BeCause is simplifying the sustainability journey for members by integrating the World Travel & Tourism Council's Hotel Sustainability Basics framework into its platform.
The partnership will enable WTTC to scale its Hotel Sustainability Basics more effectively, broadening its reach and impact within the hospitality industry. By centralizing relevant data within the BeCause platform, the global association will have greater visibility into which hotels have completed the framework and which ones are lagging, empowering it to advocate for more sustainable hotel operations globally. Similarly, hotel management at the chain level can check on the progress of individual properties and provide the necessary support to help them in their sustainability journeys.
"Sustainability is a priority for travel and tourism. Through the Hotel Sustainability Basics, the global hotel industry has come together to define 12 fundamental, globally aligned sustainability criteria that all hotels can and should implement as a bare minimum," WTTC President and CEO Julia Simpson said in a statement."Our goal is to have a globally recognized trademark that shows customers at a glance that a hotel is taking measures to improve its environmental performance while also supporting its local community. By joining forces with BeCause, we are increasing the transparency of that process and giving hotel groups an effective and efficient way to put that tool into the hands of their properties."
Hotels' Sustainable Path to Green
Hotels that adopt the HSB framework have three years to meet its 12 criteria, which include sustainability indicators such as energy measurement and linen reuse. They can apply for Hotel Sustainability Basics verification annually through one of WTTC's partners, Green Key and SGS. Successful verification grants them a badge that can be used across their branding to appeal to the growing number of environmentally conscious guests.
In the future, BeCause will simplify this process further by automatically transmitting data from its platform directly to the verification partners. Hotels already using BeCause to manage their sustainability data can reuse their existing and overlapping data points for the HSB framework, removing the need for duplicative and manual tasks.
"Like any endeavor, the first step is always the hardest," BeCause CEO and Co-founder Frederik Steensgaard said. "While many hotels might have sustainability initiatives in place, they don't necessarily track their data, or do so efficiently. By completing the HSB framework through BeCause and gaining greater insight into how their business activities impact the planet, we hope they will be encouraged to pursue even more ambitious sustainability measures in the future."