Hilton has unveiled new global targets to halve its environmental footprint and double social impact investment by 2030, with the help of "science-based targets".
The group claims it will be the first major hotel company to institute science-based targets to reduce its carbon emissions.
Key parts of the new programme include reducing carbon emissions intensity by 61 per cent, in line with the Paris Climate Agreement and approved by the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi); reducing water consumption and produced waste by 50 per cent; sustainably sourcing meat, poultry, produce, seafood and cotton; and expanding its existing soap recycling programme to all hotels and send zero soap to landfill.
The group will also contribute 10 million volunteer hours through "Team Member" initiatives and double monetary support for natural disaster relief efforts.
It will also double the amount it spends with local and minority-owned suppliers, and double its investment in programmes to help women and youth around the world. These goals are part of Hilton’s Travel with Purpose corporate responsibility strategy to further the United Nation’s 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda.
In Europe, Middle East and Africa, the commitment will also remove 5 million plastic straws and 20 million plastic water bottles annually. Laid end to end, the straws saved each year in the region would exceed the length of the River Seine.
An estimated 8 million tons of plastic waste enter the ocean each year, and research projects that plastic in oceans could triple in a decade.
Hilton will also remove plastic straws and offer a paper or biodegradable alternative upon request, while as part of it Meet with Purpose programme it will remove plastic water bottles from meetings and events.
Simon Vincent, executive vice-president and president, EMEA, Hilton said: “As a leading global hospitality company, we have a huge responsibility to act as stewards of our natural resources, and support the communities in which we operate. Through our corporate responsibility strategy, Travel with Purpose, we are constantly looking for new ways to reduce our environmental impact. Extending a ban on plastic straws across our managed portfolio is an important move in the right direction, and one which we are committed to building on in the coming years."
hilton.com