 69 91 50 61 73/74 www.agentur-auf.de

Who knows that the skin of the Orinoco Lime Tree Frog contains a protein that can kill the yellow fever pathogen? Or that in 2017, during Hurricane Irma, more than 600,000 people were protected from flood hazards by mangroves - and not by artificial dams? In their new book "What has the mosquito ever done for us?", the WĂźrzburg biologist Frauke Fischer and the economist Hilke Oberhansberg use these and many other examples to show what nature can do that is incredible and why we should rather work with it than against it.

Life in its fascination and abundance When a tiny male fish has grown attached to a huge female, lobsters stay young forever and a beetle is named after Arnold Schwarzenegger, it sounds amusing at first. Biodiversity can make you laugh and marvel and yet it does much more than that: "Biodiversity ensures that we have food, that the air is clear and the water drinkable, that we get healthy faster and get sick less often," says Frauke Fischer. Without microorganisms there would be no beer or humus; without mosquitoes there would be no chocolate.

In fact, there is no area of life that is not dependent on biodiversity. The book by the two s c i e n t i s t s, w h i ch w i l l b e published on 6 October 2020, makes this impressively clear.

"We don't want to lament the extinction of species, serious as it is," say the two authors. They also provide evidence and figures, such as that the global mammalian biomass has decreased by 82 percent since 1970. But what they want above all is to describe life in all its fascination and abundance. To this end, they have compiled a large number of astounding examples and put in a nutshell why we need biodiversity - more than anything else.

The authors Dr. Frauke Fischer is a research assistant at the Department of Zoology III (Animal Ecology and Tropical Biology) at the Julius-Maximilians-University of WĂźrzburg (JMU).

One focus of her research is on "biodiversity" and "social responsibility". To this end, she regularly holds lectures and workshops; in 2003 she also founded the agency "auf!", which advises companies on their commitment to sustainability, climate protection and the conservation of biodiversity.

Hilke Oberhansberg holds a doctorate in economics; she studied interdisciplinary environmental sciences and, after many years in international corporations, now works in the

Architecture&Design

yasminemhmoudieh | London

YASMINE MAHMOUDIEH

Y

Her unique holistic approach to design, which merges from human psychology and cuttinge d g e t e c h n o l o g y, h a s resulted in an acclaimed international show-case of award-winning, one-of-akind projects.

Yasmine is a distinguished member of HoteliersGuild’s

LeadingHôtelières Chapter

YasmineMahmoudieh Yasmine studied art history in Florence, architecture at the l’école d’Ingénieurs de Genève in Switzerland, interior design at the college of Notre Dame in San Francisco and architecture and interior design at UCLA in Los Angeles. A year after she graduated from UCLA (aged 26) she opened her first studio in Los Angeles, and today has her headquarters in London. Her work can be found across Europe, the United States ,into the Middle East and Asia, and even in the skies above, working as one of the few chosen de-signers to work on the Airbus A380.

iasm n Y Yasmine has been rewarded many times for her creative and innovative designs and is a reference in her field. Her multiple talents and skills helped her throughout her entire career in order to live her passion for architecture, design and entrepreneurship.

Whatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the most interesting thing about you that we won't learn from this interview?

I was taking 2 years acting classes in Los Angeles, while studying at UCLA and was promoted by my professor to act in his theatre in Hollywood. I was almost changing my studies, but then realised that acting was a very difficult place to be and so much dependent on the mercy of producers. However I believe that it helped me in giving lectures all over the world , including Shanghai in front of 1000 people or teaching in various hotel and architecture schools around the world.

Three words that describe you?

Passionate, resilient, creative!

What have you done recently for the first time?

Teaching 30 students from the Institut Paul Bocuse on zoom.

Q&A

Your definition of SUSTAINABLE LUXURY, personal and architecture & design?

For me it is being in nature, being surrounded by beauty and sustainable materials. An aesthetic quality of architecture and interior design is very important to me. Lighting is so important and needs to address feelings . We need shadow and light to have an interesting juxtaposition.

I like fireplaces and indirect lighting that punctuates the beauty of materials and colours and architectural details. To me luxury is also authenticity . I do not like artificial materials. I like space and fresh air and beautiful surroundings . I like to smell flowers and sauces and hear the songs of birds and the wind or water or even snow flakes. I was a few years ago in the treehotel in Sweden with my family. That was pure luxury sleeping like a bird in the tress.

It is a concept that I wanted to develop myself for some time. A tree-hotel in a beautiful forest.

To me it is about soft materials that are pleasant to feel and touch and furniture that makes me relax and spaces that make me recharge my batteries. I appreciate a lot of natural lighting coming into buildings and melting with outdoor and open air areas.

Who is your guru?

I do not have a guru. I get inspirations form all kinds of influences in life itself. I have had a great mentor from UCLA, my former Italian professor who was the head of the design department and became my mentor and friend for life.. He taught me to never do something different if it it not better and many other things.

He was a philosopher of design and architecture , mainly teaching you how to think.

Where do you get your inspirations?

From everywhere. From music, movies, theatre, art, poetry, philosophy and from heaving had the fortune to have travelled since earliest age with my parents to many countries and continents. I also get a lot of inspirations when in nature and I

adore trees, flowers, plants and beautiful landscapes.

What do you enjoy most about your work?

Each day is different .There are constantly new challenges, but also new ideas to implement. It is never monotonous. There is no routine and I love working in different countries and diving into local cultures and getting to know countries through my work rather an being a tourist.

What do you enjoy the least?

Dealing with unreliable people be it construction companies, consultants etc, a lot of what we do depends also on other people that we cannot always control and that can be frustrating at times.

What is your personal indulgence?

I am a very curious person and there are so many places in the world I still want to see and also there are many adventure travels I would like to take from visiting the gorillas in Africa to an expedition in the Antarctic, â&#x20AC;Śâ&#x20AC;Ś..and many more.

I love meting creatives form other areas as music, film, art, sound, scent, and to be a long life learner as I believe tha tone life time is much to short to go after all my passions and ideas in life.

If you had one wish for yet another dream hospitality project - what would it be & why & where?

Realising my own hotel brand the Y? Hotel is not just a dream but a project I am following up intensely at the moment. Through my longtine experience and my strong intuition I do know what people want or what could excite them that they have not seen yet. I can anticipate a lot of things and my most successful projects are those where I had a lot of freedom in developing not only the design but also the concept. I do believe that a country hotel concept that is outside metropolitan cities that has amazing cultural events throughout the year and cottages that you can buy and which are rented out to the hotel can be spreading across many countries and even continents. I like to start in Europe but there is no limit to any country as being in nature is a need everywhere and I believe accelerated through the pandemic. What in your opinion is the most pressing sustainability issue facing the hospitality industry today?There are many. We need to apply much more sustainable building processes and use of materials than in the past. It is not enough to conserve water and energy. There are many exiting new materials for the exterior and interiors of buildings that can help preserving our environment and also recycling of materials can be much more used.

We need to make sure that the carbon footprint is as little as possible and there are more opposition to do that today than hoteliers who are willing to apply them, We need a paradigm shift and also understand that long-term success

will depend on the implementation of sustainability rather thank talking about it only.

W he re do yo u s e e t he b i g g e s t challenges in terms hotel concepts & destinations for the post-Covid period?

City hotels have to be thought out in a new way. Sanitary issues have to be addressed and touch less points will be a new standard. I believe that any crisis is like Darwinism. The good projects will be separated form the bad ones. I think that developers and investors need creative architects and designers to lead t h e w ay i nt o a m o r e c r e a t i ve , constructions future any also addressing human needs more. Hotels could be again places to work to ‘live’ for longer periods . Many remote locations have the chance to be seen to be sought after as the problems of dense cities is causing a flight to nature. If hotels can be part of mixed use projects where we can develop more horizontal cities outside bit centres we will lift the constraint to cities and all the problems they create including pollution. We need inventive developers who are ready to innovate together in teams with creatives and offer new living solutions . It is in one way an exiting time as change is something good form my point of view.

Difficult times as right now offer a window of opportunities and are messengers to us that we need to redirect our values and lives in order to be sustainable ourselves in the world we live in.

Your greatest professional achievement so far?

Having followed my dream all of my life, having created my now company at the age of 26 after graduating from UCLA and having work and lived in many countries but also having been the first ever professor at a hotel school ( EHL in Lausanne) to have taught architecture and design concepts to hotel students and being recognised for many projects through International awards.

What are the dominating sustainable materials you use and future trends?

We have some many that I cn only name a few. I love to use the ceramic floor slabs that clean the air and are anti odour and anti bacterial from an Italian company or the apple and rhubarb later but also the banana veneer and the carbon fibre material for outside facades that conserves heat and through light diodes let the facade shine at night.

Describe your KidsClub project & why’s it so close to your heart?

Mykidsy playground derived form my tech company www.mykidsy.com which is an online marketplace to book the most edcuaiotnal and meaningful on and off line activities for children. My goal sit to turn mykidsy into a global tech company as all over the world the challenges are the same for parents to engage children form the earliest age into meaningful activities. Mykidsy.com is a one stop shop to do that. We also

developed our own classes teaching children entrepreneurship. Financial literacy, coding , mindfulness and sustainability.

The mykidsy playground is a designed and built concept by me that will be rolled out in hotels across the world and will also include the tools to teach children those life skills while residing in hotels.

My vision for mykidsy is that it will improve life of children across the globe as we grow internationally. Hotels are global so we can combine the growth in conjunction and make hotels places of fun education for children .

What do you do in your daily personal life and when you are traveling in the name of sustainability?

I meditate each morning before I get up and play tennis and gold each week. I am more and more looking to travel to natural destinations and hotels that respect the environment. I don’t use my car a lot but walk or also use a manual scooter often.

What steps do you take to make your personal life more sustainable?

We try to avoid plastics as good as possible and also do not toxic chemicals including all cleaning but also beauty products. I am reducing the use of my car to going to the countryside mainly and also my son walks each day to the school One past or living hotelier and/or hospitality leader do you admire most?

Ditto for architects?

I admire Ian Schrager for having changed the status quo of hotels and for his boldness to change a very classical and old fashioned industry with his first 'design hotels' in the 80’s.

One of the architects I admired was Anna Castelli Ferrieri who was a close friend. The was an amazing architect amidst a very male dominated time especially at her time. She never got discouraged and just followed her dreams and created amazing work during her life time and also was teaching internationally even in her 90”s.

Can you share your favourite place/ hotel to stay?

I really like to go with my family but also friends to the Intercontinental Hotel in Berchtesgaden ( now Kempinski) that I designed in 2006. It has still not been changed and the setting is stunning and close to my favourite city Salzburg.

However do I also like very much the Aman hotels as a brand to go to.

The three essential ingredients for a new sustainable hotel concept are… ?

Using sustainable materials that go beyond rattan and wood as there are so many exiting materials that have not been used so far. Integrating the community and offering local arts and crafts, art, experiences, and reinventing the food palette by organic and healthy food also for children.( the men for children still consist to at least 90%

across the world in pasta with tomato sauce or pizza or hamburger. Difficult to believe but a fact) Your opinion, outlook and advise re more female architects in luxury hospitality.

What are the challenges and your intention to contribute as an Ambassador with LeadingHôtelières?

I think women need to be more self confident and less intimidated by a male dominated field. I think it is more important to follow your passion and road than to be annoyed about injustice in gender equality. I am hopeful that it will change over the next decades and women will get more the recognition they deserve. However one should not wait for changes to happen and be part of that change by implementing ones desires and by being resilient, focused and determined. The mindset is very important next to all expertise and talent.

One word what still motivates you after so long in business?

The excitement of creating an idea in my mind and being ablate to see it build in the real world, is of such satisfaction, that it is hard to describe!

What’s your most treasured possession?

My children. No they are not my possessions but my passion. Coming to your answer it is my passport that allows me to travel the world.

When was the last time you completely unplugged?

I always unplug when in nature. I play each Sunday golf with my children in beautiful Stoke Park and it is so beautiful and meditative for me. The same is when we go with friends to the seaside for a day or weekend and inhale a breeze of fresh air. That is truly calming and relaxing for me.

W he re do yo u s e e t he b i g g e s t challenges in terms hotel concepts & destinations for the post-Covid period?

Health and well-being need to be c o n s i d e r e d w h o l l y, i n c l u d i n g : intellectual, physiological, social, material & spiritual, mental & emotional well being.Wellness hotels will be at the rise .We need to take this opportunity to redesign our culture, our behaviour and the use of natural resources.We need to design from the inside out.We have to allow more fresh air flow for cleaner environments. Hotels need to upgrade their infrastructures to address the demand for more perceived safety which will also come from more emphasis on outdoor space and integration of fresh air spaces.

Finally, name at least two items that are on top of you personal/family bucket list?

Travelling with my son for 3 months to South America, hiking in Patagonia, walking the Camino Real with my children.

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